PAGODA RED
Color: Beige
Chinese Raw Stone Mortar, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This stone mortar from the early 20th century was once used in a provincial kitchen to grind herbs, spices, rice, and other foods. Hand-carved from a solid block of limestone, the mortar has a minimally worked form that preserves the natural beauty of the stone. With minimalist appeal and a raw, unworked texture, the mortar is fantastic as a sculptural vessel or a tabletop planter...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Rustic Planters, Cachepots and Jardinières
Materials
Limestone
Framed Vintage Chinese East West Advertisement, circa 1920
Located in Chicago, IL
Mixing Western and traditional pictorial styles, this vintage ad depicts a young family on a garden stroll. A cheongsam-clad woman nods to tradition in cont...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Prints
Materials
Paper
Chinese Floral Relief Urn, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Leaving this grandly scaled urn unglazed, the Qing-dynasty craftsman who crafted it chose instead to draw attention to the surface decoration. Skilfully modeled floral motifs stand i...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Planters, Cachepots and Jardinières
Materials
Ceramic
Chinese Five Blessings Brass Brazier, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Filled with burning coals, this exquisitely crafted 19th-century brazier once warmed the cold hands of a wealthy woman on a winter night in northern China. The brazier is hand-wrough...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Metalwork
Materials
Brass
Chinese Floral Incised Brass Brazier, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This 19th century handcrafted bronze hand warmer would have been owned by a woman of means and filled with coals so she could warm her hands on cold...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Metalwork
Materials
Brass
Chinese Double Handled Brass Brazier, circa 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
On a cold winter’s night in China’s Northern provinces, the well-to-do held their hands over this coal-filled brazier to ward off the chill. Handmade of brass, the exquisitely crafte...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Antiquities
Materials
Brass
Chinese Gilt Green Glazed Teapot, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Tea drinking has been an integral part of Chinese culture for centuries, resulting in a wide range of social customs and material traditions. In addition to tea leaves, water, and he...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Ceramics
Materials
Porcelain
Vintage Deco Advertisement Poster, c. 1930
Located in Chicago, IL
This poster from the 1930s melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the craft of color lithography—and a side of risque. The poster features a young woman dressed in a fur-trimmed coat with Western accessories...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Prints
Materials
Paper
Vintage Chinese Deco Poster, c. 1930
Located in Chicago, IL
This vintage poster from the 1930s melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the Craft of color lithography. The serene landscape print depicts a young woman d...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Posters
Materials
Paper
Vintage Chinese Deco Advertisement Poster, c. 1930
Located in Chicago, IL
This commercial advertisement poster from 1930s Shanghai melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the craft of color lithography. Large companies often presented posters such as this to their clients to commemorate the Chinese New Year. This poster depicts a young woman luxuriously...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Prints
Materials
Paper
Vintage Chinese Lithograph Advertisement Poster, c. 1930
Located in Chicago, IL
This advertising poster from the 1930s melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the craft of color lithography that was popularized in China during the econom...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Prints
Materials
Paper
Vintage Chinese Lithograph Advertisement Poster, c. 1920
Located in Chicago, IL
This poster from the 1920s melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the craft of color lithography. The poster depicts two young girls gathered by an ornate stool...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Prints
Materials
Paper
Chinese Double Guardian Headrest, circa 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman would use a rigid headrest or neck pillow to keep her head elevated. Whether functional or pure...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Qing Animal Sculptures
Materials
Porcelain
"Tranquil River" Watercolor Painting
Located in Chicago, IL
This charming watercolor is composed in the style of traditional ink calligraphy and depicts two ducks resting on a river bank. Tall grass and leafy sprouts dot the rocky terrain and...
Category
20th Century Chinese Modern Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Chinese Yangliuqing New Year Painting of Beauty and Baby, c. 1920
Located in Chicago, IL
Chinese New Year paintings (nian hua) are colorful folk paintings created to celebrate the annual Spring Festival. Drawn or printed by folk artists in regional studios, nian hua pain...
