Tassel House Stairway
Author Photography: Henry Townsend
Licence Photography: Public domain
Hotel Tassel, Designs For Every Single Detail
Hotel Tassel, located on Rue Paul- Emile Janson 6, Brussels, Belgium, is one of the most famous Art Nouveau architectural buildings in Europe.
Victor Horta designed it, the Belgian architect who achieved great success as a precursor of Art Nouveau. After a short time, the style expanded internationally in architecture, fine art, and decorative art.
Victor Horta’s design had no reference in style, like other European architecture. In those days, the architects imitated the historical concepts and incorporated them with Gothic and Renaissance elements. Horta’s work was against the dominated eclectic Historicism that referred to the past.
The first architect that understood Victor Horta’s work was Hector Guimard, the architect of Paris Metro entrances. He declared Horta as the inventor of Art Nouveau and followed his style.
Hotel Tassel has an open floor plan. The central hall surrounded by the townhouse’s rooms includes the most amazing staircase in European architecture.
The stained glass windows beside the circular staircase on the top floor escalate the daylight. While the vegetal-designed stairway fences invigorate the interior and create openness, the elaborate mosaic flooring alongside the textured-floral wallpaper reflects pinkish-orange light colour on the stair surfaces.
The Dynamic Design Of Tassel House
The building creates a visual effect of a second front facade in Spanish green. Flowing iron made balcony fences supported by slender columns ended up to roof cornices and constructs the front appearance.
The new front view distinguishes itself from the dominated stone behind it and generates fluidity and visual dynamism in the exterior.
The designers of Art Nouveau were fascinated by its characteristics, as the curved forming inspired by nature, the transparency and daylighting in the interior, the innovative use of materials of iron, glass, and stone. Victor Horta had original ideas for every single detail of the exterior and each piece of decoration and furniture, including handles and woodwork.
Tassel building was known as a residential project for the wealthy upper class. The style was subjected to criticism for its extravagance. Horta tended later to geometrical forms and moved away from the elaborate design. But the elegance of his designs profoundly affected the evolution of later architectural styles and restored his artistic position in the following years.
Victor Horta’s Hotel Tassel and three other townhouse projects, Hotel Solvay, Hotel van Eetvelde and Maison & Atelier Horta, are listed in the UNESCO World Heritage.
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Text: Lalerou
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- Category: Architectural Metalwork Art Nouveau
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Decorative Design
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