Paintings and Screens
to
319
1,100
463
1,771
131
20
72
36
30
10
10
5
5
3
2
2
2
1
1
1
171
686
914
151
319
197
108
38
4
33
14
12
24
31
26
28
8
784
747
725
543
501
1,599
1,429
903
469
133
1,922
1,861
1,880
30
4
3
3
3
Paintings and Screens For Sale
Framed Korean Official Portrait Joseon Dynasty
Located in Atlanta, GA
A hyper realistic portrait of an official with watercolor on silk bordered panel, framed in dark wood, from Korean late Joseon dynasty, circa 19th century. The beard man sitting with a formal frontal view, displays a benevolent facial expression, in keeping with the Confucius value of the officialdom at the time. He dons a black linen official hat and a blue silk robe...
Category
19th Century Korean Other Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Wood
Komorebi(Ohara, Kyoto) by Blue Tip Atelier
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
Title : Komorebi(Ohara, Kyoto)
Japan / 2024s
Size : w970 x h960 mm
A landscape seen in Ohara, Kyoto.
The sunlight filtering through the trees is expressed using a variety of techni...
Category
2010s Japanese Modern Paintings and Screens
Materials
Linen
The sky visible at Honmonji Temple Ⅱ by Blue Tip Atelier
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
Title : The sky visible at Honmonji Temple Ⅱ
Japan / 2024s
Size : w1805 x h1805 mm
The sky can be seen from Honmonji Temple, which the artist passes while running, a hobby of hers....
Category
2010s Japanese Modern Paintings and Screens
Materials
Linen
Japanese Mid-Century Modern 4-Panels Screen w/ Flower Cart, Ca. 1950
Located in New York, NY
Japanese Mid-Century Modern 4-Panels Screen w/ Flower Cart, Ca. 1950
DIMENSIONS
Length: 71.5 inches
Height: 36.5 inches
Category
1950s Japanese Japonisme Vintage Paintings and Screens
Materials
Wood
Framed Chinese Brush Painting of Plants
Located in Greenwich, CT
Refined Chinese brush painting of plants, ink on rice paper, 19th century, signed with seal.
Overall size: 17.6 width. 15.5" height
Image size: 10.6"...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Chinese Export Reverse Paintings on Mirror-The Boy with a Crane
Located in Norton, MA
A large charming 19th-century Chinese export reverse painting on the mirror, depicting a boy and a crane in the garden.
Reverse glass pictures became fashionable in the 18th cent...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Glass, Mirror, Wood
Large Custom Framed Hand Painted Chinese Multi-figural Ancestral Portrait
Located in Bridgeport, CT
Large custom framed hand painted Chinese ancestral portrait with one female and 3 male figures attired in traditional dress. The upper figures with pictorial appliqués to the front o...
Category
Late 19th Century Asian Qing Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Acrylic, Paper
Pair of Japanese Watercolors on Silk
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
One of families promenading beside a lake, the other showing ladies in the bath house, each within an English gilt faux-bamboo frame.
Category
1880s Japanese Antique Paintings and Screens
Japanese Two-Panel Screen Mountain Shrine on Craggy Ledge
Located in Hudson, NY
Nicely painted mineral pigments on silk with a silk brocade border. Signature reads: Kosho.
Category
Early 20th Century Japanese Taisho Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Wood
Pair of Six Panel Japanese Edo Screens Chrysanthemums Along Fence
Located in Rio Vista, CA
Remarkable pair of early 19th century Japanese late Edo period screens depicting summer chrysanthemums growing along a brushwood fence. Ink and...
Category
19th Century Japanese Edo Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silver Leaf
Anglo-Indian Company School Suttee Watercolour Paintings, C. 1810
Located in Kinderhook, NY
A wonderful and singular set of two early 19th century Anglo-Indian Company School watercolour paintings, likely Murshidabad, depicting 'Sati' or 'Suttee', the historical practice in which a widow sacrifices herself by sitting atop her deceased husband's funeral pyre, and the procession to the pyre. The reverses labeled "From an album of watercolours and drawings belonging to Eliza Frederica Salmon and possibly her sister Mary Salmon, daughter of William Orton Salmon who served in India circa 1800...
