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www.hygra.com    Antique Boxes and tea caddies.

Antique wooden Face Screen, painted with a picture of life in the China seas. C.1820,
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Description:
Ref:   103fs    http://hygra.com/face/103fs 

Antique wooden Face Screen, painted with a picture of life in the China seas.  Circa 1820

The screen is painted in confident brush strokes pointing to the work of a professional painter. It was most probably painted by a European artist who travelled to China in the early 19th century. It shows oriental figures travelling towards an island in different types of boats. It perhaps suggests the illicit trade in opium which was often carried out away from the watchful eye of the authorities. The birds perching on the small boat on the left introduce a somewhat sinister note. The differentiation between the various vessels suggests that the artist was working from life, or at least had studied and had good knowledge of Chinese crafts.

The scene is very busy both on land and sea. The pagoda, pavilion and exotic buildings are scattered in the rocky landscape. Figures weave their way up the steps. The crowning of a rocky outpost with a pagoda and the precarious perching of a pavilion were typical of Chinese vistas described by Europeans, who were enchanted by such other worldly landscapes.

The figures in the boats are small, but their pointed hats or pigtails define their origin. There is a lot of movement suggested, for example the figure in the middle of the large boat near the island, straining at the oar.

The trees and other flora are delicately painted. Where the sea meets the sky the sheen of the sea and the light in the sky suggest dawn. One or two white sails are barely suggested in the distance.

This is a work of art to hold in the hand.

 

Origin: UK artist painting in China ?;  Circa:1820 ; Materials: wood .

Size:  Screen 24 cm wide by 16cm; handle 21 cm long:9.4 inches wide by 6.5 inches; handle 8.2 inches.

Condition:  Please refer to the above photographs for details of condition.

Keywords: Hygra.com, Antique box, Antique Face Screen, fan, fire screen, Painting, China Sea, Ships,  Pagoda,

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All text and images and linked images are © 1999-2015 Antigone Clarke and Joseph O'Kelly. If you require any further information on permitted use, or a licence to republish any material, email us at copyright@hygra.com

 

 
All text and images and linked images are © 1999-2015 Antigone Clarke and Joseph O'Kelly. If you require any further information on permitted use, or a licence to republish any material, email us at copyright@hygra.com