I recently came across some beautiful Art Deco–style cards on Etsy. Elegant women, beaded gowns, architectural terraces, just the right amount of drama — exactly my weakness.
They were described as “Art Deco.” No artist name, no date, no source. That made me curious. Surely, I thought, these must trace back to a lesser-known illustrator or a fashion plate from the 1920s or 30s.
So I did what designers and art nerds do: I went looking for the originals.
Starting with Google Image search, as one does, I found the same image, everywhere.
Instead of finding an archive or a museum reference, I found the imagery reused across different products:
- Greeting cards
- Cross-stitch kits
- Poster prints
- Tee shirts
etc.
Same figures. Same style. Still no attribution, anywhere!
At that point, I looked closer at the distinguishing features of the work in question, compared to original illustrations from the 1920s.
Referencing Known Artists
Two of my favorite art deco artists are:
- Erté (1892–1990) – the “Father of Art Deco” is theatrical / costume-y, fashionable, unmistakable
- George Barbier (1882–1932) – refined, graphic, and exquisitely patterned
Erté’s style is:
- Elongated, willowy figures with swan-like necks and elegant torsos
- Highly theatrical costumes that feel somewhere between fashion plate and stage costume – he was, indeed, also a fashion designer who created costumes for the ballet!
- Decorative, detailed linework inside the flowy garments
- Jewelry, feathers, gloves, and headpieces — maximum glamour
Barbier’s style is:
- More illustrative than theatrical (but he was *also* a costume designer)
- Also using highly detailed surface patterns, but shallow / flat design, reflective of printmaking techniques of the time
Barbier is close. But I could tell this wasn’t Barbier. More on that later.
The deep search continued…
I was able to find one illustration with an attribution: “Redfern, Bernard et Cie and Joseph Paquin.” It turns out, Redfern is a Paris-London fashion house known for elegant tailoring in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Bernard et Cie is a manufacturer/atelier. Paquin (Madame Paquin or Joseph Paquin) is close — and they did commission illustrated fashion plates in high-end magazines in the 1910s and early 1920s. But, the compositions of these images were more dignified, less expressive.
I looked at Antonius Johannes Kristians — a rare Deco figurative painter with compositions involving bars and social themes, including “At the Bar”, similarly named to one of the designs I found. This artist reminds me a bit of Toulouse Lautrec‘s sweeping, expressive lines and almost brooding vibe — an artist I also respect, i.e. the famous Moulin Rouge posters, but definitely not the same.
Helen Dryden, “America’s First Lady of Design” was an amazing American illustrator, costume designer, *and* industrial designer — talk about a Jane of all Trades! She also did cover designs for Vogue, and is noted as being the highest-paid female artist in the United States in the 1930s. Girl powerrr. However, this is not her work.
Ruth Sigrid Grafstrom worked in the 1930s and 40s as a fashion illustrator. Her work featured more shading and some architectural details. But it was a more painterly, loose style than the cards referenced above.
As I looked over the greats of the Art Deco era, I was sensing more and more that my images in question were not quite… that.
Clues that The Cards are NOT Authentic 1920s
At first glance, the style of these “Art Deco” cards feels 20s. But when you slow down and really look, the technical details tell a different story.
1) The Shading Is Too Modern
The cards have soft gradients, especially when you look at the skin and arms. That’s not usual for fashion plates in the 20s, which used traditional printmaking techniques like pochoir (a stencil technique), offset lithography (a high-volume printing technique), or woodblock (more traditional printmaking technique). Skin tones were simplified. Shading was minimal and graphic. Flat color prevailed. Metallic effects (gold, shimmer, jewel tones) and gradients just weren’t possible with the techniques of the 20s. So the rendering style alone absolutely rules out 1920s–30s.
2) The Architecture is Too… Decorative
Imagine that… too decorative for “art deco!” Indeed, the original 1920s plates have more simplified furniture and background elements, letting the fashion and figures be the highlight of the image. And for good reason. Fashion plates were meant to emphasize the fashion. Even someone as theatrical as Erté used environment sparingly and intentionally.
3) The Facial Structure Isn’t The Same
The 20s chin was less pronounced, almost melting into the neck. A reflection of how our beauty standards have changed over time, perhaps!
The card images show a distinct profile view of the face, which is very particularly sculpted. They also have near-identical figure proportions, and extreme consistency in facial construction:
- Same nose slope
- Same eyelid geometry
- Same chin-to-neck transition
- Same profiles with more exaggerated chin
This is not how individual fine artists evolve work.
This is how licensable, decorative illustration series are built. Many of these images even include internal reference codes rather than signatures. That’s inventory logic, not authorship.
That indicates:
- Either one illustrator licensing broadly
- Or a studio style created for mass licensing
Potentially “Vintage” But, Deco Revival
So then I figured, this was either 20s originally and then digitally altered recently, OR perhaps it is a later era.
More of an “80s does 20s” thing.
I am aware that the 60s and the 80s both had a Deco revival phase. Which I am happy about, because it means I can go thrifting and find flapper-inspired looks that have survived the test of time, unlike authentic 1920s gowns which are mostly in museums now.
