Monumental Chinoiserie Three-Panel Triptych Screen, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, C. 1900–1920”

Details

Description

This extraordinary three-panel chinoiserie folding screen commands immediate attention at a monumental 81 inches tall and 120 inches wide when … Read more This extraordinary three-panel chinoiserie folding screen commands immediate attention at a monumental 81 inches tall and 120 inches wide when fully opened. Painted in oil on board, the triptych presents a continuous narrative scene across all three panels in the grand chinoiserie tradition — a elegantly dressed Chinese woman in a blue floral qipao stands beneath a dramatically gnarled flowering tree, surrounded by exotic long-tailed birds, irises, narcissus, and hyacinths, all set against a warm terracotta and gilt ground with architectural balustrade elements above.
The craftsmanship throughout is exceptional. The center panel carries the primary figural composition, while the flanking panels each feature magnificent phoenix-like birds rendered with remarkable painterly confidence. The panel borders are decorated with raised gilt gesso scrollwork on a green ground — a labor-intensive technique consistent with high-end decorative work of the early 20th century. The carved and shaped black lacquered frame with fretwork corner details at the top of each panel further speaks to the quality of the original commission.
The reverse is painted green, showing the beautiful, honest wear of age — significant paint loss, crazing, and patina consistent with a piece well over a century old. The face of the screen shows craquelure throughout, particularly visible in the close figural detail, confirming the antiquity of the painted surface.
The screen is reputed by oral history to have originated from the Lake Geneva, Wisconsin estate community — an area historically associated with the dispersal of objects and structures from Chicago’s 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, several of which were relocated to Geneva Lake estates in the years following the Fair. While this provenance is unverified by documentation, the style, construction, and condition of the piece are entirely consistent with that period and context.

Dimensions: 81 inches H × 120 inches W (fully open) — each panel approximately 40 inches wide. See less