SILVIJA GROSA JŪGENDSTILA PERIODA PLASTISKAIS UN ...

interior of one’s home as a place where one could recover from the traumas in the
nervous system which are caused by life in a big city. The influence of similar
ideas can be seen in the essay “Craftsmanship of Art” (1904) by Jānis Asars.
At the beginning of the early period of Art Nouveau, décor was often
variegated with wallpaper, stencils or plastic forms which had historical prototypes
that had been known in the homes of Rīga’s residents since the latter half of the
18 th century. This was part of the so-called framing system. Each surface of a wall
was framed. The central part of the wall and the frame which enclosed it were
decorated differently, and the proportions of the frame in relation to the surface and
the socle could vary. The décor of decorated ceilings, in turn, was based on
ornamental plastic motifs, stencilled motifs, or colourful bands in a parametric
arrangement, with a rosette at the centre. At the edges of corners of the decorated
ceiling, there could be realistic paintings in the tondo or lunette format. Between
the wall and the ceiling was a coving, a plastic frieze or a stencilled ornamental
band. By the early years of the 20 th century, some walls were decorated with broad,
stencilled friezes placed parametrically. Segmentation of decorated ceilings
became popular, with plastic décor used in this process, too. Alongside the most
popular décor schemes, there were others. Early in the 20 th century the most
prestigious rooms still had ceilings that were decorated with wood carvings, mostly
in the traditional Neo-Renaissance or Neo-Gothic style. Presumably this was
based on earlier samples. Wood panelling on walls was also common. It must also
be added that in the early 20 th century, stoves and fireplaces were an important part
of interior design, with selected forms, ornaments and scenic reliefs. These helped
to shape the mood of the specific historical era, but they also aided in presenting
new tendencies in style.
Although techniques in most cases were more or less the same, the fact is
that the artistic level of décor depended very much on where the relevant building
was located. The interiors that have been studied for architectonic and artistic
purposes, it must be said, are in the elegant zone of the city, which means that they
were mostly in the homes of wealthier citizens and were designed on the basis of
their taste. Variations on decorative finishing of interiors were based not only on
the aesthetic understanding of the owner, but also on the depth of the owner’s
pocketbook. In apartment buildings, the interiors of the second and third floor
were usually more ornate, turning them into something akin to a piano nobile.
Conventional décor was more common here than in flats on upper floors. There,
decorative finishing was usually simpler, and it is there where rooms first appeared
which were decorated in a modern style.
The most important solutions in artistic terms were found in vestibules
and stairwells. Early in the 20 th century, the lower surface of walls in vestibules
and, sometimes, stairwells, was often covered with ceramic tiles, or wood panels
with profiling, intarsia, burned images or engravings. The ongoing popularity of
these wood panels is seen in the fact that they were also used in the decoration of
vestibules and stairwells in several buildings of the later periods of Art Nouveau.
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