Page 212 - Christie's, Important Chinese Works of Art, Hong Kong Dec 3 2021

A PAIR OF WESTERN STYLE ‘ACANTHUS

LEAVES’ IMPERIAL ZITAN ARMCHAIRS

HU DESHENG, ASSOCIATE RESEARCHER, PALACE MUSEUM, BEIJING

This pair of armchairs is made entirely of zitan wood. The waist and polished to an even surface, leaving no trace of the tool marks;
and the curved apron are carved with elaborate Western-style this enhances the relief carvings giving them a greater sense of
scrolls which extend to the cabriole legs ending in protruding feet three-dimensionality. It is an extraordinary achievement by the
resting on small ball pads above the rectangular floor stretcher. The Guangzhou workshops to have produced such a complicated and
seat frame is joined by the back splat with a protruding fan-shaped elaborate design.
headrest which tilts back and curves to accommodate the natural
form of the body. The S-shaped armrests are higher at the back to The design and motifs on the Guangzuo furniture were examples
simulate the arms of horseshoe chairs. There are also openwork of the innovative notion of blending Western and Chinese
spandrels of scroll pattern under the top rail, that fit into the stiles, styles. During the 17th century, Western architecture, sculpture
and in-between the seat frame and posts. The high relief carvings and painting skills were gradually accepted and adopted by the
on the carved-out back splat and the headrest clearly display the Chinese. From the Yongzheng to the Jiaqing period (1723-1820),
influence of the ornamental style of Rococo design. These two the construction of European-style architecture flourished in
armchairs are beautifully constructed in a grand style and the China; the Western palaces in the Imperial Summer Palace, were
elaborate carvings are exceptional. In its splendid construction, rare the finest examples. Many of the features of Western architecture
and expensive zitan wood has been used throughout, including and interior decoration such as acanthus leaves were particularly
the back splat and well-curved cabriole legs. The generous use of favoured to match the design of the magnificent halls and the
material and elaborate carvings of Western-influenced designs are palaces within the western style palaces. In order to match the
distinctive of the Guangzhou Style. demand, the court had to place orders with the workshops in
Guangzhou for custom-made furniture. At the same time, the
The characteristic ‘Guangzhou style’ or Guangzuo furniture in Imperial workshops in Beijing recruited highly-skilled carpenters
using substantially generous material is evident on the current lot. from Guangzhou to serve in the palace, and these workshops also
The back splats and the headrests are made of generously thick produced innovative Western-style furnishings. Furniture made
planks of wood. As the legs and stiles are crucial to the stability with traditional Chinese joinery and decorated with European-
of the furniture, these are carved from solid material rather than style motifs of scrolling leaves provided an opulence that matched
built-up with matched veneers or piecework. This same principle the splendid palaces. European Rococo floral motifs favoured
is applied to other individual parts and members which provide an by the Chinese were similar to Chinese peony scrolls and lotus
overall sense of heaviness and robustness to the furniture, as well as bloom; such designs varied and were generally termed xifanlian,
conveying their substantial size.
or ‘Western lotus scrolls’. The characteristic design of entwined
In order to keep consistency in their appearance, a single type of scrolling leaves was often symmetrical and stretched out to fit the
timber was selected to build each piece of Guangzuo furniture. The different shapes. The arrangements worked well both vertically
most sought after choices of timber were zitan and hongmu, and and horizontally; the same applied to three-dimensional rounded
they were used throughout without having any parts supplemented shapes.
with other forms of secondary wood. In addition, the furniture In addition to the Western-style motifs associated with
was polished without lacquer so as to display the desired quality of Guangzhou-style furniture, quintessential Chinese designs
the wood with its tight grain and dark, rich colour.
were also employed. The most frequently used were ‘dragons
The high-relief carving employed on Guangzuo furniture is amidst clouds and waves’, ‘terrestrial diagram’, ‘clouds’,
elaborate, fluid and highly skilled. The well-finished and polished ‘phoenix’, kui dragons, bats, stone chimes, flower branches and
surfaces not only complement the design but they also reveal the scrolls. Some Guangzhou-style furniture displays a combination
lustrous tactile nature of the timber. The design and style of the of both Chinese and Western-style decorations. In other cases,
present chairs are clearly influenced by the European design of there are examples of traditional Chinese-style furniture that have
Rococo art which was inspired by shell-like curves and natural a slight hint of decorative influence from the West. On the whole,
patterns. The refined, deeply carved decoration was favoured by between 60-70 percent of the Guangzhou-made furniture showed
the Guangzhou workshops. By carving out the motifs against a a Western-style influence and this feature is invaluable in the
reserved ground, the background areas have been carefully finished identification of furniture.

210