Chinese Art 15 Insights and there were numerous


commissions for the imperial palaces and private residences. Te unprecedented variety of forms and decoration that resulted was accompanied by a resurgence of the taste for hidden symbols prevalent in the Ming dynasty. Te influence of the Qianlong


Hanap (large drinking vessels for wine), Qing dynasty (1644-1912), Yongzheng mark and period (1723- 1735), Jingdezhen kilns, porcelain with underglaze blue decoration (qinghua), © Les Arts Décoratifs / Christophe Dellière


Caughley factory in Shropshire around 1780. In these fashionable rooms,


lacquered surfaces


complemented the mysterious translucence of Chinese porcelain and provided textures that were considered to be particularly appealing to women. As imported Chinese and Japanese lacquerware was extremely expensive, and out of reach for even wealthy families, ‘do- it-yourself’ manuals were published and the art of ‘japanning’ became a popular female accomplishment. Te Musée des Arts Décoratifs has


a celebrated collection of Chinese cloisonné enamels. In 1923, the banker David David-Weill (1871- 1952), an early collector of Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) period cloisonné in France, donated more than 150 objects to the museum, which the museum has since expanded. Part of this collection was on loan to the Bard Graduate Center in New York for their 2011 exhibition, Cloisonné, Chinese Enamels from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties. Te catalogue forword explains that the cloisonné enamel technique was most likely introduced into China during the Mongol Yuan dynasty (1279– 1368). Although the earliest Chinese cloisonné pieces bearing a reign mark seem to have been made during the Xuande period. During the second half of the 16th


century, in the reign of the Wanli emperor (1573-1620), there was a marked increase in enamel production as well as a decline in craftsmanship. Tis trend would continue through the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, although the diversification of decorative motifs continued and the repertory of forms increased. Under the Kangxi emperor (1662-1722), the first ruler of the Manchu Qing dynasty, significant decorative arts production resumed and imperial workshops were established within the Forbidden City. Towards the end of the 17th century, there was a resurgence of enamel production, and in the last 60 years of the 18th century, the reign of the Qianlong emperor (1736-1795) was marked by a growing interest in the arts in general and the decorative arts in particular. Advances in cloisonné technique


and additions to the available palette of enamels fostered an unprecedented increase in cloisonné production. Te Manchus, fervent followers of Tantric Buddhism,


reign remained strong through the first half of the 19th century, but was accompanied by a decline in workmanship and aesthetic quality. During the


reign of


Belt hook, Qing dynasty (1644- 1912), 18th/19th century, carved jade


Thinking about subscribing? the Guangxu


emperor (1875-1908), a renewal of production was sparked by widespread Western interest in the technique, as a result of Chinese participation in international exhibitions of the time. Equally important political events, such as the sack of the summer palace during the Second Opium War in 1860 by British and French troops, prompted a rediscovery of cloisonné in Europe, especially in France. In the second half of the 19th


century, Chinese cloisonné enamels once again became a fashionable choice again for families wishing to decorate


their homes in a stylish


manner. French designers used the abundance of the Chinese decorative vocabulary and motifs, to create their works. Chinese porcelain and glass also helped influence and revive the production of these types of objects in France during the Art Nouveau period (1890-1910). Chinese forms and techniques fascinate these designers, particularly Emile Gallé (1846-1904), in the production of glass, as well as the designer, sculptor, and ceramicist Ernest Chaplet (1835- 1909), who was intrigued by the techniques and glazes used in the production of Chinese ceramics. Te high-temperature


flammée glazes of 18th-century Chinese


porcelain subject of became


and experiment in the years around 1900, both by factories and individual makers. Teir re-creation depended entirely on the potter’s knowledge of chemistry as well as his skill at firing these dramatic


and


unpredictable glazes. Te technique produced a range of colours from a deep bright red through a spectrum of violet, blue, green, purple, and combinations of all of these. Te last section is dedicated to two


major figures of Art Nouveau: the architect and designer Hector Guimard (1867-1942) and Emile Gallé. Guimard, famous


for commissioned many ritual objects for Buddhist temples,


• Until 24 November, Musée des Arts decoratifs, Paris, madparis.fr


designing the Paris metro entrances, had also designed a ‘Chinese Pavilion’ metro station at Bastille in Paris, which was sadly demolished in 1962. On show, to represent this revival in Chinese luxury and decorative objects during this era, are a set of hard stone tobacco cups and bottles, small porcelain objects evoking fruit, as well as an imperial necklace in amber and hard stones.


Vase in archaic vase style, hu form, Qing dynasty (1644-1912), Qianlong period (1736-1796), blown glass, lined and wheel engraved, heat-applied handles and foot


copper-red the


intensive research


One of a pair of double-gourd vases, Beijing lacquer, Qianlong period (1736-1796), Qing dynasty, carved lacquer on wood © Les Arts Décoratifs / Jean Tholance


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