Essay on Art Nouveau
The beginnings of the New Art (or Art Nouveau) style in Scotland were centred around The Glasgow School of Art. Charles Rennie Mackintosh, one of the most famous Art Nouveau architects was based around Glasgow and by the turn of the century this new art became known as the Glasgow style.
One of the most famous pieces of design done by Mackintosh was of course the Glasgow School of Art. A particular room in the school came to my attention, the library. Mackintosh has an eye for using wood, much inspired from Japanese style. The library is a perfect example of this. The double-height interior of the library looked surprisingly modern. Symbolism was a great aspect of Mackintosh’s designs, particularly in this library. It’s screened gallery supported by vertical timbers, which fluently divide the space and the floor-to-ceiling windows, allowing this dark panelled room to be bathed with light. In symbolic terms I think Mackintosh has made this room, not only look, but feel like a Japanese forest. The tall dark timber supports represent tall dark wood trees and the small lights hanging are in the style of Japanese lanterns, representing small beams of light, edging through the small cracks in the trees. I think this is a fantastic use of light with design. Read more…