In Paris during the early 20th century, influences from vastly different realms of art and international commerce combined to create new forms of expression. Just as artists were seeking new concepts and forms, sailors, explorers, merchants and government officials were bringing back to Europe objects from distant lands.
Sculpture and ceremonial objects from West and Central Africa, which previously had been considered mere curiosities jumbled together in ethnographic museums, began to be regarded both for their aesthetic value and expressive power.
By 1900 European nations had partitioned Africa into colonies, with the French claiming several West African territories--Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire, Dahomey and Gabon. Objects from these areas flowed into public museums and the hands of art dealers and private collectors. Of particular importance was the 1894 defeat of the Kingdom of Dahomey (present-day Republic of Benin). The French took the symbols of Dahomean authorit--carved thrones, relief doors and figures--back to Paris. The furniture displayed in the exhibition echoes the forms of some of these ceremonial objects.
Objects from other West African nations ruled by Britain, Germany and Belgium also went on public view, making them accessible to artists and designers. When Pierre Legrain visited London he could have seen exhibits of Asante artifacts, such as miniature gold weights and traditional stools.
Several modern artists--Matisse, Vlaminck, Derain and Picasso--collected African sculptures and ceremonial objects, adapting and sometimes copying African forms in their work. Historians have well documented this influence. Not so well established, however, is the influence of African art on early 20th-century decorative arts--specifically the Art Deco movement.
Practitioners of this movement sought to create art forms that fulfilled the needs of a post-Industrial Revolution society. Designers striving for freedom and modernity in their activities incorporated a variety of elements, from the conventional to the exotic, foreign, industrial and avant garde. For example, furniture designers combined wood and leather with rare and precious materials such as horn and ivory, as well as lacquer and tubular steel.
Artists also attempted to reconcile their traditional methods with the needs of industrial mass production. All in all, they created a body of work that is easily recognizable for its bold outlines, streamlined and rectilinear forms and use of "new" materials. As this exhibition demonstrates, African forms and patterns contributed significantly to the vocabulary of the Art Deco movement.