Category
Early 19th Century Indian Anglo-Indian Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Glass, Giltwood, Paint, Paper
Framed Chinese Painting of Landscape of Scholars Playing the Game
Located in Greenwich, CT
refined Chinese brush painting of landscape, scholars playing game of Go in bamboo grove. ink and color on silk, 19 century
The first photo has some vertical reflections on the plex...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk
Pair of Chinese Export Reverse Paintings On Glass and Mirror, Double Panes
Located in Norton, MA
Pair of charming 19th-century Chinese export reverse glass and mirror paintings, depicting two noblewomen within an interior setting with the typical Chinese Traditional customs and ...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Glass, Wood, Mirror
19th Century Antique Tibetan Hand Painted Buddhist Thangka
Located in Pomona, CA
Very beautiful and colorful Antique Tibetan Buddhist Thangka. It is all hand painted with Tibetan natural mineral painting material which can last for...
Category
Late 19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Fabric
Decorative Panel Encrusted with Asian Mother-of-pearl in the Vase
Located in Marseille, FR
Pair of decorative panel encrusted with Asian mother-of-pearl with fish signed. many gaps on one of the two panels. Dimension height 106 cm for a width of 54 cm.
Additional inform...
Category
Early 20th Century Paintings and Screens
Materials
Wood
Fine Framed Japanese Brush Painting of Bodhisattva
Located in Greenwich, CT
refined Japanese brush painting of Bodhisattva sitting by stream, waterfall and pine tree, ink and color on silk, 19th century, conservation fr...
Category
19th Century Japanese Meiji Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk
Yoshitoshi Mori Signed Original Japanese Asian Watercolor. and Gouache Painting
Located in Studio City, CA
An original gouache and watercolor painting by Japanese artist/master printmaker Yoshitoshi Mori who was famed for his kappazuri stencil printing technique. In the 1950s Mori became ...
Category
1960s Japanese Showa Vintage Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paint, Paper
Japanese Two Panel Screen: White Elephant and a Beauty
Located in Hudson, NY
This screen is very likely inspired by the Noh play, "Eguchi", in which the courtesan Eguchi transforms into the Buddhist deity, Fugen, who is the patron of women and is often seen o...
Category
19th Century Japanese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Brocade, Silk, Paper
Japanese Two Panel Screen Mother and Puppies Under Bamboo
Located in Hudson, NY
Mineral pigments on paper. Signature and seal read: Shigehiro.
Category
Early 20th Century Japanese Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Framed Pair of Antique Chinese Qing Dynasty Ancestor Paintings on Silk
Located in Morristown, NJ
Antique pair of Qing dynasty ancestor portraits depicting a male and a female. Hand painted on silk and framed under glass within a large te...
Category
Late 19th Century Chinese Qing Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Glass, Wood, Paint
Silk 1940s Chinese Export Needlepoint with Nightingale on Branch with Blooms
Located in Lomita, CA
This is a silk Asian needlepoint (Gilt Bamboo-style frame) bird on a branch with flow that measures 38 x 25 x 2.5 inches.It is stunning in pastel colo...
Category
Mid-20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Bamboo
China Century Old Dream Stone "Landscape Paintings" with Original Frames, Pair
Located in South Burlington, VT
Rare find
Impressive wall display of two (2) Chinese dream stone "Landscape Paintings" with original period frames these wonderful
round natura...
Category
1920s Chinese Qing Vintage Paintings and Screens
Materials
Stone
Thai Painting of Temple Dancer and Buddhist Monkey God, Distressed, circa 1950
Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL
Antique Thai painting depicting an Aspara or dancing nymph in the forest with perhaps Hanuman, The Monkey God, recognized in both Hindu and Buddhist religio...
Category
1950s Thai Mid-Century Modern Vintage Paintings and Screens
Materials
Gold Leaf
Japanese ink on paper painting of Plum Blossoms, Tani Buncho
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Japanese ink on paper painting of Plum Blossoms and Poem, scroll mounting, signature & single seal: Tani Buncho (1763 - 1840). A famous and prol...
