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Pair of African Nyamwezi Trough Zithers
Located in Chicago, IL
These wooden sculptures are stringed instruments known as ligombo, a form of elongated trough zither attributed to the Nyamwezi people of Tanzania and greater East Africa. Originally...
Category
20th Century Tanzanian Tribal Mounted Objects
Materials
Wood
$1,180 / set
Kuba Dye-Resist Tcaka Textile
Located in Chicago, IL
Visually dynamic and highly textured, this raffia textile expresses the irregular, geometric patterns typical of Kuba textile art. Created by an artisan of the Kuba people of the Dem...
Category
20th Century Congolese Tribal Tapestries
Materials
Raffia
Meditation Stone Serving Slab
Located in Chicago, IL
Sculptural and unusual stone formations have long been fixtures of the Chinese scholars' studio, displayed as sources of beauty and creative inspiration. Known as scholars' rocks (go...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Organic Modern Platters and Serveware
Materials
Stone
Japanese Silver Trinket Box with Full Moon & Grass, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This Meiji-period trinket box exemplifies Japanese refinement in all crafts. Fashioned of silver with a hardwood interior, the small box has a clean-lined rectangular form with rounded corners and a thin lip where the lid meets the base. The lid is etched with tall grasses swaying before a full moon, a motif that represents the Japanese moon...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Japanese Minimalist Decorative Boxes
Materials
Silver
Japanese Green Cloisonné Rose Vase by Ando Cloisonné
By Ando Jubei
Located in Chicago, IL
This elegant vase by Ando Cloisonné Company is finely decorated in the cloisonné manner with translucent enamels and silver accents. The globular vase is cloaked in glassy, turquoise...
Category
Mid-20th Century Japanese Art Deco Vases
Materials
Metal, Silver Plate, Enamel
Burmese Red Lacquer Divided Tray
Located in Chicago, IL
This round tray dates to the early 20th century and is a simple example of Burmese lacquerware. The tray is formed of thin bamboo strips that have been woven and coiled into shape, h...
Category
Early 20th Century Burmese Platters and Serveware
Materials
Bamboo
Chinese Gilt Lacquer Stacking Box, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This finely painted box was once presented as a gift, filled with popular snacks like roasted melon seeds, dried fruit, and cinnamon-toasted soy beans. Used like a modern lunchbox, e...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Qing More Asian Art, Objects and Furni...
Materials
Bamboo
Collection of 80 Chinese Silver & Gilt Table Wares, 19th-20th Century
Located in Chicago, IL
This group of 80 silver and gilt table wares is a delightful selection of Chinese and Japanese export wares, comprised of 56 spoons, 2 sugar tongs, 6 butter spreaders, 7 lemon forks and 9 napkin rings. Nearly every piece is unique, decorated in an array of motifs and metalworking techniques, including repoussé, chasing, mold casting and engraving.
Amidst the cutlery are two stand-out spoons: a small spade carved from mother-of-pearl and a petite silver spoon inset with a green jadeite charm...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Tableware
Materials
Gold Plate, Silver Plate, Silver
Late 19th Century Chinese Mother of Pearl Snuff Bottles
Located in Chicago, IL
A mixture of finely powdered tobacco, herbs, and spices, snuff was introduced to China in the 17th century by Western diplomats. Initially reserved for ranking members of Qing-dynast...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Qing Scholar's Objects
Materials
Bone, Mother-of-Pearl
Chinese Round Leg Courtyard Stool, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This Chinese courtyard stool dates to the mid-19th century and has a classic splayed leg design with round legs and a rectangular seat. The stool is crafted of northern elmwood (yumu...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Stools
Materials
Elm
19th Century Chinese Famille Rose Floral Punch Bowl
Located in Chicago, IL
During the 18th century, Europeans provided an eager market for Chinese export porcelain, especially the colorful and fanciful ware known as “famille rose.” Named for a palette of op...
Category
Antique 19th Century Chinese Qing Decorative Bowls
Materials
Porcelain
French Provincial Two Drawer Table, c. 1800
Located in Chicago, IL
This two-drawer side table is crafted of oak in the French Provincial style, blending the refined elegance of classical French furniture with the timeless simplicity of country furni...
