Theo Nieuwenhuis (1866 - 1951); a detail from a calendar magazine in June 1898, Litho on paper. Gemeetemuseum Den Hague

A new art for a new, improved society. That is what many artists and designers were looking for around 1900. After a century of styles that literally quoted the past, new forms language emerged, based on asymmetry, curved lines and organic decorative motifs. The Netherlands played its own unique role in this artistic quest.  

In this country, Art Nouveau fizzed with a desire to innovate and with idealism, but it was also a search for the authentic. In this interdisciplinary exhibition, the Gemeentemuseum will showcase the finest decorative arts in a broad context, making the dynamics of the age (1884-1914) visible, tangible and recognizable in this age where authenticity and craftsmanship are once more highly prized.

The art world's urge to innovate around 1900 coincides 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 in the swathes of the population. In the art world, especially among designers and decorative artists, these changes led to counterreactions, including a rediscovery of the value of nature, the countryside and the traditional.

As in neighboring countries, the new industrial society was responsible for the 'decline in art' in the Netherlands, too. "We are children of the steam engine, the telegraph and electricity. We have turned our backs on the beautiful, and that is why we no longer understand it," decorative artist Johannes Ros lamented.

However, there were differences between the Netherlands and neighboring Belgium and Germany. A new expressive form that developed there was designed to appeal above all in the emerging world for a world that was gathering momentum, whereas Art Nouveau in the Netherlands was a quest for the 'truth', the 'genuine', the original. 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 get hand in hand with a search for authenticity.

Jan Willem Mijnlieff (1862 - 1937), executed by Fayence + Tegelfabriek, Holland, ca 1900; Utrecht plate, glazed painted earthenware

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