HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

As a consequence of the treaty of Frankfurt (1871), Alsace and a part of Lorraine were annexed by Germany until 1918. The emperor Wilhelm I enacted Strasbourg as capital of the Alsace-Lorraine territory(1) , and decided by that way to make of it a "show-room" of the german empire(2).
The city met a huge rush of Germans (soldiers - 25000, among them officers issued from the bourgeoisie -, officials, etc...) and grew from 85000 inhabitants in 1870 to 135000 in 1910(3). In order to lodge these immigrants, an extension plan was put in application, as Strasbourg did not met any enlargement since 17th century. The city area tripled (4) by the application of the urbanism plan conceived by the Alsatian J.-G. Conrath. This extension includes (among else) what is nowadays called the german district (or imperial district, or Neustadt i.e. new city) and also the Neudorf, the latter being located in the outskirts. The first one is mostly well preserved and constitutes one of the rarest (if not the unique) example of post-hausmannian urbanism that survived to World War II.
More than 6000 buildings have been erected during the period 1871-1918, among those, around 100 in the art nouveau style. This artistic movement lasted (in Strasbourg) from 1898 to 1908.
If the major part of these buildings are located in the imperial district, a half-dozen of art nouveau edifices are downtown.

What is to see about art nouveau in Strasbourg?

Have a look at the following interactive map.


Is there a museum showing an Art Nouveau collection in Strasbourg?
The Musée d'Art Moderne (Modern Art Museum) presents works by Bugatti, Carabin, Christian, Daum, Gallé, Serrurier-Bovy, Spindler and Ringel d'Illzach.

Are there are nouveau buildings in the suburb of Strasbourg?
Take a look to the pages about Schiltigheim (also on the interactive map) and Illkirch-Graffenstaden.

Are there other cities in Alsace showing art nouveau buildings?
Colmar, Guebwiller and Mulhouse have preserved some buildings worth seeing.

And in the german neighbourhood of Strasbourg?
Take a look to Kehl, Offenburg, Zell am Harmersbach, and Lahr.

Biographies

Bibliography

Acknowledgements

(1)  In german: Reichsland Elsaß-Lothringen

(2) During the siege of Strasbourg (8/14 - 9/27/1870) around 1000 peoples died and (among others) the city library burned (one of the most ancient in France), the Fine-Arts Museum, set fire to the Cathedral, the hospital, the railway station, the prefecture. The invader, wishing to change his image of destroyer, began in the immediate future the reconstruction. en 1871, Theodor Fontane wrote in Aus den Tagen der Occupation <>.Jean-Jacques Weiss, in Au pays du Rhin reported lucidly: << The germans are settling here as if it would be forever. They build monuments ;...what remains to build in the new Strasbourg is twice at least of the old one, they have created an university and have erected a set of palaces,...>>.

(3) More exactly, it will grow from 233 to 618 hectares (cf. D. Harster in Dossier IVSMH "Ecole des Arts Décoratifs").

(4) cf. L. Grodecki Autour de 1900 (Bulletin de la Faculté des Lettres de Strasbourg, mai-juin 1968). According to D. Harster (ibid): 135000 inhabitants in 1895 and 178000 around 1910.