Category
19th Century Japanese Meiji Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Japanese "Magpie and Peony" Two Panel Screen, Edo Period, 18th/19th century
Located in Austin, TX
A sublime Japanese two panel "Magpie and Peony" screen, ink and color on paper, Edo Period, late 18th or early 19th century, circa 1800, Japan.
The two panel screen features a wond...
Category
Early 19th Century Japanese Edo Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Copper
Chinese Four-Fold Screen with Cranes, Lotuses, Peonies, and Bamboo, 1963
Located in Tonbridge, Kent
Chinese Four-Fold Screen with Cranes, Lotuses, Peonies, and Bamboo, 1963, "Creek Dwelling" Workshop
Description:
An authentic Chinese fou...
Category
Mid-20th Century Chinese Ming Paintings and Screens
Materials
Brass
A Chinese Framed Scroll Of An Elder Man
Located in Bradenton, FL
Antique framed Chinese scroll of an elder Chinese man. Scroll features a bearded Chinese man wearing traditional colorful and ornate clothing. Vibrant colors of teal, red, gold and b...
Category
19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
The Buddha And His Two Disciples Moggallana And Sariputta Watercolor On Fabric
Located in Bridgeport, CT
Watercolor and gouache on cloth mounted on wood depicting the Buddha and his two disciples Moggallana and Sariputta. Set inside a gold gesso & wood frame with attached brass light. P...
Category
19th Century Thai Agra Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Brass
Large Framed Indian 19th Century Painting of Guanyin Sitting on a Dragon
Located in Yonkers, NY
An antique Indian painting from the 19th century depicting Guanyin the Bodhisattva of Compassion sitting on a dragon. Created in India during the 19th century, this large painting features Guanyin the Bodhisattva of Compassion, sitting on the head of a dragon. Her right foot on a lotus flower, Guanyin wears an ornate headdress and elegant clothes. The painting itself measures 27.5"W x 53.5" H and has been set inside a custom frame. With its vivid colors and elegant subject, this 19th century Indian painting...
Category
19th Century Indian Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Fabric, Plexiglass, Paper
American Landscape by Craig Pursley
Located in Lantau, HK
Craig Pursley. Autry's Home, American, born 1954.
Oil on canvas. Dimensions 28.5 x 36 cm
Original art work(s).
Category
20th Century Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paint
An Indian miniature painting depicting a prince surprising bathing maidens
Located in Amsterdam, NL
India, Punjab, circa 1755
Signed by the artist Swami 'Ram Rikh' of Seopur and dated Samvat 1812 (1755)
Opaque watercolour and gold on paper,
H. 23.8 x W. 16.2 cm (image)
H. 28.3 x ...
Category
18th Century Indian Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Gold
Pair of Antique Carved Stone Panels, Japanese, Decorative, Figures, Victorian
Located in Hele, Devon, GB
This is a pair of antique carved stone panels. A Japanese, lacquered decorative scene with female figures, dating to the late Victorian period, circ...
Category
Late 19th Century Japanese Japonisme Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Stone
Japanese Two Panel Screen, Cherry Blossoms Viewing Party
Located in Hudson, NY
A private viewing in picnic surrounding of nobles (probably samurai), including one woman. Mineral pigments on mulberry paper with silk brocade border.
Category
18th Century Japanese Edo Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Paper
Japanese Two-Panel Screen Woman Washing Her Hair by Candlelight
Located in Hudson, NY
Japanese two-panel screen: Woman washing her hair by candlelight, beautifully painted with striking colors and an unusual subject. A skillful expression of an intimate moment. Taisho...
Category
Early 20th Century Japanese Taisho Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Wood
Japanese Two Panel Screen: Water Fowl by River's Edge
Located in Hudson, NY
Japanese Two Panel Screen: Water Fowl by River's Edge, Showa period (1926 - 1989) painting of fowl on a river bank. Very art deco in style. Painted in min...
Category
Early 20th Century Japanese Showa Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk, Wood, Paper
Japanese Painting, 17th Century, Tale of Genji, Makibashira, Tosa School
Located in Kyoto, JP
The Handsome Pillar (Makibashira), Illustration to Chapter 31 of the Tale of Genji (Genji Monogatari)
Tosa School (second half of the 17th Century)
I...
