Streamline Moderne: THE EVOLUTION OF ART DECO

As the 19th century came to a close, artists, architects, and product designers around the world were searching for design’s next direction. From their perspective, the excessive ornament of Victorian design and the more decorative aspects of Art Nouveau aesthetics were out of date. In their place, early 20th-century innovators such as Walter Gropius and his Bauhaus colleagues, as well as Theo van Doesburg and his fellow De Stijl designers, began to experiment with streamlined forms. Central to their novel approach was removing unnecessary frills, working with rudimentary shapes, and emphasising function as much as aesthetics in an object or space.

These smooth, sleek shapes helped inspire the Art Deco movement, which emerged in France following the work of these earlier designers. The style, which celebrated streamlined forms and clean surfaces, grew rapidly in popularity as it offered a profile wholly different from that of the previous generation. As a result, demand for Art Deco grew quickly. The Art Deco aesthetic swept European design throughout the 1920s, and in the 1930s it reached the United States with similar success.

Complicating Art Deco’s reception, however, was the simultaneous impact of the Great Depression. In a period of such hardship, the Art Deco vocabulary was absorbed into American studios but in a subdued manner. Upholding Art Deco principles while eliminating extraneous decoration and ornament to optimise efficiency and economy, the Streamline Moderne style was born.

As a response to the economic austerity of the Great Depression, it evolved away from the opulent, vertical, and ornate characteristics of early Art Deco. Instead, Streamline Moderne embraced a clean, functional, and machine-inspired aesthetic. The style is defined by its emphasis on sleek, aerodynamic forms, characterised by curved corners, long horizontal lines ("speed lines"), and smooth, unadorned surfaces. It was heavily influenced by modern transportation, with buildings and objects echoing the forms of ocean liners (leading to its French nickname, Style Paquebot or "ocean liner style"), aeroplanes, and trains. It also made prominent use of modern materials such as glass block, chrome, and stainless steel.

Origins

Streamline Moderne emerged in the United States during the early 1930s as a response to the Wall Street Crash of 1929 and the Great Depression. Designers, architects, and engineers moved away from Art Deco's lavish ornaments and luxurious materials towards more functional and affordable ones. They were particularly inspired by aerodynamic design used in automobiles, locomotives, and aircraft (not aircrafts), which utilised shapes that reduced drag. This "streamlining" had a functional role in improving speed and efficiency, but in Streamline Moderne it was applied in less conventional areas such as architecture, interior design, fridges, toasters, radios, and chairs, giving a sense of movement, modernity, and progress. Architecturally, it was also influenced by Futurism, with its dynamic lines and bold colours evoking speed and the age of machinery. A defining moment for the spread of Streamline Moderne in the United States was the 1933–1934 Chicago World's Fair, which introduced the style to the wider public, particularly in automobiles and trains.

THE "Paquebot" style

In France, the style was called Paquebot, or "ocean liner." The French version was inspired by the launch of the ocean liner SS Normandie in 1935, which featured an Art Deco dining room with columns of Lalique crystal. Buildings using variants of the style appeared in Belgium and in Paris, notably at 3 boulevard Victor in the 15th arrondissement, designed by the architect Pierre Patout. Patout, one of the founders of Art Deco, designed the entrance to the Pavilion of a Collector at the 1925 Exposition of Decorative Arts, often regarded as the birthplace of the style. He also designed the interiors of three ocean liners: the Île-de-France (1926), the Atlantique (1930), and the Normandie (1935). Patout's building on Avenue Victor lacked the sweeping curves of the American version but featured a narrow "bow" at one end, where the site was constricted, long balconies like the decks of a ship, and roof projections resembling smokestacks. Another Paris apartment building, at 1 Avenue Paul-Daumier in the 16th arrondissement, included a series of terraces modelled after the decks of an ocean liner.

Visuals

The visuals of Streamline Moderne were inspired by aerodynamic design, which used rounded forms such as teardrops, bullets, and cylinders. Other hallmarks included smooth surfaces, rounded corners, and horizontal lines wrapping around volumes. Materials such as stainless steel, chrome, glass, and plastic were commonly used, not only to emphasise modernity but also because they were cheaper to produce. "Streamlining" contrasted with Functionalism, a leading European style of the time, representing two distinct schools within modernist industrial design.

