Early Twentieth Century
Cultural Events Timeline
It is commonly believed that architects and designers are influenced by and reflect the culture of the period in which they work. To better understand the cultural influences on designers of the Art Deco period, this timeline offers a listing of some events that may have inspired them.
1909
The Ballet Russes was founded and introduced Paris to Russian folklore and a new aesthetic
1913
Woodrow Wilson
became President of
the United States
through1921
1914
The first automobile assembly line was started by Henry Ford
1917
The United States entered
World War I
1918
World War I ends
1919
The 19th Amendment was passed and gave women the right to vote in the United States
1919
Joseph Sinel first used the term "Industrial Design"
1919
The constitutional ban on the production, import, sale, and transport, of alcoholic beverages began in the United States
1919
The Bauhaus was founded in Weimar by German architect Walter Gropius
1921
Warren G. Harding became President of
the United States
through 1923
1922
The first public radio station, KDKA, was launched in Pittsburgh
1922
Pharaoh Tutankhamun's tomb was discovered by Howard Carter in Egypt's East Valley of the Kings
1922
The Chicago Tribune hosted an international design competition for their new headquarters, seeking “the most beautiful and distinctive office building in the world”
1923
The Cotton Club opened in Harlem, featuring many of the most recognizable
African-American entertainers of the era
1923
Calvin Coolidge became President of
the United States
through 1929
1924
George Gershwin composed Rhapsody in Blue, a transformational
classical music composition with jazz-influence effects
1925
American-born French entertainer Josephine Baker first preformed in La Revue Négre, at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris
1925
L'exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes opened in Paris, giving Art Deco a global stage
1925
The first Goodyear Blimp, the Pilgrim, floated ads through the sky and was the first blimp to fly with safe helium
1925
Scopes ”Monkey Trial” challenged the Butler Act, which made it unlawful to teach human evolution in any state-funded school
1925
F. Scott Fitzgerald writes The Great Gatsby, which created a unique portrait of the Roaring Twenties
1926
Robert Goddard launched the first liquid-propellant rocket outside Worcester, Massachusetts
1926
The Met opens Modern Decorative Arts from International Exposition of Modern Decorative & Industrial Art, Paris to showcase modern design
1927
The Jazz Singer, the first motion feature-length motion picture with sound, was released
in the United States
1927
Charles A. Lindbergh completed the first solo, nonstop transatlantic flight from Long Island to Paris in his aircraft, the Spirit of St. Louis
