Page 170 - important chinese art mar 22 2018

Frequently depicted in Ming and Qing dynasty woodblock quality of the carving of the splat medallions and aprons.
illustrations, chairs of this elegant silhouette were commonly The crisp, angular scrollwork is inspired by motifs found on
produced in sets of two or four and used while dining, painting archaic bronzes and re! ects the interest in antiquarianism
or receiving guests. With the addition of two carrying poles, that found favor among the literati in the late 17th century.
they were converted into sedan chairs reserved for o/ cials These motifs are discussed in Robert Hat" eld Ellsworth,
of high rank, and as mentioned in Craig Clunas, Chinese Chinese Furniture. Hardwood Examples of the Ming and Ch’ing
Furniture, London, 1988, p. 24, they were considered ‘markers Dynasties, New York, 1971, p. 86, who notes that they are an
of high status, seats of honour’. innovation attributable to the late Ming and Kangxi period. He
further observes the similarities between the curvilinear apron
The inviting capacious arched crestrails were inspired by
on chairs of this type and that found on Tang period tables,
chairs of nearly identical shape but made of pliable lengths
such as the example in the Shōsōin Treasure House, Nara,
of bamboo, bent into a ‘U’-shape and bound together using
illustrated in Sarah Handler, Austere Luminosity of Chinese
natural " bers. Highly popular for their lightweight, sturdy
Classical Furniture, Berkeley, 2001, pl. 12.6.
and strong appearance, cabinetmakers cleverly adapted
this design to the rarer, more costly hardwood furniture by Chairs of the same form and with similarly shaped and beaded
creating ingenious joinery techniques. In order to create the aprons and ruyi-form splat medallions include two pairs sold in
continuous back, members were " tted together with a cut-out our New York rooms, the " rst, 25th April 1987, lot 567, and the
to accommodate a tapered wood pin that would lock them second, 9th-10th October 1987, lot 440; a few sold at Christie’s
" rmly in place when inserted. The complexity of the design New York, one chair from the collection of Robert Hat" eld
required utmost precision, as a slight error in the tilt of any of Ellsworth, illustrated op. cit., pl. 18, and sold, 18th March
the joins would be magni" ed by the adjoining members. Once 2015, lot 139, and another pair, 21st March 2013, lot 927;
the lacquered coat was applied to the surface crestrail, the and a slightly larger pair in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts,
underlying joinery was not visible and virtually impossible to illustrated in Robert D. Jacobson and Nicholas Grindley, Classic
wrest apart. Chinese Furniture, Minneapolis, 1999, pl. 12. For a related
pair from the Hung collection see Robert Hat" eld Ellsworth,
The present pair of armchairs is distinguished by its generous
Nicholas Grindley and Anita Christy, Chinese Furniture, One
arching crestrails ending in pronounced scrolling hand grips,
Hundred Examples from the Collection of Mimi and Raymond
the vigorous outline of the shaped aprons, as well as the " ne
Hung Collection, New York, 1999, pl. 15

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