Category
Late 17th Century Japanese Edo Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Gold Leaf
Japanese Important Tall Bronze Rabbit Girl Of Wonderland
Located in South Burlington, VT
"Rabbit Girl of Wonderland"
Japan, an important tall 35" hand cast bronze effigy of a young woman clutching a prize rabbit, by important national artisan ...
Category
20th Century Japanese Mid-Century Modern Paintings and Screens
Materials
Bronze
ntique Woodblock Print Ukiyo-e Kunisada UTAGAWA (1786-1865) - "Utagawa Kunisada
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
A lovely figural print
Kunisada UTAGAWA (Toyokuni III) (1786-1865) - "The Tale of Genji"
Utagawa Kunisada
The Tale of Genji - Chapter 12
Condition
Woodblock in good condition, ...
Category
19th Century Chinese Edo Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Bronze
Framed Riga Gound from Nigeria With Tribal Motifs
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
A framed Riga Gound from Nigeria. Elite Nigerian men wore grand, flowing garments known by various names: riga (Hausa), agbádá (Yorùbá), boubou (French), and mbubb (Wolof). This particular strip-woven riga features a off-white, very light grey tone with silk accents adding contrast. Skilled embroiderers—often trained in Arabic calligraphy—incorporated motifs once imbued with protective Islamic symbolism. Central to the textile is a leaf (gambiya) motif, linked to the Nupe people. A spiral design symbolizes the wearer’s spiritual journey toward God. The hem is lined with magenta silk, imported via trans-Saharan trade routes. Historically admired across cultures, the riga remains a cornerstone of pan-Nigerian male national dress today.
This framed Riga Gound has a unique back story. Having owned a prominent antiques shop in Hong-Kong for more than two decades it was common for antique dealers to sometimes come to the shop and present items to sell...
Category
1980s Nigerian Folk Art Vintage Paintings and Screens
Materials
Cotton, Silk
China Natural Stone "Painting" Restless Sea and Waves
Located in South Burlington, VT
Chinese extraordinary natural stone painting "Restless Sea and Waves" #6 unique painting
This Chinese extraordinary natural stone "painting" of sea and waves in action in white and gray colors is called a dream stone Shih-hua. They are cut from historic Dali marble found in the Cangshan mountains of western China. These mysterious mountains, unique in the world, are known for yielding incredible and fantastic natural landscaped works of art created over tens of millions of years from mineral inclusions that affected the process of ancient organic material which transformed into limestone and finally resulted in marble- a metamorphic hard stone.
This art form is centuries of years old since the Ming dynasty. Dream stones became favored art in the west particularly since the 19th century when French collectors named them Pierres de reve.
This thin marble stone "painting" is approximately 1/4" thick and is cut from a large slab of rough material revealing incredible patterns in soft white and gray colors. Its weight is surprisingly modest- easily hung with standard hardware.
On occasion, private collectors would invite an artisan to inscribe a poetic description onto their more important dream stones and in this case the artists' seal mark and calligraphy translation reads:
Beautiful Action of sea and waves
Framed under glass
Dimensions:
Frame: 13 inches high and 17.5 inches wide.
Site: 6.5 inches high and 11 inches wide.
Provenance: Private Chinese collection, Yunnan, China.
History of "White and Gray" dream stone paintings:
“White and Gray” dream stone paintings known in China as Shui Mo or Chinese painting stone, were cut from stone found on Shuang Yang mountain in Dali mountains Captivating compositions, they might remind us of a long string of rugged mountain caps from a distance. These dream stones are cut from a scarce regional stone yielding notoriously “fuzzy” detailed paintings. To find examples possessing clear, contrasting detail like this one is indeed a rare find. Fine stone paintings like this example are rare as access to and availability of resource material diminishes. After a thin coating of wax is carefully applied to its surface to protect and reveal its beautiful subtle colors, this stone painting is signed upper right position with poetic verse and seal of an artisan who describes its majestic beauty.
