Page 108 - Made For Trade Chinese Export Paintings In Dutch Collections

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Odell, these “ethnographic hybrids”, were no export paintings do not literally circulate in the
longer meant to demystify China, but were trade system. 213 They do not serve their purpose
meant rather to emphasise China’s exotic as trade items in a circular exchange network.
nature. 210 In the flourishing trade system of yesteryear they
It is to be expected that misconceptions exist were not intended to return to their producers.
in the representation of a foreign culture, but it Indeed, those producers had no or no great
is amazing that Chinese painters were so willing interest in their consumers. The export painting
to subvert and misrepresent elements of their business flourished especially in the heyday of
own culture. Clunas’ opinion is that there was the historical China trade, which is in the first
more to it than simply satisfying the Western half of the nineteenth century. For the producers
customer. 211 He sees a link between a tilt in the in Canton, the paintings were ‘lost’ the moment 107
balance of the relationship between China and they were sold. What goods were purchased
the West and the trivialisation of the with the money they received in return for a
representation of Chinese culture: from accurate painting is unknown. Maybe they used it to buy
records around 1800 to meaningless, showy new painting materials or to pay the wages of
scenes around 1900. 212 I think this link can not the studio painters, or, who knows, to purchase
be made so directly. Rather, it is the case that the opium, as this addictive substance was quite
extensive and voracious home market in Europe popular at that time all over the south of China.
made Western buyers in Canton less critical, That said, we have no ethnographic information
which inevitably led to a decline in the quality of to support such an argument.
export products. Although some images on pith The proposition that Chinese export paintings
paper could also be seen as ‘a callous statement in the nineteenth century were not made for
of disregard’, it seems that the change, over the the purpose of circulating in the trade system,
years, in the representation of the subjects was which would see them return to the place of
primarily designed to promote sale and aimed to production, still stands. Currently, however, in
satisfy their customers’ curiosity (and the twenty-first century, there are more and
perception) of China. When foreign buyers more examples of Chinese export paintings
commissioned their own ‘Chinese’ paintings, returning to the place where, two centuries ago,
local producers lost the capacity to stick to their they were made. In the Pearl River delta an
own tradition. Despite losing this aspect of increasing number of people are keener than
creativity, the production and exchange ever before in Chinese history to find this kind
remained resilient. These new ways apparently of painting to put on display in brand-new
thrived economically without completely China export trade or maritime museums and to
destroying the producers’ dignity. study this phenomenon in new established
research institutes and major universities. These
Emblems of the historical China trade institutions now consider the informative images
Chinese export paintings can be regarded within as silent witnesses to the social and cultural
a global trade frame. They grew out of this trade history of the South Chinese port city of
and can be regarded as commodities with a Guangzhou. 214 In Europe, too, collectors of this
specific use value (as previously mentioned). To genre of Chinese art are increasingly donating
explain the use, function and symbolic meaning (parts of) their collection to museums in
of Chinese export paintings, if they are treated Guangzhou. Now that the conservation practices
as exchange items, it is the exchange itself that in Chinese museums have significantly improved
utterly determines much of Canton’s export in comparison to a decade ago, as a European or
painting production, and not the initial American collector you can be assured that the
intentions of the Chinese painters, the producers. paintings are more than welcome back. In this
Furthermore, we cannot say that Chinese export respect, Chinese export paintings are no longer
paintings have a ‘personalised’ life story or that ‘lost’ on the periphery of the trade networks.
they ‘export’ a part of a person’s renown. Like The fact that the paintings referred to in this
Ter Keurs’ observations on wooden bowls (on) – research came from China, and are very much
the major trade items of the Siassi – Chinese recognisable as such, meant that their value

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210 Odell 2002, 156-158.
211 Clunas 1984, 69.
212 Ibid.
213 Ter Keurs 2006, 119-120.
214 Chen 2003, 10-12.