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By the latter half of the 20's many were experimenting with vibrant colours in the place of the duller colours used previously, with influences due to Jazz, that was sweeping America at the time. This was the herald of the Art Deco (also called style moderne) period. The term art deco comes from Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes, the title of a design exhibition held in Paris in 1925. Art deco was characterized by geometric shapes, smooth lines, and streamlined forms where yellow orange and black colour schemes and geometric shapes such as zigzags were used. One very famous example of Art Deco styling is the Empire State Building, whose construction began on March 17, 1930 and officially opened on May 1, 1931. Most art deco designers created objects that could be mass-produced, rather than such individual works as paintings and sculptures. Many art deco works were made of chrome, plastics, and other industrial materials. Designers also used such expensive materials as crystal, ivory, and silver. The style featured a look of sleek elegance that was associated with wealth and sophistication.
One of the most important facets of the 1930's was the first decade in the 20th century where it was much more fashionable to have rooms decorated in a modern way rather than using a grand historic style. The style was based for the first time on long, low horizontal elements around the whole room. This was implemented in all the furnishings, such as the curtains and the material for the sofas, to "modern" furniture such as the coffee table. Vibrant colours, which had gained popularity in the 20's, were virtually replaced by natural neutral colours during the latter part of the 1930's, and were complemented by modern surfaces such as dark mirrored glass and chrome, which were used. This styling was mirrored in the designs of wallpaper, with the production of plain textured wallpaper - produced to satisfy the demands of clean styling.
However design of interiors came almost abruptly to a stop by the start of the second world war in 1939, by the collapse of the luxury market, and it was not till after 1945 that activity started to resume. A shift in direction for styling occurred due to the re-organisation of society, which made some crafts and materials unfeasible in the main stream. Fabrics were in short supply as well as many other materials and were often under strict rationing. As such a make-do attitude was created, in which repair and preservation became very important, as well as inventive use of dyes and materials to imitate others in short supply. As conditions eased after the war, work was gradually resumed. Work was continued from the 30's, building on the pre war style, culminating in the late 40's. Colour once more was used heavily to brighten homes, made possible by bright colourful plastics that had been invented during the war, bright reds, greens and acid yellows were often used to decorate homes. Fashionable neo-romanticism, with the help of progress in cinemas and theatre started to have an effect.
