Art Nouveau in contemporary children’s picturebooks: Ornament, typography and page design

Abstract

This article examines how Art Nouveau operates in two contemporary children’s picturebooks, Lisa Perrin’s After Alice (2015) and Júlia Sardà’s The Queen in the Cave (2021). It argues that in these books Art Nouveau works not merely as a historical decorative reference, but as a page-organizing system that shapes visual composition, directs the reader’s attention, and reinforces narrative atmosphere. The study focuses on the cover and interior-page illustrations of these two case studies. Methodologically, it employs qualitative comparative visual analysis, with particular attention to page architecture, line rhythm, color strategy, ornamental density, and typographic integration. The findings show that curvilinear motifs, botanical framing, borders, and serif typography do more than quote a historical style; they function as structural elements that support readability, visual continuity, and atmospheric coherence across the book. This is significant in the context of contemporary picturebooks because it suggests that historical ornament can remain active as a functional visual language rather than survive only as nostalgic decoration. In this sense, Art Nouveau continues to offer an adaptable design logic for contemporary illustration.