O’REILLYS Fine Jewellery, Watches & Silver Auction Starting 19th October 2022 at 1pm

THE STYLE 6 Ar t Nouveau was a highly decorative style which emerged at the beginning of the 20th century lasting from 1890-1910. It was dominated by naturalism; organic scrolling foliage and sinuous lines were among its most identifiable forms of decoration.There was a strong desire to make the Ar t Nouveau style one which would emulate the new era of modernism of the early 20th century. It sought to leave behind the imitative styles of the 19th century and abandon previous hierarchal views of the arts whereby painting and sculpture were deemed as superior forms of media.This new modern movement valued, above all, the craft-based decorative ar ts such as ironwork & metalwork, furniture design, jewellery, illustration, glass making and interior design. The goal was to raise the bar of workmanship, creating high quality ar t which reflected a new type of sophisticated modernism. It was a popular belief amongst Ar t Nouveau practitioners that an object’s function should dictate its form.This is seen throughout architecture, sculpture, and other 3D forms of ar t, whereby the whole form becomes infused with the motifs of the style. It is meant to represent liberation from more traditional beliefs that clarity of structure and reason should take precedence. Silversmiths working during this period where highly skilled and worked long hours to achieve the highly detailed decoration. They worked with two techniques: chasing and repoussé, often combining the two. Repoussé required the silversmith to hammer from the Lot 192 (The Design Sale) TIMED ONLINE AUCTION OF FINE JEWELLERY, WATCHES & SILVER • WEDNESDAY, 19th OCT 2022 AT 1PM