George I Style Red Lacquer and Gilt Chinoiserie Mirror With Figural Decoration, c.1960

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Description

A striking and decorative pier mirror in red lacquer with gilt chinoiserie decoration, executed in the George I manner and … Read more A striking and decorative pier mirror in red lacquer with gilt chinoiserie decoration, executed in the George I manner and dating to the mid 20th century. The form closely follows the arched rectangular pier mirrors produced in England during the reign of George I, when the fashion for japanned and lacquered furniture reached its first great peak, and which were revived with considerable enthusiasm during the Edwardian period and into the 1920s when chinoiserie enjoyed a sustained popular renaissance.

The frame is of arched rectangular form with shaped shoulders at the upper corners, the profile characteristic of the early 18th century English mirror tradition. The entire surface is decorated in red lacquer ground with gilt chinoiserie scenes executed with considerable care and detail. Figures in Chinese dress inhabit garden landscapes populated with pagodas, birds, flowering trees, and rockwork, around all four sides of the frame. A gilt diaper pattern border runs along the inner edge, and the outer border carries a scrolling gilt foliate band that unifies the decorative scheme.

The combination of the crimson ground with bright gilding is among the most vivid and sought-after colourways in the chinoiserie lacquer tradition, associated with the finest examples of the form. The mirror plate appears original, showing some clouding toward the upper left corner consistent with age.

This mirror would make a bold and confident statement in an entrance hall, powder room, or bedroom, and sits naturally within both period and maximalist contemporary interior schemes. See less