International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in 1939 brought a sharp end to the Art Deco period. International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts The International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts () was a World's fair held in Paris, France, from April to October 1925. It was designed by the French government to highlight the new "style moderne" of architecture, interior decoration, furniture, glass, jewelry and other decorative arts in Europe and throughout the world. Many ideas of the international avant-garde in the fields of architecture and applied arts were presented for the first time at the Exposition. The event took place between
Architecture of cathedrals and great churches altar of the cathedral is located. The external decoration of a cathedral or large church building is often both architectural and pictorial. Decorative architectural devices include columns, pilasters, arcading, cornices, moldings, finials and tracery. The forms taken by these features is one of the clearest indications of the style and date of any particular building. Pictorial elements may include sculpture, painting and mosaic. Sculpture is the predominant pictorial decorative element in most regions where buildings are of stone construction. In the great medieval churches of France, Spain, England and much of Germany, figurative sculpture is found adorning façades and portals.