Category
Antique Early 19th Century French Louis XVI Console Tables
Materials
Metal
"Forest Mist" Meditation Stone Sculpture
Located in Chicago, IL
Sculptural and unusual stone formations have long been fixtures of the Chinese scholars' studio, displayed as sources of beauty and creative inspiration. Known as scholars' rocks (go...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Organic Modern Natural Specimens
Materials
Stone, Steel
Chinese Famille Rose Footed Offering Bowl, c. 1862
Located in Chicago, IL
This colorful porcelain bowl dates to the mid-19th century and was originally used as a serving dish for ritual offerings, placed before a home altar and piled high with fruit, baked...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Decorative Bowls
Materials
Porcelain
Shanghai Deco Hatamen Cigarettes Poster, c. 1930
Located in Chicago, IL
This framed advertising poster for Nanyang Brothers Tobacco dates to the 1920-30s and melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the nuanced color and fine reso...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Prints
Materials
Paper
Shanghai Deco Nanyang Brothers Tobacco Poster, c. 1930
Located in Chicago, IL
This framed advertising poster for Nanyang Brothers Tobacco dates to the 1920-30s and melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the nuanced color and fine resolution of color lithography. Known as yuefenpai, or calendar posters, these advertisements depicted fashionable women and intriguing scenery alongside annual calendars and product placements. Evolved from traditional nianhua paintings (New Year pictures), these advertising posters were strongly influenced by the Art Deco movement in the west and recall the economic boom of early 20th century Shanghai, an international center of business and trade.
In this example, a young woman dressed in fine clothing and jewelry strolls through a traditional courtyard garden, surrounded by stone statues and towering pagodas. In the lower left corner is an open pack of Golden Dragon Cigarettes and below an array of cigarette brands, each a product of Nanyang Brothers Tobacco. The scene is surrounded by trailing vine scrollwork and text suggesting the poster may have been given as a corporate gift...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Art Deco Prints
Materials
Paper
Chinese White Jade Cup with Stand
Located in Chicago, IL
Minimal and refined, this elegant Chinese cup has a simple silhouette sculpted from a single piece of luminous white jade, carefully selected for its clarity and pale color. The delicate form is shaped with a flared lip, short footed base, and thin walls that appear nearly translucent in the light. The jade cup...
Category
20th Century Chinese Minimalist Sculptures and Carvings
Materials
Jade
Chinese Famille Rose Footed Offering Bowl, c. 19th Century
Located in Chicago, IL
This colorful porcelain bowl dates to the mid-19th century and was originally used as a serving dish for ritual offerings, placed before a home altar and piled high with fruit, baked...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Decorative Bowls
Materials
Porcelain
Chinese Bent Handle Fisherman's Basket, circa 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Basket making is an ancient and humble craft, but in the hands of a skilled weaver a simple willow basket can become a truly beautiful work of art. This bent handle basket was made i...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Rustic Decorative Baskets
Materials
Willow, Bentwood
Vietnamese Deco Burl Armchair, c. 1940
Located in Chicago, IL
This Vietnamese Deco armchair is characterized by clean lines and smooth contours. Dated to the 1940s, the armchair is designed in the timeless style of the Art Deco period, when tra...
Category
Mid-20th Century Vietnamese Art Deco Armchairs
Materials
Burl, Teak
Monumental Reclaimed Elm Dining Table
Located in Chicago, IL
This monumental dining table is a celebration of wabi-sabi style. The modern design is hand-crafted of elmwood timbers reclaimed from Qing-dynasty architecture, each selected for its...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Organic Modern Dining Room Tables
Materials
Reclaimed Wood
Set of Three Chinese Qing Dynasty Jade Bangles
Located in Chicago, IL
Valued for its rarity and lustrous appearance, jade (yù) has long been a symbol of excellence, longevity and purity of virtue. Worn as jewelry or as a protective charm, the stone was believed to imbue a person with a clear mind and pure spirit, and to guard against evil spirits and illness. To this day, if a jade bangle is broken during use, it's thought that the jade protected the wearer by absorbing incoming negative energy or harm. For many, jade bangles are also cherished family heirlooms, worn from a young age to represent the enduring bonds to their ancestors and loved ones.
This jade bangles in this set of three date to the Qing dynasty (1644-1912) and display a lovely range of colors and forms. The group includes one bangle of pale celadon jade, one of black jade, and one of celadon jade. Each bracelet is slightly unique, the pale celadon and black jade examples carved with straight sides and the celadon example carved in relief with an archaistic dragon winding through clouds.
Additional Dimensions:
Celadon Dragon...
