Geisha Soapstone Panels
Vintage 1940s Chinese Chinoiserie Paintings and Screens
Soapstone
Recent Sales
20th Century Chinoiserie Paintings and Screens
Soapstone
Late 20th Century Unknown Chinoiserie Screens and Room Dividers
Soapstone
Mid-20th Century Chinese Chinoiserie Screens and Room Dividers
Soapstone
People Also Browsed
20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Paintings and Screens
Brass, Silver Leaf
20th Century Chinese Paintings and Screens
Gold Leaf
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood, Lacquer, Paint
Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Chinoiserie Paintings
Wood
Antique Late 19th Century Japanese Meiji Decorative Art
Bone, Mother-of-Pearl, Lacquer
20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Paintings and Screens
Brass
Early 20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Cabinets
Lacquer
20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Paintings and Screens
Brass
Antique 18th Century Japanese Edo Paintings and Screens
Gold Leaf
Antique 19th Century Chinese Chinoiserie Furniture
Wood
Antique Early 17th Century Chinese Ming Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Antique 17th Century Japanese Edo Lacquer
Copper, Gold
Antique 1760s English George III Dining Room Chairs
Hardwood
Antique Early 1900s Chinese Qing Ceramics
Porcelain
Mid-20th Century Chinese Paintings and Screens
Wood
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Chinoiserie Screens and Room Dividers
Rosewood
A Close Look at Chinoiserie Furniture
Emerging in the 17th century, chinoiserie appropriated the aesthetics and imagery of popular East Asian design for European-made versions. Reflecting the exoticization of China, Japan and other countries in this era, the word directly translates from French to “Chinese-esque,” which reveals its shortcomings as a style of furniture and decor that often stereotypically and reductively mimics Asian culture rather than showcasing and paying tribute to its artistic traditions.
The enthusiastically decorative chinoiserie style was propelled by influential tastemakers including French King Louis XIV, whose Trianon de Porcelaine in 1670 was inspired by Chinese architecture. Expanded trade between the East and West led to a demand for porcelain, lacquer objects, silk and other goods, which further informed the fanciful furniture being crafted in Europe.
Artisans working in the chinoiserie style used materials and elements like pagoda shapes, bamboo, lacquer surfaces, bird and flower motifs and other interpretations of Asian design on pieces that were frequently set against vibrant wallcoverings. This whimsical approach yielded chinoiserie furniture that boasted dramatic flourishes drawing on the natural world and reflected the dominance of Rococo during the 18th century.
As chinoiserie was shaped by approximations of Asian design by European creators, it had regional variations, such as Chinese Chippendale in England where cabinets, chairs and tea tables had wooden fretwork designs and “japanned” surfaces intended to resemble lacquer work that was created in East Asia. In North America, furniture makers in Boston and New York integrated chinoiserie-painted scenes into Queen Anne furniture.
Antique chinoiserie furniture has continued to be fashionable, from its popularity with decorators of the Hollywood Regency era — James Mont, Tommi Parzinger, William Haines and Samuel Marx favored the style — to contemporary interior designers, although it brings with it a complex history.
Find a collection of chinoiserie bedroom furniture, cabinets, decorative objects and more on 1stDibs.