The Art Nouveau European Route brings together local governments and other institutions in the common quest for the protection, promotion and diffusion of Art Nouveau heritage. While this heritage is mostly tangible – physical elements of outstanding artistic and architectural interest and beauty – it is also intangible, inasmuch as it embodies and helps to explain and understand the recent history and idiosyncrasy of our communities.

To fully explore and bring to light the value of Art Nouveau heritage, therefore, a Congress organised by the Art Nouveau European Route cannot limit its scope to the analyses and interpretation of the tangible heritage; it must go deeper into the reality of the communities that created it. In particular, studying aspects of the creation of Art Nouveau heritage that were not publicly acknowledged or were even hidden by the communication systems of the period can provide a valuable contribution to the full comprehension of the Art Nouveau phenomenon.

In the third edition of the coupDefouet International Congress, the main thematic strand was proposed to look into new perspectives on Art Nouveau heritage of cities by means of cinematographic language. Given the coincidence in the time of the birth of both, footage from this age is especially significant. Together with other later filmed material related to Art Nouveau, it may provide new insights into this artistic movement and a deeper knowledge of what has been preserved, as well as what was lost or forgotten.

A second theme strand focused on the relationship of Art Nouveau works and artists with politics, and in particular with colonialism, while the third strand explored the crisis and decadence of European civilization in the period, and how this influenced artistic style. Finally, the section on research and doctoral theses in progress, in which presentations from both seasoned and young researchers are welcome, completed the four thematic strands of the programme.

The Congress sessions started on Wednesday 27 June in the evening, with the opening conference, and extended until the early afternoon of Saturday 30. However, as is traditional in a coupDefouet Congress, a wide range of cultural and Art Nouveau-related activities were developed on throughout the whole week, from Saturday 23 June to Sunday 1 July. All of them will be free for registered attendees to the Congress.