What Is Art Deco? The Aesthetic, Explained

Art Deco is the glamour of the 1920s and 1930s in solid form. Bold geometric shapes, sunbursts and zigzags, stepped towers, black and gold, polished chrome and rich lacquer. It is the style of the Chrysler Building, of cocktail bars and ocean liners, of flapper dresses and diamond bracelets. It is also, for Indian readers, the style of Mumbai’s Marine Drive and old single-screen cinemas. A century after it was born, Art Deco is enjoying another revival, which trend forecasters call “neo deco”.

What is Art Deco?

Art Deco is a design style that spread across architecture, interiors, furniture, fashion, jewellery, graphic design and products between the two world wars. It combined luxury and craftsmanship with the speed and optimism of the modern machine age. Its signature is the geometric: symmetrical patterns, stylised flowers and fans, chevrons, stepped forms and streamlined curves.

Where it came from

The name comes from the 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris (in French, Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes), which showcased the new style to the world. The label “Art Deco” itself became common only in the 1960s, when historians revived interest in the period. The style drew on many sources: Cubist painting, the bold colours of the Ballets Russes, ancient Egyptian art (excitement peaked after Tutankhamun’s tomb was opened in 1922), Aztec and Mayan architecture, and the shapes of cars, trains and aeroplanes.

Art Deco travelled fast. In New York, it shaped skyscrapers such as the Chrysler Building (1930) and the Empire State Building (1931), and the interiors of Radio City Music Hall. In the 1930s, a smoother version called Streamline Moderne appeared in Miami Beach, Los Angeles and on ocean liners. In fashion, it influenced the straight, beaded dresses of the flapper era, cloche hats, long strings of pearls and geometric jewellery by houses such as Cartier. René Lalique’s glass and Erté’s illustrations became icons of the style.

Mumbai’s Art Deco

Mumbai has one of the largest collections of Art Deco buildings in the world, often said to be second only to Miami. In the 1930s and 1940s, land reclaimed from the sea along Marine Drive and the Oval Maidan was filled with Deco apartment blocks, many designed by Indian architects and commissioned by local families. Cinemas such as the Regal (1933) and the Eros (1938) brought Hollywood-style glamour to the city. Indian Deco often mixed international geometry with local motifs. In 2018, UNESCO added the “Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai” to its World Heritage list.

The codes

• Patterns: sunbursts, fans, chevrons, zigzags, stepped “ziggurat” shapes, stylised florals, bold symmetry.
• Materials: lacquer, exotic woods, chrome, brass, marble, mirrored and frosted glass, terrazzo.
• Interiors: curved sofas, round mirrors, velvet, fluted details, geometric lighting.
• Fashion: drop-waist beaded dresses, fringe, long pearls, cloche hats, geometric jewellery.
• Colours: black, gold, cream, emerald, deep blue, burgundy and silver.

See the mood

The references

Buildings: the Chrysler and Empire State Buildings, Rockefeller Center, Miami Beach’s Ocean Drive, Mumbai’s Marine Drive, Eros and Regal cinemas, Napier in New Zealand (rebuilt in Deco style after a 1931 earthquake).

Designers and artists: Jacques-Émile Ruhlmann, Eileen Gray, René Lalique, Erté, Tamara de Lempicka, Cartier.

Film and TV: Metropolis (1927), the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers musicals, The Great Gatsby (2013), Peaky Blinders, Poirot.

Why it caught on

After the First World War, people wanted glamour, speed and optimism. Art Deco gave them a modern style that still felt luxurious and decorative. It worked at every scale, from a skyscraper to a powder compact, and was adopted by cinemas, hotels and department stores, so ordinary people could enjoy it too. Today, its bold geometry looks great in photos, and its mix of luxury and order appeals to people tired of both bare minimalism and cluttered maximalism.

The debate

Art Deco’s love of exotic materials and “exotic” imagery, from ivory to borrowed Egyptian and African motifs, reflects the colonial attitudes of its time, which historians now discuss critically. In cities like Mumbai and Miami, there is also an ongoing battle to protect Deco buildings from demolition and redevelopment. Preservation groups argue that these buildings are an irreplaceable part of urban history; developers often see them as old and inefficient.

How to bring it home or wear it

At home, try a fluted or curved piece of furniture, a round mirror, brass lighting with geometric shades, and a palette of deep green or navy with gold. In fashion, a beaded or fringed dress, geometric jewellery or a sleek finger-wave hairstyle nods to the 1920s. Pinterest’s “neo deco” trend for 2026 suggests chevron patterns, fan shapes and copper and bronze finishes.

Where it is now

2025 marked a century since the Paris exhibition, bringing exhibitions and articles celebrating Art Deco worldwide. Combined with Pinterest’s neo deco prediction and the popularity of curved, glamorous interiors, Deco is once again one of the most influential styles in design.

Related aesthetics

Mid-Century Modern · Glamoratti · Old Money · Royalcore · Grandmillennial

Learn more: hear from more voices

Dezeen’s quick guide to Art Deco, and a deeper look at its rise and fall.

Read more

• 100 years of Art Deco and the Paris exhibition that launched it worldwide — ThePrint. The centenary of the style.
• Art Deco at the World’s Expositions — Smithsonian Libraries. How world fairs spread the style.
• French Art Deco — The Metropolitan Museum of Art. A museum essay on the style’s French origins.

Sources: design histories of Art Deco and the 1925 Paris exhibition; UNESCO World Heritage listing of Mumbai’s Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles (2018); Pinterest Predicts 2026. Videos are embedded from YouTube and remain the work of their creators. Linked articles belong to their publishers.