1890–1915
Nordic Romantic
Art Nouveau, given a northern vocabulary
National Romanticism took the continental curve and replaced its plants with pine, granite and knotwork. In Sweden, Denmark and Finland the result was furniture and silver that read as deliberately local — saga ornament, carved animals, and a heaviness that owes more to the Viking revival than to Paris.
It is short-lived and regionally uneven, which makes it one of the more rewarding Nordic periods to collect by maker rather than by style.
What to look for
Carved knotwork and animal forms, dark stained wood, and silver with hammered rather than polished surfaces.
Searches for this entry are still being collected.