There were fashion illustrators in later eras whose work has some of these elements.
But I kept searching and searching, and nearly lost hope.
My Final Clue
Until the next day.
I returned to my many tabs, and before giving up hope and closing all of them…
I stumbled upon another clue.
(A fresh brain does wonders, huh?).
One of my Google Image search results appeared in German with the word “Clintons” attached. It said:
Clintons Glückwunschkarte / Clintons Verlobungskarte
I thought it was weird because I am reminded of the US President by the same name. Was this a collection they had purchased or something?
I decided to translate.
Clintons Greeting Card / Clintons Engagement Card
AI told me…
- Clintons: refers to the UK-based greeting card retailer
- Glückwunschkarte: greeting or congratulation card
- Verlobungskarte: engagement card
Bingo.
And you’re welcome for the German lesson of the day.
Any European readers are probably laughing at me right now, because it turns out, there is a popular card store that originally existed under the name Clinton Cards in the UK.
It’s now operating out of a select few brick-and-mortar locations. Their website was mostly defunct along with their online business.
I checked the Wayback Machine to see if I could find an archived version of their site that worked, but no go there.
So then I started searching *with* the search terms Clinton Cards, and lo and behold…
I found this collection of images on a site called Moonpig:
Further searching turned up additional product listings — even online jigsaw puzzles! — that properly attributed Clinton Cards as the source.
I could then rest my weary head and bleary eyes.
But not before drafting a blog post about the journey of course.
So What Are These Images?
The most accurate description is:
“Late 20th-century Art Deco revival illustrations, created for commercial reproduction.”
They’re not fake.
They’re not AI.
They’re just not from the 1920s.
This is a publisher commissioning an anonymous illustrator or studio, creating a themed Deco-glamour series, then licensing it aggressively across product categories.
Common in:
- UK
- France
- Eastern Europe
- Japan
Especially popular in the 1985–1998 window.
Why no artist name survived
This is classic work-for-hire + craft licensing erosion:
- Illustrator paid flat fee
- Rights retained by publisher
- Art adapted into multiple formats
- Attribution dropped to simplify packaging
- Decades later, digital scans circulate without metadata
By the time Etsy sellers get it, they’re scanning products, not originals.
This is why we’re seeing:
- Ref codes (like “Ref.AD 3288A4”)
- Style labels (“ART DECO”)
- Zero human attribution
Why Attribution Matters More Than Ever
In an era of AI-generated imagery, copyright disputes, and endless reposting, knowing your sources isn’t academic nitpicking. It’s practical.
Calling something “Art Deco–inspired” or “Deco revival” isn’t diminishing its value. It’s being accurate, and accuracy protects everyone involved—artists, designers, collectors, and clients.
A Few Art Deco Artists Worth Knowing
If you love this aesthetic and want to explore its true roots, these are always worth your time (in alphabetical order):
- Charles Martin – combined elegant figures with subtle, often witty social commentary
- Edmund Dulac – first studied law, then became an artist, studying at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and working in watercolor to create beautifully textured, fairytale-like imagery
- Erté (Romain de Tirtoff) – theatrical, fashion-forward, unmistakable
- George Barbier – refined, graphic, and exquisitely patterned
- George-Wolfe-Plank – painterly Vogue magazine covers including one I love of a woman riding a white peacock!
- Georges Lepape – bold fashion compositions with dynamic color, line and form
- Helen Dryden – “America’s First Lady of Design”
- Sydney Lefkowitz (Leff) – an American artist who produced sheet music covers through the 1940s and subsequently moved on to generating advertising for Madison Avenue clients
Spending time with their work makes it much easier to spot when something is a revival rather than a period piece.
But I have to say, even my trained eye has mistaken something for Erté before… specifically, the brilliant work of Stephan, the artist-in-residence at the Art Deco Society of California, which is well worth a peek.
I have been seeing his work on the Great Gatsby Summer Afternoon flier designs for years, and in fact I still think I’m looking at Erté sometimes. But Stephen is quick to correct on Pinterest posts etc. when things are mis-attributed. I would consider it the highest form of compliment, and I’m also glad to see that he gets credit for his own, original artwork, that is clearly, “deco-inspired.”
The Takeaway
I still like those Etsy cards and merch. They’re lovely. Especially this Etsy seller who adds glitter, rhinestones and feather accents by hand. A true art deco revival.
But this isn’t a forgotten artifact from the Jazz Age.
This is a coherent illustration system.
It is a beautiful, well-executed Deco revival series, designed to live on walls, cards, and craft tables, rather than in museum catalogs.
It was made to be lived with. Hung. Gifted. Stitched. Reprinted.
And it does that job extremely well.
As designers and visual storytellers, knowing where things come from—and being clear about what they are—matters more now than ever.
Bonus: Downloadable Collection
Check out this collection of public domain art deco images *actually from the 1920s*, curated and digitally remastered by rawpixel, for you to make your own arts and crafts with.
But please remember to credit the original artist when you do!