Wallpaper featuring scenes from daily life by Chinese Manufacture from the 18th century

Chinese Manufacture from the 18th century

Carta da parati con scene di vita quotidiana

Intro

The work is a tempera on mulberry paper that has been owned by Intesa Sanpaolo since 1994. It is a typical example of wallpaper produced in southern China intended for exportation to Europe and was probably made between 1760 and 1780, a period of maximum demand for this type of decor. In fact, many European residences set up rooms with Chinese-style decorations and decor, either original or imitation. In Piedmont, for example, some of the rooms in the noble residences of Savoy were upholstered with Chinese paper, like the ones in the castles of Govone, Guarene and Racconigi.

The work is located at Gallerie d'Italia - Torino.

The work is a tempera on mulberry paper that has been owned by Intesa Sanpaolo since 1994. It is a typical example of wallpaper produced in southern China intended for exportation to Europe and was probably made between 1760 and 1780, a period of maximum demand for this type of decor. In fact, many European residences set up rooms with Chinese-style decorations and decor, either original or imitation. In Piedmont, for example, some of the rooms in the noble residences of Savoy were upholstered with Chinese paper, like the ones in the castles of Govone, Guarene and Racconigi.

The work is located at Gallerie d'Italia - Torino.

270 x 372 cm

Date: 1760-1780 or later?
Medium: Tempera on mulberry paper

This work is of rectangular shape and is composed of five vertical sections juxtaposed with each other that render the image of a vast Chinese river landscape seen from a bird's eye view, a perspective typical of the Chinese painting tradition The composition is distributed over three horizontal sections, from the bottom to the top.

The lower sections depict the bank of a river, punctuated by three trees, on which stand fifteen figures of various ages and social status, all male except for two women on the left. All the figures depicted are performing movements of everyday life.

On the right a fisherman is holding a basket containing his goods, which he offers to a buyer. Next are several high-ranking figures, as is indicated by the valuable clothes they are wearing, as well as well as the presence of a finely harnessed horse in the centre of the bank, near a tree.

Beyond the bank, two small boats cross the lower arm of the watercourse, one in the centre and the other further to the right; on the latter a noblewoman travels, accompanied by a figure playing a flute-like instrument.

In the central section, beyond the upper bank, is the island, punctuated by four trees, which houses a densely built village full of people, of different age groups and social rank, who are carrying out everyday activities.

A food vendor's stall has been painted on the far right of the scene, while in the centre a man is shown in profile dressed in a blue tunic and with his right hand raised holding an 'advertising' inscription; the Chinese characters painted on it identify him as a medicine seller.

Numerous children engaged in various activities surround the various figures. The attention of many is focused on a small acrobat, depicted slightly to the left, he is performing acrobatic stunts on top of a high pole to the rhythm of a tambourine played by a woman.

The upper part of the watercourse, beyond which lies the riverbank, is depicted in the top section of the work; on it are a few small dwellings scattered here and there and a series of figures depicted in reduced size to suggest distance, according to western perspective practice.

Among them, on the left, a group of hunters with bows and arrows and two horses appear at the foot of the mountains, dotted with white flowering trees that frame the painted scene.