Pattern in Decorative Arts

Studying patterns in tile, wallpaper, fabric and other decorative arts during the past few centuries, it seems that, until the 20th century, decorative patterns generally fell into two categories: nature motifs and geometric designs. In the West, it appears that floral and leaf motifs were predominant in the decorative arts for a considerable length of time, at least from the Baroque period through the Victorian era, up until the turn of the century. In the East, both nature motifs and geometric designs are evident. Chinese wallpaper has historically featured intricate, elaborate patterns of flowers, trees and birds. Islamic tiles also featured floral, leaf and bird patterns early on, although later tile designs tended more toward geometric patterns radiating out from a central point.

In the East, I do not see evidence of significant shifts in pattern designs during the 20th century. In the West, however, the 20th century seems to have brought significant changes in pattern designs that follow the various movements and innovations in art and architecture. In the early 1900's nature motifs were still predominant, but they became more abstracted, in the style of Art Noveau, a movement led by British pattern designer C.F.A. Voysey. In the post-war era, patterns designers seemed ready to fully embrace "modernism" and experiment with new idioms. The influence of artists such as Miro, Klee and Calder is evident in the whimsical, abstract patterns in wallpaper and fabric during this period. The 60's and 70's ushered in bigger, bolder, more forceful patterns that could exist in the airier, more open spaces of modern interiors. In the West today, it seems that in pattern design, as in fine art, anything goes. Computers have enabled designers to continue to innovate with complex, abstract patterns, but there also seems to be a hearkening back to the nature motifs of the Baroque and Victorian periods, with an effort to modernize them and make them relevant to contemporary life.