Category
Vintage 1920s Chinese Folk Art Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Chinese Mill Stone, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This unusual stone pedestal is actually a late 19th-century cylindrical mill stone. Hand-carved of solid limestone with a textured and ribbed surface, the stone was used for threshin...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Minimalist Pedestals and Columns
Materials
Limestone
Monumental Chinese Limestone Drum, c. 1800
Located in Chicago, IL
This monumental drum stool was hand-carved from solid limestone by artisans in Shanxi province over two centuries ago. Drum-form stools such as this were traditionally used in gardens and outdoor...
Category
Antique Early 19th Century Chinese Qing Patio and Garden Furniture
Materials
Limestone
Framed Chinese Erotic Pillow Book, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
A pillow book was meant to teach a young bride about the art of lovemaking. This rare museum-quality 19th century example is composed of 12 masterfully pai...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Paper
"Weathering" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
A leader of the cross-cultural craft resurgence, Japan-based artist Toyoharu Kii creates his intricate mosaics with hand-cut Italian marble and smalti, Venetian glass made by the sam...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Minimalist Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
"A Wheel Stopper" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the mosaic “A Wheel Stopper,” Toyoharu Kii records an object he encounters everyday while walking his dog. The round form, striped by small, rectangular tesserae, represents a bol...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Minimalist Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
Pair of Japanese Obi Pillows in Silver and Orange
Located in Chicago, IL
This pair of artisan-designed pillows was made by hand from a vintage Japanese obi patterned with orange wave-like swirls against a metallic silver field. ...
Category
Vintage 1970s Japanese Modern Textiles
Materials
Down, Linen, Silk
Chinese Ho Ho Boy Headrest, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman once used this ceramic headrest as a pillow. This headrest is shaped in the form of a baby boy,...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics
Materials
Ceramic
Petite Stone Drum Pedestal, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Look closely and you can just make out the hand-carved details that once made this small stone stool resemble a drum. A ring of circles along the top and bottom imitates bosshead nai...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Garden Ornaments
Materials
Limestone
Chinese Ceramic Spotted Cat Headrest, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman once used this ceramic headrest as a pillow. The headrest is shaped as a crouching house cat, w...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics
Materials
Ceramic
Vintage Chinese Fashion Advertisement, c. 1920
Located in Chicago, IL
In tandem with a growing number of newspapers and periodicals, print advertising proliferated during China’s Republic Era. A bathing beauty is the star attraction of this print ad fr...
Category
Vintage 1920s Chinese Art Deco Posters
Materials
Paper
Chinese Blue and White Plate, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
An everyday example of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain, this petite footed dish charms with expressive sweeps of blue atop a blue-grey underglaze. Once used for serving food and dri...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Decorative Dishes and Vide-Poche
Materials
Ceramic
"Study in Red" by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based artist Michael Thompson creates unique compositions of abstract painted elements and a collage of vintage Asian ephemera—including fragments of fabric, scrolls, drawings, and books collected during his travels.
In a departure from his split bamboo kite series, this work on stretched canvas entitled "Study in Red" layers textured paper and silken fragments within a rosy red color story. A gradient of red to pink sweeps across the composition, interrupted by a panel of Japanese silk depicting a whimsical scene...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Art
Materials
Silk, Canvas, Paint, Paper
"Azrael" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Contemporary Art
Materials
Marble
"Jeremiel" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
"Raphael" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
"Clouded 20.19" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the series “Clouded,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes conta...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
"Camael" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
"Ramiel" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
"Cloud" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
Entitled "Cloud," this mosaic work by Japanese artist Toyoharu Kii tells a story of nature and rebirth. As with many of Kii's works, the lively and chaotic field of white marble tess...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Organic Modern Wall-mounted Sculp...