Category
Antique Early 19th Century Chinese Qing Antiquities
Materials
Jade
$2,280 / set
Tobacco Brown Reclaimed Elm Stool
Located in Chicago, IL
Crafted of wood reclaimed from 18th-century Chinese buildings, this contemporary three-leg stool is the epitome of farmhouse modern. Embracing the notion of “wabi-sabi,” the large st...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Organic Modern Stools
Materials
Reclaimed Wood
Chinese Washing Stone Pedestal, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Carved in the late 19th century in northern China, this limestone washing stone would have been used by a Qing-dynasty woman for washing clothes and textiles. Used by beating wet fab...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Minimalist Pedestals and Columns
Materials
Limestone
Speckled Pine Gobi Sideboard, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Created in the style of Mongolian storage coffers, this early 20th-century herdsman's chest has a modern design of simple lines and rustic texture. Originally configured to open from...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Organic Modern Sideboards
Materials
Pine
Art Deco Mirrored Pedestal Table, c. 1930s
Located in Chicago, IL
This low mirrored accent table is a fabulous example of the streamlined forms and bold materials that defined Art Deco furniture design. Dated to...
Category
Vintage 1930s European Art Deco Side Tables
Materials
Mirror, Wood
Pair of Italian Art Deco Slipper Chairs with Macassar Ebony Veneer
Located in Chicago, IL
This lovely pair of Art Deco side chairs perfectly embodies the timeless appeal of Deco period furniture. Ideal in a bedroom or parlor, the chairs have a modern silhouette of round u...
Category
Vintage 1930s Italian Art Deco Side Chairs
Materials
Silk, Wood, Ebony
Japanese Meiji Gilt Lacquer Writing Desk & Poem Box
Located in Chicago, IL
With intricate construction and exquisite decoration, this fine tabletop writing set is a masterpiece of Japanese lacquerware. The matching set includes a writing table (bundai) and poem box (tanzaku bako), both decorated with gilt lacquer in the style of takamaki-e and hiramaki-e urushi lacquer.
Framed by everted ends, the lacquered table top is masterfully worked, depicting a robed man seated on a veranda within an idyllic mountain-and-water landscape. Swirling clouds drift overhead and pine trees bend towards the sky, formed of raised lacquer (takamaki-e) and mother of pearl inlay (raden). Dark lacquer at the corners imitate metal hardware and the sculptural corner legs are decorated with raised motifs of maple leaves.
The writing table includes a matching poem box (tanzaku bako), used for storing paper cards of painted calligraphy and poetry. The lid is similarly decorated in shimmering gilt lacquer with a raised design of a fine carriage beneath a pine tree, draped in cloths and shaded by bamboo blinds...
Category
Early 20th Century Japanese Meiji Lacquer
Materials
Mother-of-Pearl, Wood
Petite Chinese Mirror Tray, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Simple lines, a modest form, and a well-worn finish give this small Qing-dynasty tray a provincial charm that recalls the warmth of home. Rich with character, the tray has a weathere...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Rustic Platters and Serveware
Materials
Mirror, Pine
Georgian Period English Lowboy Side Table, c. 1750
Located in Chicago, IL
This English lowboy table from the mid-18th century unites the refined flourishes of Regency-era furniture with the timeless appeal of country antiques. Crafted of English oak, the t...
Category
Antique Mid-18th Century English Georgian Lowboys
Materials
Brass
Chinese Red Lacquer Hide Pillow, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Dated to the late 19th century, this fine Chinese headrest is hand-crafted of lacquered hide atop an elongated bamboo frame. Used while sleeping like a modern pillow, the headrest ha...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Mounted Objects
Materials
Hide
"Retablo No. 4 (Blackbird)" by Patrick Fitzgerald
By Patrick Fitzgerald
Located in Chicago, IL
The intricate retablos of contemporary artist Patrick Fitzgerald are his means of paying homage to the musicians that inspired him throughout his life. Derived from Mexican votive...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Folk Art Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Other
Provincial Chinese Splayed Leg Bench with Dovetail Joinery
Located in Chicago, IL
This rustic bench from China's Shanxi province follows the classic recessed-leg form, defined by legs that are set back from the top edge and slightly splayed for stability. Popular ...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Rustic Benches
Materials
Pine
Indigo Blue Reclaimed Elm Waterfall Table
Located in Chicago, IL
This artisan-crafted console table is a celebration of wabi-sabi style. Crafted of elmwood timbers reclaimed from Qing-dynasty architecture, the table has a minimalist waterfall desi...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Organic Modern Console Tables
Materials
Elm
Pair of Chinese Blue & White Good Fortune Jars
Located in Chicago, IL
These round, porcelain storage jars are brightly glazed in the classic blue-and-white manner with a striking, high-contrast design. Emphasizing the graphic aesthetic qualities of Chi...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Chinese Export Jars
Materials
Porcelain
Chinese Raw Pine Herdsman's Coffer, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Created in the style of Mongolian storage coffers, this early 20th-century herdsman's chest has a modern design of simple lines and rustic texture. Originally configured to open from...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Organic Modern Sideboards
Materials
Pine
Chinese Hanging Scroll Painting of a Winter Landscape
Located in Chicago, IL
Brushed with expressive linework and a minimalist color palette, this Chinese hanging scroll painting depicts an idyllic mountainside landscape in the ...
