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Nouveau Nancy
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A traditional handicraft and metal-working town, at the turn of the twentieth century Nancy became a centre of
Art Nouveau
to rival Paris. The practitioners of Art Nouveau in Nancy attempted to marry the artistic styles of orientalism and Baroque with the industrial advances of the day, and their style became known as the "School of Nancy" (
l'A?cole de Nancy
). The most illustrious exponents of the "School of Nancy" were the manufacturer of glass and ceramics, A?mile GallAİ, and the glass manufacturer Daum. But the town's moment of glory was short-lived, and all that now remains are a handful of buildings and the MusAİe de l'A?cole de Nancy, housed in a
fin-de-siA?cle
villa. For a post-museum coffee in the same kind of atmosphere, try the Art Nouveau cafAİ-restaurant of the former hotel
L'Excelsior
, opposite the train station, built in 1910 and preserved virtually intact to this day. It's worth keeping your eyes open as you walk around Nancy as there are many other expressions of small Art Nouveau. The Nancy tourist office distributes a free leaflet,
A?cole de Nancy - ItinAİraire Art Nouveau
, which details several itineraries around Nancy's Art Nouveau heritage. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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France,
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