Hector Guimard

Paris Metro Entrances, at Paris, France, 1899 to 1905.

Hotel Guimard, at Paris, France, 1912.

      map of works

(b. Lyon, France 1867; d. New York, N.Y. 1942)

Hector Guimard was born in Lyon, France in 1867. After studying for three years at the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs and for four years at the Ecole de Beaux Arts, he established his own practice.

Guimard created unassuming and somewhat conventional early works, but after familiarizing himself with some of the architectural theories circulating in the late 1800s, he began to produce some exceptional avant-garde works. The radical ideas of Viollet-Le-Duc and the sinuous architecture of Victor Horta particularly influenced his designs.

Guimard's visit to Horta's Hotel Tassel in 1895 acted as a catalyst to his creativity and inspired a radical re-evaluation of his design approach. Indeed, Guimard's ensuing projects proclaimed the emergence of 'le style Guimard.' The fluid, curvilinear lines that characterize Guimard's designs became synonymous with the Art Nouveau movement.

Guimard died in New York in 1942.

References
Dennis Sharp. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Architects and Architecture. New York: Quatro Publishing, 1991. ISBN 0-8230-2539-X. NA40.I45. p71.

Maurice Rheims. Hector Guimard. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1988. ISBN 0-8109-0973-1. LC 86-32232. NA1053.G8F4713 1987. — Out of print, but you can request an open search for this book at Amazon.com

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