Art Deco on the Edge

'Art Deco on the Edge' exhibition explores 40 years of the Art Deco Trust and the centenary of the “Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes” in Paris, France, when this decorative style was first exhibited in 1925.

During the 1920s and early 1930s the Moderne style (later known as Art Deco) gained in popularity. Following the 1931 Hawke’s Bay earthquake, most of Napier’s and some of Hasting’s central business district buildings were destroyed. This contemporary moderne style was embraced by architects in the design of new commercial buildings.

By the mid 1980s, these 50-year-old buildings were under threat of demolition. A group of passionate individuals joined together to protect and preserve this unappreciated heritage in Hawke’s Bay and from small beginnings the Art Deco Trust was born.

Image: Figurine, Bat Girl or Butterfly Dancer, circa 1930s
designer, Josef Lorenzl
collection of Hawke's Bay Museums Trust, Ruawharo Tā-ū-rangi, 86/61/1