Reference: Dreaming of Dreamstones China’s Extraordinary Natural Stone Paintings, Schneible Fine Arts. Dreaming of Dreamstones – World’s first comprehensive English text publication covers China’s extraordinary natural Stone Paintings, by author and dream stone lecturer Douglas Schneible, 35 pages, softcover, ISBN 978-0-578. See photos.
We have have been dealing in authentic Chinese natural stone paintings...
Category
Late 20th Century Chinese Paintings and Screens
Materials
Marble
Framed Japanese ink on paper artist's instruction for a Shunga print
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Japanese ink on paper wood block shunga artist’s color and pattern illustration with instructions for the woodblock carver and printer, depicting...
Category
Late 19th Century Japanese Meiji Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Japanese Asian Edo Period Signed Framed Hand Painted Serpent Scroll Painting
Located in Studio City, CA
A beautiful and striking framed Japanese/ Asian serpent/snake scroll painting featuring two serpents/snakes in a garden landscape surrounded by blossoming ...
Category
18th Century Japanese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Wood, Paint, Paper
Painting of Guanyin Qing Dynasty 19/20th Century Color on Silk
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A painting of Guanyin
Qing Dynasty 19/20th century
color on silk;
The deity depicted floating, attired in long robes, adorned with jewels and wearing...
Category
20th Century Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk
China "Seaside & Mountains" Landscape "Painting"
Located in South Burlington, VT
Chinese extraordinary natural stone "Painting" & with custom hardwood frame
Sea and Mountains in one unique work of art
This Chinese extraordinary natural stone "painting" of a mountain range in white and gray colors is called a dream stone Shih-hua. They are cut from historic Dali marble found in the Cangshan mountains of western China. These mysterious mountains, unique in the world, are known for yielding incredible and fantastic natural landscaped works of art created over tens of millions of years from mineral inclusions that affected the process of ancient organic material which transformed into limestone and finally resulted in marble- a metamorphic hard stone.
This art form is centuries of years old since the Ming dynasty. Dream stones became favored art in the west particularly since the 19th century when French collectors named them Pierres de reve.
This thin marble stone "painting" is approximately 1/4" thick and is cut from a large slab of rough material revealing incredible patterns in soft white and gray colors. Its weight is surprisingly modest- easily hung with standard hardware.
On occasion, private collectors would invite an artisan to inscribe a poetic description onto their more important dream stones and in this case the artists' seal mark and calligraphy translation reads:
Dimensions:
Frame: 16.5 inches high and 29 inches wide.
Site: 12.75 inches high and 25 inches wide.
Provenance: Private Chinese collection, Yunnan, China.
History of "White and Gray" dream stone paintings:
“White and Gray” dream stone paintings known in China as Shui Mo or Chinese painting stone...
Category
Late 20th Century Chinese Paintings and Screens
Materials
Marble
Japanese Embroidered Silk Screen Panel of a Tiger Meiji
Located in Nottingham, GB
A very fine Japanese tiger embroidered silk screen panel.
Very good condition.
From a private collection.
Free international shipping.
Category
Late 19th Century Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Silk
Antique Japanese Medicine "Kanban" 'Shop Sign', Late Meiji Period
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Antique Japanese Medicine "Kanban" (Shop Sign) with mirror, Meiji Period.
The Medicine being advertised is a soothing cream used to relieve itchin...
Category
Early 20th Century Japanese Meiji Paintings and Screens
Materials
Wood, Lacquer
Antique Chinese Carved Screen, Clover Pattern
Located in Somis, CA
A beautiful single panel 19th century Chinese antique screen featuring carved peonies and bird. The openwork is a connection of curved cuts of wood joined...
Category
19th Century Chinese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Wood
Chinese Hand Painting Birds Persimmons on Paper
Located in 景德镇市, CN
Chinese Hand Brush Painting on Paper – Birds and Persimmons, Symbolic Traditional Ink Art
Bring harmony and vitality into your space with this elegant Chinese Hand Brush Painting on...
Category
2010s Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Chinese Reverse Painting on Glass Empress Dowager Cixi 1st Half of 20th Century
Located in Ottawa, Ontario
A CHINESE REVERSE PAINTING ON GLASS
OF Empress Dowager Cixi
1st Half of 20th Century.