Category
20th Century Chinese Qing Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper, Silk
"Retablo No. 5 (An Attic of Records)" by Patrick Fitzgerald
By Patrick Fitzgerald
Located in Chicago, IL
The intricate retablos of contemporary artist Patrick Fitzgerald are his means of paying homage to the musicians that inspired him throughout his life. Derived from Mexican votive...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Folk Art Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Other
Chinese Blue and White Jar with Mythical Fu Lions
Located in Chicago, IL
This round, porcelain storage jar is brightly glazed in the classic blue-and-white manner. A combination of stenciled linework and hand-brushed shading, the sides of the jar are deco...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Chinese Export Jars
Materials
Porcelain
Chinese Full Moon Rice Millstone, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This large stone disc was originally used in a provincial Chinese home as a heavy millstone for grinding rice and other grains into flour and meal. Hand-carved from solid granite to a round, full moon shape, the millstone has a highly textured surface chiseled with an orderly pattern of straight furrows. The opposite side is less worked, with a rougher, organic texture. We love placing millstones like this outdoors to add a stone element to a garden, whether used as an abstract sculpture, as a stepping stone or as the face of a bubbling water...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Minimalist Garden Ornaments
Materials
Granite
"Dappled Light" by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Contemporary Art
Materials
Fabric, Paper, Bamboo, Paint
Chinese Polychrome Lucky Fish
Located in Chicago, IL
Hand-carved from reclaimed wood, this rustic koi sculpture recreates early 20th-century Chinese folk art designs. The fish is carved with a squat, rounded body and finished with colo...
Category
20th Century Chinese Folk Art Sculptures and Carvings
Materials
Wood, Pine
Chinese Bentwood Roundback Armchair, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Prior to the 10th century, Chinese society eschewed raised seats in favor of mats. The rising popularity of chairs and other forms of elevated seating led craftsmen to adapt traditio...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Chairs
Materials
Elm
Chinese Blue and White Jar with Mythical Fu Lions
Located in Chicago, IL
This round, porcelain storage jar is brightly glazed in the classic blue-and-white manner. A combination of stenciled linework and hand-brushed shading, the sides of the jar are deco...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Chinese Export Ceramics
Materials
Porcelain
"Voyage" by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Contemporary Art
Materials
Paper, Fabric
Chinese Blue and White Botanical Jar
Located in Chicago, IL
This round, porcelain storage jar is brightly glazed in the classic blue-and-white manner with an allover pattern of botanical motifs. A combination of stenciled linework and hand-br...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Chinese Export Jars
Materials
Porcelain
Chinese Turned Wooden Mortar, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This petite pinewood vessel is an early 20th century mortar once used daily in a provincial kitchen to grind herbs, spices, and condiments. The rustic container was hand-turned to an...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Rustic Antiquities
Materials
Pine
Chinese Bentwood Roundback Armchair, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Prior to the 10th century, Chinese society eschewed raised seats in favor of mats. The rising popularity of chairs and other forms of elevated seating led craftsmen to adapt traditio...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Furniture
Materials
Elm
"Reflective Composition (Blue Stamp)" by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his travels. His ongoing series of large-scale kites bridge the gap between flat art and sculpture, each crafted of split bamboo frames covered with stretched muslin and a collage of vintage ephemera – including kimonos, obis, paintings, scrolls, drawings, metal leaf, bleeding paper, book pages, or anything with a story to tell.
A combination of print and collage, this work entitled “Reflective Composition (Blue Stamp...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Contemporary Art
Materials
Paper
Pair of Gilded Rococo Wall Mirrors, c. 1745-55
Located in Chicago, IL
This show-stopping pair of grand 18th-century wall mirrors are beautifully designed in accordance to prevailing tastes of the Rococo period and are attributed to the workshops of Wür...
