Victorian 1837-1901 Decorative, Elaborate, and Highly Ornate
"Extravagant embellishment was applied to architecture, furniture, clothing, and appeared as elaborate borders and lettering in graphic design. Sentimentality, nostalgia, and idealized beauty were expressed through printed images of young women, flowers, children, and puppies and kittens."
"The term 'Victorian' (technically 1837-1901) designates an era when many designers and artisans were intensely interested in ornament. It was a time of global exploration, and when the art and design of distant cultures made headway into the mass culture of Europe, England, and the United States for the first time."
Arts & Crafts 1880-1910 Simple, Textured
"The movement’s figurehead was William Morris (1834–1896), designer, typographer, printer, and publisher."
"Have nothing in your house you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful," William Morris said. No detail of interior design was overlooked by the pioneer of the Arts and Crafts movement.
Art Nouveau 1890-1920 Linear, Female Form Emphasis
"Art Nouveau is an international style of art, architecture, and design that peaked in popularity during the last decade of the 19th century through the beginning of the First World War. It was characterized by an elaborate ornamental style based on asymmetrical lines, frequently depicting flowers, leaves or tendrils, or in the flowing hair of a female."
"Art Nouveau, ornamental style of art that flourished between about 1890 and 1910 throughout Europe and the United States. Art Nouveau is characterized by its use of a long, sinuous, organic line and was employed most often in architecture, interior design, jewelry and glass design, posters, and illustration."
"The advent of Art Nouveau - literally "New Art" - can be traced to two distinct influences: the first was the introduction, around 1880, of the British Arts and Crafts movement, which, much like Art Nouveau, was a reaction against the cluttered designs and compositions of Victorian-era decorative art. The second was the current vogue for Japanese art, particularly wood-block prints, that swept up many European artists in the 1880s and 90s..."