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Art Nouveau painting, panel, art deco
€1,500Bid from €750
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Product description
Art Deco painting, panel from 1925-1935, purchased from the Juffermans estate.
Style: Art Deco (with influences from the interwar period, Geometric Classicism)
The stylized human figure, the strict geometric division of the plane, and the use of flat color planes in earth tones (ochre, terracotta, turquoise, dark green) are characteristic of the decorative monumentality of the late 1920s.
Description of the panel
Shape: Semi-circular top panel (lunette shape), likely designed as wall decoration or part of an architectural interior (e.g., a theater, cinema, bathhouse, or café).
Technique: Oil or tempera paint on panel.
Color: Muted yet contrasting palette with complementary combinations—terracotta and turquoise, ochre and dark green.
Composition: A central female figure, seated or crouched, depicted in a stylized, rhythmic pose with dynamic lines around her—possibly representing water currents or symbolic energies.
The background consists of architectural planes with horizontal bands and symmetrical decorative forms.
The figure appears mythological or allegorical: Possibly a water nymph, spring woman, or personification of an element (water or fertility).
The geometric and rhythmic ornamentation around her suggests that the work was intended as decorative symbolism, not as a realistic portrait.
The pose—with the head bowed and one arm resting on the knee—emphasizes a harmony between body and ornament, typical of the Art Deco aesthetic of movement and elegance.
Context and Possible Origin
Similar works are known in the Netherlands from the decoration of swimming pools (De Mirandabad, Amsterdam), cinemas (Tuschinski), and cruise interiors of the Holland America Line.
These fragments reinforce the earlier dating (circa 1925–1935) and the attribution to *Dutch Art Deco with a geometric-decorative tendency*, related to the work of:
* *Jaap Gidding* – comparable lines, color palette, and technique (see his panels for the *Cinerama Theater* and *Hotel Americain*).
* *J.F. (Jan) Juffermans* – less well-known, but active as a decorative painter in Utrecht around 1930. The geometric division of the plane and the monogram-like corner motif at the bottom right are somewhat reminiscent of his style.
In the right-hand detail photo, at the bottom (right, above the brown band), there is something that appears to be the *remnant of a signature or monogram* — two horizontal lines on top of each other and a vertical one next to them. This could be a stylized *J” or “H”*.
This makes it *possible* that this work can be attributed to *Jan Juffermans*, a decorative painter and designer from the 1930s who indeed worked in Gidding's style. His work appears in the interiors of buildings in Utrecht and The Hague from that period.
Specifications
ConditionExcellentColorsMulti ColorMaterialWoodNumber of items1Height152 cmWidth180 cmDepth5 cm
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Seller information
About this seller
Rotterdam, NetherlandsOn Whoppah since July 2021 • 0 sales