The keys to kitsch style in decoration

Eccentric? Extravagant? The “kitsch” style is often described with such adjectives. We understand kitsch as excessive, taken to its finest. Why? Because the kitsch style does not follow rules, does not adhere to pre-established criteria of balance,

When a style breaks with aesthetic conventions it generates love and hatred in equal measure. This is what happens with this kitsch style. His transgressive style leaves no one indifferent and that is precisely what he intends: to impress and attract attention. Know your keys!

The origin of the Kitsch style

The origin of the kitsch style dates back to the second half of the 19th century. At that time the bourgeoisie began to experience a very important economic and social growth in the city of Munich. Arise like this ‘new rich’ who seek to achieve the status of the aristocracy by imitating the customs and cultural and aesthetic tastes of these. For this, they began to demand imitation artistic objects whose workmanship was of dubious quality.

The desire to pretend it was more important than the authenticity and quality of the work. And a ‘popular art’ or a ‘kistch art’ did develop, which classical art began to regard with suspicion and reject because of the danger it posed for its survival.

Hermann Broch later published in his essay “Kitsch, avant-garde and art for art’s sake” the first definition of kitsch aesthetics: “The essence of kitsch consists in the substitution of the ethical category with the aesthetic category; It imposes on the artist the obligation to do not a ‘good job’, but a ‘nice’ job: what matters most is the effect ”.

The keys to kitsch style

Both the origins and the first definition of kitsch aesthetics provide us with the keys to this style in which the important gather pieces with personalityregardless of their quality or how they fit with the rest of the pieces that decorate the space. Although nothing is as carefree as it seems.

Oppose minimalism

Kitsch style can be considered as the opposite of minimalism. It is a style that we could define, therefore, as maximalist, in which the spaces tend to oversaturate of decorative elements and color. Forget about simplifying the lines; bet on sinuous lines and curves. And don’t be afraid to go overboard with color.

Choose pieces with personality

If something characterizes the kitsch style, it is the absence of style. To create environments of this type choose pieces with personality, pieces that you like no matter how they fit with the rest that already decorate the room. The idea is that no furniture or object goes unnoticed and that the set of these is unique.

Very common in kitsch rooms are plastic animals in vivid colors. They serve as a mere decorative object, but also as a lamp base or extra seat. Lamps and works of art are also of great importance, although these are, as we have already advanced, of questionable quality.

Bet on vibrant colors

Forget about neutral colors. Kitsch is characterized by the choice of colors, usually vibrant and saturated: red, orange, pink, lime green, violet … colors very close to the aesthetics of Andy Warhol’s Pop-Art. Worse, not only are the colors important, but also the patterns and motifs. Colorful and ornate aesthetic pattern wallpapers, textiles and vinyls are always welcome in this style.

Show your collections

What do you like to collect? Whatever it is, it will have a place in kitsch style. If you have one or more object collectionss, take them out of the closet and find them a place where both you and your guests can enjoy them as if they were a museum. Ceramic plates, religious statuettes, old radios, cat cushions, sculptures, mirrors … anything goes!

The most difficult thing about decorating a room with kitsch style is breaking with acquired aesthetic beliefs and own aesthetic limits. Once done, the freedom of this style will win you over.