The Victorian era is thought of as a time of buttoning up, in every sense of the word: no wild behaviour or hint of flesh. Yet from about 1850 onwards, huge global changes helped to bring about a mode of artistic expression that positively celebrated the erotic, the wild forces of nature and the beauty of the female form, culminating in the birth of Art Nouveau in the 1890s.
“Society was going through massive changes, which resulted in the desire in some quarters to reject the Establishment,” says Chrissie Painell, of the Design Gallery in Westerham, Kent, which is staging a selling exhibition of Art Nouveau jewellery, in conjunction with the German dealer and expert Angelika Borsdorf, from June 21 to mid-July. “Boundaries were changing and new countries were opening up. There was an unsettled feeling in the air, which found expression in Art Nouveau, vastly different from the heavy Victorian art before.”
And the jewellery has proved popular among collectors of late. “In the past 20 years prices for Art Nouveau artists’ jewellery have at least doubled; in some cases tripled,” Ms Borsdorf says. “But these pieces are still a good investment — this field of collecting is not as widely recognised as others and there are still exciting discoveries to be made.
“There are very few specialist dealers in Europe or America. But demand is rising and will continue to do so, driven in part by exhibitions at the Victoria and Albert Museum.”
When the movement was in its infancy, the first of the seismic events that changed the globe was that foreigners were, for the first time in centuries, allowed to visit Japan. Christopher Dresser, one of the most famous designers of his day, was invited to the country at the behest of the Japanese Government. He returned to Europe bearing Japanese art and ceramics, which ended up in the South Kensington Museum, now the V&A.
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The materials used reflected the changes, too. Victorian jewellers had worked with diamonds and gems, but the fashionable craftsmen now took to using moonstone, enamel and turquoise.
Famous names that feature in the Design Gallery’s exhibition include Archibald Knox, Theodor Fahrner, Murrie Bennett, Jean Després, Max Gradl and Georg Kleemann.
The signed pieces are the ones to look out for. Art Nouveau jewellery is, on the whole, not hugely expensive: most pieces in this exhibition are priced at £1,000 to £5,000. Given that pieces of Lalique from the same period can now fetch £100,000, this is by no means extortionate.
Art Nouveau jewellery is not difficult to find, but collectors are beginning to buy up the most important pieces. It does seem to be a growth area, but one that is nearly mature.