Art Nouveau architecture dissolves the boundary between structure and ornament — buildings become organisms where ironwork, ceramics, and carved stone flow in sinuous, plant-derived forms. The catalogue holds 3 Art Nouveau buildings, with Hector Guimard's Parisian works as the defining examples.
Guimard's Castel Béranger displays the full vocabulary: whiplash ironwork balconies, glazed ceramic panels, carved stone that flows rather than sits. His own residence, the Hôtel Guimard, is a more restrained example. Art Nouveau rejected industrial standardisation in favour of craft, individuality, and the handmade — every window frame, every balcony railing is unique.