Fine painting on glass of
Empress Cixi seating on a throne
in or...
Category
Early 20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Paintings and Screens
Materials
Glass
Vintage Victory Cigarettes 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. Posters like this one, influenced by ...
Category
1930s Chinese Vintage Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paint, Paper
Chinese ancestral portrait, 19th c.
Located in New York, NY
male portrait; painting on rice paper; painting can be rolled up
Category
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paint, Paper
Pair of 19th Century Chinese Reverse-Painted Mirror Pictures
Located in Rome, IT
A pair of Chinese reverse glass painting representing women and a child in a garden pavillion. Original "Chinese Chippendale" framing.
China for expo...
Category
19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Art Glass
Large Carved Wooden Screen And Mirror, Asia, 20th Century
Located in MARSEILLE, FR
Large 4-leaf screen in carved and openwork wood, with Asian motifs; a mirror has been placed on each panel, in the upper part
Good general condition, slight wear to the patina and f...
Category
20th Century Asian Paintings and Screens
Materials
Wood
Burmese Kalaga Tapestry
Located in Asheville, NC
Beautifully embroidered with glass beads, metallic wrapped thread, metal sequins and beads, this tapestry seems to come to life with its rows of dancing women and mythical creatures....
Category
Early 20th Century Burmese Paintings and Screens
Views from above of Hasedera Temple and Itsukushima Shrine
Located in Milano, IT
Rare pair of six-panel screens painted on paper, depicting views of Hasedera Temple and Itsukushima Shrine from above.
The first shows Hasedera nestled in a spring landscape with pi...
Category
Early 17th Century Japanese Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Paper
Tsumikasanattamono by Wataru Hatano BK Small_B
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
Japan / 2021s
Size : W900 D25 H1150 mm
Kuroya Washi artist Hatano Wataru's masterpiece "Stacked Things" series. Japanese paper, soil, pigments, etc. are layered on top of each other to express the beauty of what has been accumulated over the years.
[Wataru Hatano...
Category
2010s Japanese Japonisme Paintings and Screens
Materials
Sandstone
Victorian Oil Painting of Young Girls on a Beach
Located in Riverdale, NY
Charming Victorian Oil Painting of Young Girls on a Beach from the late 19th Century. A pair of sisters? in period costume on a windy beachscape near t...
Category
1880s American Victorian Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Canvas
Lovely 19th Century Scroll Paintings Japan Artist Signed Crane in Landscape
Located in Amsterdam, Noord Holland
Artist: Tatematsu kiseki
Born in the forest home of Nagoya gun-cho, it inherits the later Tatematsu house.
Learn to Okumura Ishiran. Later the director of Seiho meeting was studied with Kono Bairei-Seiho Takeuchi...
Category
19th Century Japanese Meiji Antique Paintings and Screens
Materials
Fabric
Antique Asian Paintings and Screens
Traditional Asian paintings were often created on scrolls and folding screens. Artisans made screens that could be folded up or spread out by connecting several panels using hinges. Today, antique Asian folding screens and paintings are sophisticated decorative accents that can serve as makeshift partitions to ensure privacy.
The original folding screens were created by Chinese artists. The earliest record of screens comes from the 2nd century B.C., and surviving examples date back to the Ming dynasty. Chinese painting utilizes many of the same tools as calligraphy — these screens were crafted from wood with painted panels featuring striking art or calligraphy that told cultural stories or represented nature and life in the area.
The practice was introduced to Japan, where paintings for screens were made on paper and silk, in the 8th century. These paintings frequently feature subjects such as landscapes, animals, flowers and Buddhist religious themes. Along with screens for tea ceremonies and dance backgrounds, there were screens for use in Shinto and Buddhist temples.
In the 17th century, screens began to be imported to Europe where their popularity grew. Coco Chanel famously collected Coromandel folding screens.
Traditional Asian paintings can make a tasteful addition to any wall, and screens can be used as decoration or, in the case of larger iterations, as an aesthetic way to divide a large room. Browse the selection of antique Asian paintings and screens from a variety of styles and eras on 1stDibs.