What are the key features of Art Deco furniture?

The key features of Art Deco furniture are a strong stepped or fluted silhouette, strict symmetry, and richly figured materials, from Macassar ebony veneer to lacquer and brass. Look for ziggurat profiles, fluted fronts, sunburst and chevron motifs, plinth or pedestal bases, and later the rounded bullnose edges Streamline Moderne introduced in the 1930s. Materials are the other giveaway: lacquered or exotic-veneer woods like Macassar ebony and walnut, brass or chrome hardware, mirrored and ribbed glass, shagreen, and upholstery with real presence in velvet or leather. Ornament is stylized and controlled, never the organic, vine-like line of Art Nouveau. The reliable test is silhouette first, symbol second: a genuine Deco piece has a clear shape from across the room, and the fan motifs or brass inlay only confirm what the form already says. Weak Deco buys the symbols and forgets the shape.

That order matters at AURA, where we choose the anchor piece before the detail. Everything in our art deco furniture collection favors cabinets, consoles, and seating with a silhouette strong enough to hold a room on its own.