Category
Antique Mid-18th Century German Rococo Wall Mirrors
Materials
Mirror, Plaster, Wood
$38,800 / set
"Iridescence" Memory Jug by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his travels. In his ongoing series of memory jugs, Thompson adorns stoneware vessels with a kaleidoscope of ceramic shards, found objects, and pocket-sized trinkets he collected over the course of his life.
Also known as forget-me-not jugs or spirit jars, memory jugs are African American folk art objects that honor a loved one who has recently passed. Small tokens and mementos of the deceased are gathered and affixed to the exterior of a jug or vase, an abundance of memories that celebrates a life lived to the fullest.
Michael Thompson applies this tradition to his own practice, creating tactile assemblages of this and that. Formed in the manner of collage, each jug honors the lost memories of generations past and his own memories of personally discovering each item. With varied sources for materials including Kyoto, Turkey, and Mexico, a great number of the found shards are 18th and 19th century ceramics...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Stone
Chinese Turned Wooden Mortar, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This petite pinewood vessel is an early 20th century mortar once used daily in a provincial kitchen to grind herbs, spices, and condiments. The rustic container was hand-turned to an...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Rustic Planters, Cachepots and Jardinières
Materials
Pine
Chinese Turned Wooden Mortar, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
This petite pinewood vessel is an early 20th century mortar once used daily in a provincial kitchen to grind herbs, spices, and condiments. The rustic container was hand-turned to a ...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Primitive Planters, Cachepots and Jardinières
Materials
Pine
"Ikebana" Kite by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his travels. His ongoing series of large-scale kites bridge the gap between flat art and sculpture, each crafted of split bamboo frames covered with stretched muslin and a collage of vintage ephemera – including kimonos, obis, paintings, scrolls, drawings, metal leaf, bleeding paper, book pages, or anything with a story to tell.
In this bamboo kite entitled “Ikebana,” Thompson beautifully layers darkly saturated fragments atop pages of found text. A repurposed calligraphy scroll panels the left side, brushed with black ink with full flower blossoms and leafy foliage, while delicate pine branches grow upwards from the bottom. Vintage Japanese block prints...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Organic Modern Contemporary Art
Materials
Canvas, Bamboo, Paper
Provincial Chinese Travel Mirror, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This round folding mirror dates to the mid-19th century and would have accompanied a well-to-do woman on her travels. The wooden frame is carved with simple scrollwork at the hinge and includes a flat cover that props the mirror upright when open. Beautifully aged and full of character, we love this humble traveling mirror...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Table Mirrors
Materials
Mirror, Elm
"Bouquet" Memory Jug by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his travels. In his ongoing series of memory jugs, Thompson adorns stoneware vessels with a kaleidoscope of ceramic shards, found objects, and pocket-sized trinkets he collected over the course of his life.
Also known as forget-me-not jugs or spirit jars, memory jugs are African American folk art objects that honor a loved one who has recently passed. Small tokens and mementos of the deceased are gathered and affixed to the exterior of a jug or vase, an abundance of memories that celebrates a life lived to the fullest.
Michael Thompson applies this tradition to his own practice, creating tactile assemblages of this and that. Formed in the manner of collage, each jug honors the lost memories of generations past and his own memories of personally discovering each item. With varied sources for materials including Kyoto, Turkey, and Mexico, a great number of the found shards are 18th and 19th century ceramics...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Stone
"Peach Bloom" Kite by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Organic Modern Contemporary Art
Materials
Fabric, Canvas, Bamboo
"The Embrace (Shunga Study)" Collage by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Minimalist Contemporary Art
Materials
Paper
"Twilight (Just Before Dawn)" Kite by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Organic Modern Contemporary Art
Materials
Canvas, Bamboo, Fabric
"China Cabinet" Memory Jug by Michael Thompson
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his travels. In his ongoing series of memory jugs, Thompson adorns stoneware vessels with a kaleidoscope of ceramic shards, found objects, and pocket-sized trinkets he collected over the course of his life.
Also known as forget-me-not jugs or spirit jars, memory jugs are African American folk art objects that honor a loved one who has recently passed. Small tokens and mementos of the deceased are gathered and affixed to the exterior of a jug or vase, an abundance of memories that celebrates a life lived to the fullest.
Michael Thompson applies this tradition to his own practice, creating tactile assemblages of this and that. Formed in the manner of collage, each jug honors the lost memories of generations past and his own memories of personally discovering each item. With varied sources for materials including Kyoto, Turkey, and Mexico, a great number of the found shards are 18th and 19th century ceramics...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic, Stoneware
Read More
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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.