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Baron
Victor Horta (1861-1947), Belgian architect, one of
the pioneers and leading practitioners of art nouveau architecture. He
abandoned the neoclassical style of his schooling in favor of an
innovative art nouveau approach that emphasized irregular shapes and
lush curved lines. His first major work, Hôtel Tassel (1892-1893), in
Brussels, set forth his principal themes: exposed cast iron as a
structural material; a centralized floor plan in place of the
traditional corridor arrangement; and close attention to
ornamentation. He supervised the interior decoration—even the
furniture design—of all his buildings, and his characteristic
flowing "whiplash lines," inspired by vegetation motifs,
were prominent in his wall decorations, doors, and staircases, as
exemplified in his most lavish private house, Hôtel Solvay (1894), in
Brussels. In public buildings such as the Maison du Peuple (1899,
destroyed 1964), the Brussels headquarters of the Belgian Socialist
party, he produced glass and iron facades that were some of the most
advanced of their day. He was an important European predecessor of the
modern 20th-century International Style, particularly in his use of
exposed structural ironwork and glass facades.
His
Works:
Hotel van Eetvelde, at Brussels,
Belgium, 1895 to 1898.
Lambeaux Sculpture Pavilion, at Brussels, Belgium, 1889.
Mattyn House, at Brussels, Belgium, 1890.
Tassel House, at Brussels, Belgium, 1892 to 1893.
Autrique House, at Brussels, Belgium, 1893.
Frison Town House, at Brussels, Belgium, 1894.
Winssigner House, at Brussels, Belgium, 1894 to 1903.
Hotel Solvay, at 224 Avenue Louise, Brussels, Belgium, 1895 to
1900.
Maison du Peuple, Place Emile van de Velde, at Brussels,
Belgium, 1896 to 1898.
Horta House (now Musee Horta), at Brussels, Belgium, 1898.
L'Innovation Department Store, at Rue Nevue, Brussels,
Belgium, 1901 to 1903.
Belgian Pavilion, International Exposition of Decorative Arts,
at Turin, Italy, 1902.
Monument to Brahms, at Vienna, Austria, 1902.
Grand Bazaar Department Store, at Frankfurt, Germany, 1903
(demolished).
Waucquez Department Store, at Brussels, Belgium, 1903 to 1905.
Hallet House, at Brussels, Belgium, 1903.
Musee des Beaux-Arts, at Tournai, 1903 to 1928.
Wolfers Building, at Brussels, Belgium, 1906.
Brugmann Hospital, at Jette, Brussels, Belgium, 1906 to 1926.
Halle Centrale, Main Railway Station, at Brussels, Belgium,
1914 to 1952.
Palaix des Beaux-arts, at Brussels, Belgium, 1920 to 1928.
Belgian Pavilion, Exposition des Arts Decoratifs, at Paris,
France, 1925. |
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Victor
Horta's House
The elaborate
wrought-iron and glass-window facade, center, of this
house in Brussels, designed and built in 1898 by Belgian
architect Baron Victor Horta, displays his preference for the
European style of art known as art nouveau. The architect's
decorative "whiplash lines," inspired by the look of
natural vegetation, flow throughout the house's exterior design.
Noted for his emphasis on ornamentation, Horta created buildings
with elaborate exteriors and carefully planned interiors. |
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