Materials
Marble
"Ladies at Tea" Mixed-Media Tile by Pauline Hughes
Located in Chicago, IL
Liverpool-based artist Pauline Hughes takes a fluid approach to her ceramic practice, combining aspects of painting, collage, and printmaking into her w...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary British Contemporary Art
Materials
Ceramic, Paper
Framed Chinese Calligraphy Scroll, circa 1920s
Located in Chicago, IL
Set against a silk brocade backing, this early 20th century paper scroll is brushed with a work of painterly calligraphy. Expressing notions of endurance and moral fortitude, the scr...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Chinese Etched Limestone Trough, c. 1800
Located in Chicago, IL
Prized mounts once took refreshment from this stone trough, carved from a solid block of limestone more than hundred years ago. Once purely functional, the trough is celebrated today...
Category
Antique Early 19th Century Chinese Qing Planters and Jardinieres
Materials
Limestone
Chinese Hanging Scroll of Prunus Branches, circa 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Chinese scholars used natural imagery and scenery to aid in contemplation within the walls of their studios. The complex beauty inherent to landscapes and natural forms inspired clea...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Chinese Ming Stone Table, c. 1600
Located in Chicago, IL
This stone table was carved over 400 years ago from a solid piece of limestone. With time, the stone develops particular undeniable characteristics: beautiful wear, patina, and oxida...
Category
Antique Early 17th Century Chinese Ming Furniture
Materials
Limestone
Chinese Brown and White Cat Headrest, circa 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman once used this ceramic headrest as a pillow. The headrest is shaped as a crouching house cat, w...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Animal Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic
Pair of Chinese Agate Snuff Bottles with Carnelian Beads, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Snuff, a mixture of powdered tobacco, herbs, and spices, was introduced to China by Western diplomats in the 17th century. The opportunity for ranking members of Chinese society to c...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Tobacco Accessories
Materials
Agate, Carnelian
Japanese Meiji Riverside Scroll Painting, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Although western painting was initially embraced during Japan’s Meiji period (1868-1912), artists brought on a revival of traditional painting styles as they sought to create a modern Japanese style with roots in the past. This exquisite hanging scroll demonstrates the preference for soft layering of gray tones with judicious use of color. The landscape is rendered in soft ink washes that subtly distinguish between water, mountain, and sky. The scroll painting...
Category
Early 20th Century Japanese Meiji Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
"Urbane Profile" Mixed-Media Tile by Pauline Hughes
Located in Chicago, IL
Liverpool-based artist Pauline Hughes takes a fluid approach to her ceramic practice, integrating techniques of painting, collage, and printmaking into ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary British Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic, Paper
“Zadkiel” Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the series “Heavenly,” Toyoharu Kii honors the fullness of life and its continual rebirth. In some works, white tesserae assume abstract profiles. In others, irregular shapes cont...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Wall-mounted Sculptures
Materials
Marble
"Scholar's Treasures" Chinese Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
A scroll and a small lantern depicted in this 19th century painting suggest the romantic notion of a Chinese scholar painting in the evening hours. Re...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Fabric
"Treasures of the Scholars' Studio" Chinese Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
With careful brushwork, this 19th century painting honors the four treasures of the scholar's studio - paper, calligraphy brush, ink, and inkstone. Essenti...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Fabric
Chinese New Year Painting, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
In celebration of the lunar New Year festival, it was traditional all over China to hang special decorations. In a city called Wuqiang, local artists made lacquer scroll paintings laden with symbolism. This framed and finely rendered early 20th century folk painting from Wuqiang features an imperial court official and his family dressed in their best silks. The young boy is dressed in a wonderfully patterned yellow robe to offer Shou Xing...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Japanese Edo Festival Screen, c. 1750
Located in Chicago, IL
This 18th century folding screen is a stunning example of Japanese artistry. Beautifully painted with delicate brushwork, the evocative screen depicts a lively festival during the Ed...
Category
Antique Mid-18th Century Japanese Edo Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
"Accumulated Roads" Mosaic by Toyoharu Kii
By Toyoharu Kii
Located in Chicago, IL
In the mosaic “Accumulated Roads,” Toyoharu Kii describes the futility of man’s attempts to traverse and tame nature. The work portrays a tangle of once carefully aligned tesserea pa...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Organic Modern Wall-mounted Sculp...
