This display presents works of applied art from the late 19th and early 20th centuries created within the international art movement that in Russia became known as the Modern(e), in Belgium and France as Art Nouveau, in Germany as the Jugendstil, in Italy as the Liberty style. Exponents of the tendency sought to create a new artistic language appropriate for an age of technical revolution. Their aims and goals were embodied in the slogan “Beautiful things in everyday life.”
On show in this hall are pieces of furniture, ceramics, costumes and textiles made in Europe and Russia, They include a cupboard with contours reminiscent of an oriental pagoda that was made under the influence of Japanese art by the craftsmen of the celebrated Parisian firm L'Escalier de cristal in 1894. The elegant low-backed armchair with the sinuous curves typical for the Art Nouveau was produced by Friedrich Meltzer’s Saint Petersburg furniture factory. Exhibited next to it is a loose-fitting Russian-made lady’s overcoat. The Far Eastern influence on the formation of the Art Nouveau style is demonstrated by examples of European ceramics that are marked by great diversity. There are the massive colourful creations of the Frenchman Joseph-Théodore Deck decorated with floral painting, and small examples of the art of Italian potters.
