Choosing Art Nouveau wallpaper
Where it works
Art Nouveau likes tall rooms and tall walls, because the stems are drawn to climb: a stairwell, a hallway, the headboard wall, a dining room with high ceilings. Sage Poppy and Powder Blossom, both on cream, are the light ones, bedroom or landing. Night Poppies and Tall Poppies, poppies on black and near-black navy, are the dining room designs. Golden Artichoke, layered heads in ordered rows on dusty pink, is the formal one for a dressing room or a powder room.
Picking between the designs
The tell of Art Nouveau is the stem, so look at how it moves. Sage Poppy and Powder Blossom curl, with acanthus and poppy stems swirling across the ground. Tall Poppies and Golden Artichoke rise, stems running straight up the drop, which makes them read as stripes from across the room. Blush Damask and Blush Peony sit between, peonies framed by scrolling sage leaves. Then the ground: cream in Sage Poppy and Powder Blossom, dusty pink in Golden Artichoke and Blush Damask, black in Night Poppies and White Vine. White Vine and Silver Vine, thin curling stems on solid black, are the most restrained version of the style, for anyone who wants the line without the flowers.
Related
The earlier, flatter designs are in Arts and Crafts wallpaper, the later geometry in Art Deco wallpaper, the whole period in vintage wallpaper. For where the whiplash line came from, read What is Art Nouveau.