Art Nouveau

An international movement that originated in the mid 1890s in Belgium and France and was known in other countries by other names, such as Jugendstil (Germany and Austria), Modernisme (Catalonia), and Tiffany style (United States). Practitioners sought to break with the past, creating a style of ornamentation applicable to architecture, interior design, and objects that was not based on Classical or Renaissance forms. Instead Japanese art was a particular influence, as were exotic flowers and plants.