NANCY’S ARCHITECTURE

PRESS RELEASE

This exhibition showcases the works of architects and artists who were active in Nancy during the late 1890s and early 1900s, collectively known as the Nancy School. The exhibition consists of panels featuring both color and black-and-white photographs accompanied by explanatory texts. It was originally assembled in Nancy in 1976.

The city of Nancy, located in eastern France, is a significant focal point for understanding European architecture and decorative arts at the turn of the century. Its aesthetic was closely linked to the concurrent artistic movements in nearby Belgium as well as, naturally, the artistic scene in Paris. The concept of the Nancy School began to take shape after the mid-1890s, with figures such as the Belgian pioneer of decorative arts, Henry van de Velde, recognizing its existence. Various branches of applied arts in Nancy, particularly furniture making, metalwork, and stained glass, were of exceptional quality. This synergy with architecture, which served as a unifying element, elevated Nancy to one of Europe’s major centers for the Art Nouveau movement.

The development in Nancy mirrored broader European trends of the 1890s. The drive for innovation initially appeared in the applied arts, particularly in the products of local woodworking shops, before expanding from individual objects to larger architectural compositions. Inspired by Belgian architect Victor Horta, furniture manufacturer Eugène Vallin designed a building in 1896 that broke away from historical motifs in its façade. However, it was not until the early 1900s that architecture in Nancy truly blossomed, with leading figures like Lucien Weissenburger, Henri Sauvage, and Emile André at the forefront. This architectural renaissance was accelerated by the city’s rapid growth. In both façades and, to some extent, floor plans, asymmetry and motifs inspired by nature began to replace classical symmetry. Buildings were designed as total works of art, with meticulously detailed interiors and stained glass. The goal was to achieve a unified, almost molded appearance, where different materials were subordinated to a common design principle. The emphasis was on organic forms, with plant stems and blossoms serving as central design elements, creating a strikingly rich and varied visual language. Every part of a building was meant to be unique, with no two structures resembling one another. The architecture of the Nancy School is fundamentally non-tectonic; stone and wood were shaped as if they were malleable wax. A notable feature in Nancy at the time was the widespread use of iron structures, particularly for shopfronts, restaurants, and bank windows, as well as skylights adorned with vibrantly colored stained glass.

The architecture of the Nancy School was part of a broader European movement aimed at reforming the decorative arts and architecture, which in Finland manifested as our own distinctively National Romantic style. The exhibition highlights how international ideals did not constrain designers or produce uniform styles, as long as they were rooted in a strong national identity.

Organized by Cercle Français and the Pori Art Museum.

Translated with ChatGPT