The 1925 Paris Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes, to which Art Deco owes its name, was a key moment in the development of the new style. Many of the pieces of furniture and objets d’art presented at the fair established the salient characteristics of Art Deco: clear lines, geometric forms, precious materials. The Luxembourg arts and crafts industry intended for its contribution to the fair to serve as a showcase of the Grand Duchy’s expertise and hoped that the country would measure up to foreign competition.

Industrialist Paul Würth and Antoine Hirsch, director of the State School of Crafts, the former being president and the latter secretary of the commission responsible for the Luxembourg pavilion, chose to include trendsetting furniture among the many exhibits selected for the pavilion. One of these was an Art Deco dining room set, one element of which was this display cabinet. This piece, which was added to our collection in 2012, was restored to its former splendour in 2013 by the museum workshops. It reflects the acceptance of modern trends among Luxembourg artisans, even though they were known for their reluctance to innovation.

In spite of the simplicity of the cabinet’s form and décor, cabinet-maker Ernest Thill chose precious material for his work. Antoine Hirsch was convinced that Luxembourg craftsmen would definitely be able to hold their own on the international stage as long as they were able to adapt foreign influences and create a genuine national art. By exhibiting such trendsetting furniture, Hirsch also pursued something of an educational programme in good taste, rejecting the eclecticism of the traditional furniture styles that had been produced in Luxembourg until then. Hirsch contributed greatly to the assertion of Luxembourg craftsmanship in the inter-war period.

Text | CC BY-NC | Régis Moes