Ornament and Symbol in French Romantic Architecture

The first comprehensive study of symbolic theory and ornament in Romantic architecture, centred on the work of a groundbreaking French architect.

Ornament and Symbol in French Romantic Architecture reconstructs vibrant debates surrounding ornament and artistic synthesis, centred on the work of radical architect Simon-Claude Constant-Dufeux, revealing these theories as integral to the development of art nouveau at the turn of the century.

Ralph Ghoche is assistant professor in the Department of Architecture at Barnard College, Columbia University.

Ralph Ghoche is assistant professor in the Department of Architecture at Barnard College, Columbia University.

“In this vital contribution to the renaissance of interest in the history of ornament, Ralph Ghoche resurrects the career of Simon-Claude Constant-Dufeux, an eccentric but essential figure at the heart of French architectural Romanticism. Ghoche follows theories of ornament and symbols from debates over architectural meaning in the 1830s through to the vestibule of art nouveau half a century later, a trajectory that reveals deeper connections between studies of botanic ornament and the origins of abstraction in modernist thought than previously acknowledged.” Barry Bergdoll, Columbia University

“Ralph Ghoche’s book significantly enriches our understanding of the architectural and artistic milieu of nineteenth-century France. Each chapter sheds new light on the question of ornament by examining the career of Constant-Dufeux, an ‘architect-artist’ capable of uniting the various branches of the arts and crafts. Valuable reading for historians of the decorative and applied arts, it is also an in-depth study of architectural knowledge, education, and culture at a time when architects were defining their professional identity.” Estelle Thibault, École nationale supérieure d'architecture de Paris-Belleville