Materials
Marble
Chinese Interlocking Ring Stone Table, c. 1600
Located in Chicago, IL
Created over 400 years ago, this low table from the late Ming/early Qing dynasty was carved by hand from a single block of limestone. The table has aprons carved with interlocking rings...
Category
Antique Early 17th Century Chinese Ming Furniture
Materials
Limestone
Pair of Chinese Stone Finials with Peaches and Persimmons, 17th/18th Century
Located in Chicago, IL
Over four hundred years ago, these rare stone finials once sat high on the roof of a Ming dynasty building. Hand-carved in Shanxi province, they offer a glimpse of a bygone era - man...
Category
Antique 18th Century Chinese Ming Sculptures and Carvings
Materials
Limestone
Chinese Persimmon Ginger Jar with Cartouche Paintings, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
White cartouches open on this vibrant vase’s persimmon orange field like parting clouds, revealing scenes of young boys practicing martial arts. Perhaps c...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics
Materials
Porcelain
Terracotta Bura Spirit Vessel, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Sometimes called a "Bura bell" due to its shape, this sculptural terra cotta object was part of the Bura tribe's burial ritual. Buried with its flared mouth facing down, this cylindrical storage...
Category
Early 20th Century Nigerien Tribal Abstract Sculptures
Materials
Terracotta
Set of Four Chinese Immortals Screen Paintings, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Since the 12th century people in China have used folding screens and doors to partition and decorate their homes—the vivid scenes backing the screens added life and color to a room. ...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Chinese Immortal Peach Finial, c. 1800
Located in Chicago, IL
This carved limestone charm promises longevity in the form of the immortal peach. According to Chinese mythology, the Jade Emperor’s palace was surrounded by peach trees that provided ripe fruit every three thousand years. A single bite of this charmed fruit...
Category
Antique Early 19th Century Chinese Qing Sculptures and Carvings
Materials
Limestone
Chinese Persimmon Phoenix Tail Vase with Cartouche Paintings, c. 1920s
Located in Chicago, IL
This vase is a perfect example of enduring Chinese symbolism and design. The attendants in the garden are watching over young boys playing with lotus branches, butterflies and small ...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Ceramics
Materials
Porcelain
"Crystal Hunt" Ghanaian Movie Poster
Located in Chicago, IL
Starring Donnie Yen, "The Bruce Lee of the 90s," "Crystal Hunt" was a martial arts film from Hong Kong made in 1991. Frequently, theaters in Ghana were unable to import official post...
Category
Late 20th Century Ghanaian Folk Art Paintings
Materials
Canvas
Chinese Dingyao Vase, c. 1100
Located in Chicago, IL
Dingyao porcelain, often called Ding ware, is famous for its creamy-white coloring, refined forms, and low-relief surface patterning. Ding ware was produced ...
Category
Antique 15th Century and Earlier Chinese Minimalist Ceramics
Materials
Stoneware
"Literary Gathering" Chinese Scroll Painting, c. 1923
Located in Chicago, IL
Exquisitely painted with delicate line work and a subdued color palette, this Chinese scroll painting is an Late 20th-century reproduction of a...
Category
Late 20th Century Chinese Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Paper
Chinese Nan Yang Meditation Stone
Located in Chicago, IL
Following the softly sculpted form, warm marbled coloring and natural veining of this one-of-a-kind stone can be deeply meditative. Scholars in ancient China decorated their studios ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Natural Specimens
Materials
Stone
Read More
A Pair of Monumental Stone Tigers Protect and Guide Wandering Souls
The Qing dynasty beasts honored the dead and warned off malicious spirits.
Chicago’s Pagoda Red Has a Spirited Mix of Asian Antiques and Bold New Art
For 25 years, gallerist Betsy Nathan has leveraged her keen eye and key connections to bring a unique selection of rare finds to the market.