Architecture

Streamline Moderne architecture emphasised curving forms, long horizontal lines, and sometimes nautical elements such as porthole windows. It appeared most often in buildings related to transport and movement, including bus and train stations, airport terminals, roadside cafés, and port buildings. It shared features with modern architecture, such as rounded corners, glass brick walls, flat roofs, chrome-plated hardware, and horizontal grooves. In contrast to Art Deco, Streamline Moderne stressed horizontality to create an "aerodynamic" appearance reminiscent of ocean liners, while also being less costly to construct. Although Streamline Moderne houses were less common than commercial buildings, residential examples exist. The Lydecker House in Los Angeles, built by Howard Lydecker, is one such case. In tract developments, elements of the style sometimes appeared in post-war housing in San Francisco's Sunset District.

Industrial Design

Streamline Moderne can be contrasted with Functionalism, which dominated European design at the same time. Functionalism prioritised simple forms largely to reduce production costs and make goods more affordable to the working class. Streamlining, in contrast, was as much about aesthetic appeal as function, using aerodynamic shapes even where no performance benefit was gained.

Automobiles

The defining event for Streamline Moderne design in the United States was the 1933–34 Chicago World's Fair, which introduced the style to the public. Automobiles adopted the smooth lines of ocean liners and airships, suggesting efficiency, dynamism, and speed. Grilles and windscreens tilted backwards, cars sat lower and wider, and they featured smooth curves and horizontal speed lines. Examples include the 1934 Chrysler Airflow and the 1934 Studebaker Land Cruiser. They also introduced new materials such as Bakelite, Formica, Vitrolite opaque glass, stainless steel, and enamel, giving them a sleek, modern appearance. In 1939 and 1941, Chrysler and GM introduced pick-up and truck lines that showcased similar designs influenced by Art Deco and Streamline styling. Later examples include the 1950 Nash Ambassador "Airflyte" sedan with its distinctive low fender lines, and Hudson’s post-war models such as the Commodore, which embodied the "streamliner" look in a bold and heavy form.

Furniture

Streamline Moderne also appeared in daily life through furnishings. Designers such as Kem Weber helped to define this new minimalist language for home décor, creating sideboards and armchairs that often incorporated industrial elements like plated steel or synthetic upholstery. Berlin-born Art Deco designer Paul Frankl also embraced the Streamline Moderne aesthetic in many furniture pieces designed to suggest speed and efficiency.

Modest Materials

This industrial aesthetic was reinforced by materials such as bent metal tubing, synthetic fabrics, and Bakelite components. These not only contributed to an industrial look but also made products more affordable. Whereas Art Deco often indulged in costly materials like ebony and marble, Streamline Moderne used modest components, making modernist design accessible during a period of economic constraint.

Omitted Ornamentation

Streamline Moderne design deliberately limited additional ornamentation or bright decorative features. Stripping away excess reinforced its aerodynamic sense while also responding to the financial realities of Depression-era America.

Decline

Streamline Moderne began to decline towards the end of the Second World War, as the post-war economic boom ushered in the Atomic Age of the 1950s. It gradually gave way to new aesthetics such as Raygun Gothic, Space Age, and Mid-Century Modern design.

The Legacy of the Streamline Moderne

Although often considered the final phase of Art Deco, Streamline Moderne played an essential role in sustaining the popularity of modernist design. By eliminating nonessential ornament and simplifying forms, it created objects and buildings that were cost-effective while still reflecting cutting-edge tastes. In a time when economy was paramount, Streamline Moderne responded effectively to the era’s needs while also projecting optimism for the future. Its sleek lines continue to inspire designers and collectors, showing that the energy of 1930s Streamline Moderne remains alive today.

SOURCE:

https://creativemarket.com/blog/streamline-moderne

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https://www.optima.inc/a-brief-history-of-the-streamline-moderne-movement/

https://parametric-architecture.com/streamline-moderne/

https://thewestologist.wordpress.com/2014/04/04/spot-a-style-streamline-moderne/

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