Art affects the world
Traditional Chinese art carries a heavy Chinese civilization and a strong taste of life, and after thousands of years of history, it is still shining on the world stage. With the emergence and rapid development of Cultural Exchanges and Trade between China and foreign countries, excellent traditional Chinese arts and their spirits have gone abroad and introduced into the world, which has had a subtle impact on world culture, art and daily life.
Based on this, the People's Fine Arts Publishing House has set up a column of "Art Affects the World" in the magazine "China Art" in order to arouse more people's attention and understanding of China's excellent traditional art, explore how Chinese art affects the world, activate the vitality of traditional Chinese art, and make it bloom with eternal charm.
This issue excerpts the content of "The Ideal "China"- An Overview of the Origin of the Development of European Post-Gold-encrusted Chinese Porcelain", and excavates the collision and integration of Chinese and Western culture and art by tracing the development history of European post-gold-encrusted Chinese porcelain.
Porcelain room in the Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin, Germany
Since the beginning of the entry of Chinese porcelain into Europe, this object from the mysterious Far East has become a treasure chased by European aristocrats. Out of love for Chinese porcelain and to cater to the preferences of the local nobility, the European practice of adding precious metal fittings to Chinese porcelain followed, the history of which dates back to the late Middle Ages, and this practice existed more or less in various European countries.
However, in different historical periods, European countries have different purposes for re-decorating Chinese porcelain. Therefore, post-gilded porcelain in different periods and different countries has shown different artistic faces. There are many factors that affect the development of post-Gold-encrusted porcelain in Europe, such as the popularity of Chinese porcelain in Europe, the development of European native porcelain, and the one-sided understanding of Chinese art in Europe.
A Qing Dynasty multicolored floral begonia-shaped bottle that was transformed into a table lamp
For a long time, the raw material composition and production process of porcelain have not been known to Europeans, which makes porcelain have a strong mystery in Europe. Europeans did not understand the condition of Chinese porcelain throughout the 16th century. For example, the British Museum in The United Kingdom has a watercolor painting by the German painter Albrecht Dürer, painted between about 1510 and 1515. The painting shows two intricate and intricate columns, each of which is equipped with a porcelain vase supported by a metal bracket, and the shape and glaze color of the porcelain bottle are different from that of Chinese porcelain of the same period. Dürer is known to have bought Chinese porcelain in Antwerp, but the painting is clearly not depicted with Chinese porcelain.
Chinese Imari-style painted porcelain that was transformed into a coffee or chocolate pot
Collection of the V&A Museum, UK
This shows that on the one hand, Europeans do not know much about Chinese porcelain and how they are used; on the other hand, based on the gap between Chinese and Western cultures, the simplicity and elegance of Chinese porcelain do not conform to the aesthetics of Europeans. Therefore, European artists transformed Chinese porcelain in a post-gold-encrusted manner, thus giving it European decorative arts elements. This reflects the beginning of the 16th century when Europeans began to re-decorate Chinese porcelain to make it conform to their own aesthetic consciousness began to sprout.
In the 16th century, many countries in Western Europe were keen to inlay metal accessories for Chinese porcelain, including Britain and France. These countries were more powerful in Europe at that time, and the metal craftsmanship was more developed, which laid the foundation for their acquisition and transformation of Chinese porcelain. The United Kingdom has preserved a large number of physical remains of post-gold-encrusted porcelain. It is now recognized that the earliest Chinese porcelain that arrived in Britain was a Ming Dynasty Longquan kiln celadon bowl, and later it also became a piece of post-gold-encrusted porcelain. This piece of porcelain was first collected by Archbishop William Warham, hence the name "Warham Bowl".
A Qing Dynasty blue glaze pile white pattern bottle that was transformed into a kettle
British Royal Collection
Few post-gilded porcelains in Germany have survived, and a few pieces are known to have some similarities in metal decoration style to the British of the same period. For example, a German support cup with gilded gold and silver is now in the Victoria and Albert Museum in the United Kingdom, and its porcelain body is a blue and red colored gold tangled lotus bowl.
European post-gilded porcelain in the 16th century is still mostly used as a decoration and generally does not have a practical function. Even porcelain, which has been transformed into a goblet, has a secondary practical function, and this type of porcelain is mostly used as a communion cup in the Eucharist ceremony of the Christian Church, and its religious and symbolic significance is in the first place.
A Qing Dynasty blue glazed blue pattern lid jar that was transformed into an aromatherapy vessel
British Royal Collection
After entering the 17th century, the Dutch broke the original pattern of Sino-Western trade, and the rarity of porcelain was greatly weakened. The sanctity of porcelain in the minds of Europeans also disappeared, and it became a luxury that flaunted wealth, status, and elegance. At the same time, Europeans began to face up to the practicality of porcelain, and porcelain gradually penetrated into all aspects of European daily life.
In this context, although the number of post-gold-encrusted porcelain in Europe has increased, the main purpose of decoration has changed, no longer just to highlight the rarity and preciousness of Chinese porcelain, but to make porcelain more suitable for the daily life of Europeans and to protect the fragile parts of porcelain.
Chinese tea, while Europeans like beer, coffee, milk tea, etc., the eating habits of the two sides are very different, and the usual utensils are very different. Therefore, among the post-gilded porcelain in Europe in the 17th century, there were also porcelain that were transformed into commonly used utensils in Europe.
An ink holder made of a combination of Dehua white porcelain
Collection of the Paul Getty Museum, USA
A Qing Dynasty imitation glazed bottle that was transformed into a kettle
British Royal Collection
In contrast, Dutch gold-encrusted porcelain is generally more minimalist and rarely elaborate. The post-gilded porcelain of England in the same period has similarities with the Netherlands, the overall style is simple, but there are still a considerable part of the decorative style inherited from the 16th century, which is more ornate and is mainly used as a decoration. In the same period, the precious metal craft in France was also more developed, and its gold and silver products were mostly tableware, candlesticks, ornaments, and decorations for swords, armor and fireplaces. It is not difficult to speculate that there should also be a large number of post-gold-encrusted porcelain in France during this period.
James Tiso, Hide and Seek (Partial)
Collection of the National Museum of Art
There are many reasons why Europeans added metal attachments to Chinese porcelain, including further enhancing the value of porcelain, changing the original function of porcelain, repairing broken porcelain, and making porcelain more in line with the aesthetics of Europeans. Behind these reasons is the fusion and collision of Chinese and Western cultures and arts. European post-gold-encrusted porcelain is a direct example of european attempts to "localize" Chinese porcelain, which reflects the difference in Chinese and Western values and aesthetic interests. Post-gold-encrusted porcelain not only had a certain influence on European ceramic art and decorative arts, but also enriched the face of Chinese porcelain. Its uniqueness and compatibility also show the selective acceptance and absorption of Chinese art and culture by European countries.
This article is excerpted from Chinese Art, No. 2, 2022
"The Ideal "China": An Overview of the Origin of the Development of European Post-Gold-encrusted Chinese Porcelain
Chinese Art, No. 2, 2022