Plate 18, Papier peint "La table est mise" et Toile imprimée "Floréal", from "Papiers Peints et Tentures Modernes"
Author Henri Clouzot French
Publisher Ch. Massin & Cie. French
Printer Catala frères French
Not on view
Two designs with semi-abstract motifs: the first, for a wallpaper, is made up of lozenges formed by intersecting diagonal garlands with semi-abstract scrolling branches, leaves and flowers, containing tables with fruits, bottles, and desserts, executed with black over an off-white ground; the second, for a printed fabric, is made up of semi-abstract flowers executed with black and gray over a cream ground. These designs make up the 18th plate of a mixed media pattern book, titled "Papiers Peints et Tentures Modernes (Toiles et Cretonnes Imprimées)" [Painted Papers and Modern Hangings (Printed Fabrics and Cotton Cloth)], written by Henri Clouzot, conservator at the Musée Galliera and published in Paris [in 1929] by Ch. Massin & Cie. The album is composed of 46 leaves, including a half title page, a title page, a 2-page table of contents, an introductory text, and 40 plates, each with one or two designs, numbered 1-40, bound with blue linen. The plates present designs for printed textiles and wallpapers, designed by different artists, whose names are included on each plate. The design motifs are typical of the Art Deco style, which was characterized by its eclecticism, drawing from a variety of sources that sought to combine old European design traditions with the modern style diffused by avant-garde art, while also reflecting the romantic fascination with early Egyptian and Meso-American "exotic" cultures promoted by archaeological discoveries of the times.