Around 1900, a new art for a new, improved society, was the goal of many artists.[1] After a century of styles referencing the past, a new form language emerged, based on asymmetry, curved lines and organic decorative motifs. In the Netherlands, this new style aspired to innovate with idealism, while also searching for the authentic. The art world’s urge to innovate around 1900 coincided with major changes in society. For the first time the urban population was growing faster than the rural population. New means of communication fostered internationalization. The first cautious steps towards wider suffrage prompted the rise of equal rights movements. And industrialization and growing prosperity made luxury and entertainment accessible to broader swathes of the population. In the art world, particularly among designers and decorative artists, these changes led to counter-reactions, including a rediscovery of the value of nature, the countryside and the traditional.

However, there were differences between the Netherlands and neighboring Belgium and Germany. Abroad, a new expressive form language that developed there was designed to appeal above all to an emerging zest for life in a world that was gathering momentum, whereas Art Nouveau in the Netherlands was a quest for authenticity. The re-evaluation of tradition and skill, the reform of art education, appreciation of the perfection and pristine quality of nature, and fascination with exotic, unspoiled cultures; here, the urge for innovation and idealism went hand in hand with a search for authenticity.

[1] J. de Bruijn, F. Van Dijke & M. Hohé, exh.cat. Art Nouveau in Nederland, Kunstmuseum, The Hague 2018, pp. 25-33