Sunday, July 15, 2018

Styling A Vintage Hutch: Antique Chinoiserie Revival Dish ware

Styling a James Mont Midcentury Chinoiserie Limed Oak Hutch with Antique Chinoiserie Revival Dish ware, Midcentury styling, antique chinoiserie dish ware, chinoiserie styling, 1880 Brownfield & Son, 1900 Royal Doulton Pekin, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Wincanton plate, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Canton teacup, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Mayfair platter, Klein ©49 asian Chinoiserie figurine, 1913 Johnson Bros Pareekware plate, 1920 Cleveland China sugar bowl, 1905 Foley Art China Peacock Pottery Indian Tree plate, midcentury asian girl with fan bookend figurine, 1880 Alaska H & R plates, 1950 Ardalt Lenwile China asian girl playing musical instrument figurine, 1862 Burgess & Leigh Indian Tree platter

Hi Friends! As I was browsing through my favorite charity shop two summers ago a box of antique dishes caught my eye. I thought they looked very interesting but I had no idea what they were so I didn't purchase them.

Well, as it turns out, that box of dishes started my obsession with antique Chinoiserie Revival (c. late 1800s - early 1900s) dish ware. Not only did I go back to the shop and buy them, but I have been on the hunt for more Chinoiserie-themed antique dishes ever since. I finally have enough pieces of this incredible English-made tableware to 'sort of' style my midcentury James Mont limed oak hutch and I'm excited to share the result thus far, with you dear reader, here today.

Styling a James Mont Midcentury Chinoiserie Limed Oak Hutch with Antique Chinoiserie Revival Dish ware, Midcentury styling, antique chinoiserie dish ware, chinoiserie styling, 1880 Brownfield & Son, 1900 Royal Doulton Pekin, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Wincanton plate, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Canton teacup, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Mayfair platter, Klein ©49 asian Chinoiserie figurine, 1913 Johnson Bros Pareekware plate, 1920 Cleveland China sugar bowl, 1905 Foley Art China Peacock Pottery Indian Tree plate, midcentury asian girl with fan bookend figurine, 1880 Alaska H & R plates, 1950 Ardalt Lenwile China asian girl playing musical instrument figurine, 1862 Burgess & Leigh Indian Tree platter

As mentioned above, the box of dishes that started this new passion of mine consisted of several pieces of late 1880s Brownfield & Son antique pottery with an unknown pattern name. Two of the dinner plates, two teacups and a saucer are on the top shelf of the hutch. The remainder of the dishes are on the bottom shelf to the right. And here is a photo of all of the items together:

1880 Brownfield & Son dishes, 1880 Brownfield & Son Chinoiserie Revival dish ware, 1880 Brownfiield & Son urn chrysanthemum dishes, 1880 Brownfield & Son stylized urn dish ware, 1880 Brownfiled & Son antique pottery

If you are fond of the distinctive look of Chinoiserie, you might appreciate the whimsically styled decorative urns, the vibrant chrysanthemum outer borders and the highly detailed inner borders that make up this pattern. If so, more details about this Brownfield pottery can be found in the popular blog post Vintage Finds: Antique Brownfield & Son Chinoiserie Revival Pottery.

Also on the top shelf of my hutch, between the two Brownfield plates is this Royal Doulton 9-3/4" plate (c. 1902-22, 1927-36) featuring a formidable bird of prey in a pattern called Pekin:

1900 Royal Doulton Pekin plate, 1900 Royal Doulton antique plate, 1900 Royal Doulton Chinoiserie Revival antique dish ware, 1900 Royal Doulton antique bird plate, antique bird plate, vintage bird plate

Note how similar the style and colors of the chrysanthemum flowers and the inside border on this plate are to the Brownfield pottery and the repetition of a stylized image in the center.

Directly below the Pekin plate, on the middle shelf of my hutch, are two pieces by Wood & Sons from their Woods Ware collection - a 9" plate in the Wincanton pattern, and a teacup in the Canton pattern, both produced around 1917:

1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Wincanton plate, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Canton teacup, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Blue Willow, antique Blue Willow, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Antique Chinoiserie Revival dish ware, midcentury Klein ©49 asian girl figurine, vintage Klein ©49 asian girl figurine

Perhaps there has never been any chinaware more timeless or classic than those decorated in various traditional blue and white patterns. The pattern known as Blue Willow is probably the most popular and well known of all. And there are likely hundreds if not thousands of variations on the theme. For instance, while the Canton teacup explicitly bears a version of the quintessential Blue Willow pattern, the Wincanton plate is quieter in its approach to Blue Willow with its abstract representation of it.

Another c. 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware piece in my hutch is a small oval platter on the bottom shelf:

1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Mayfair platter, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware antique Mayfair platter, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Antique Chinoiserie Revival dish ware, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Blue Willow platter

Here we have another strong bird character at the center of attention. At 9 inches wide and 5 inches tall the platter has a different look and feel compared to the Wincanton plate and the Canton teacup. The pattern is called Mayfair and although blue and white is still the predominate color scheme, there is a bit of dark red, yellow and green added to the peonies and to the bird (peacock?). Overall, the glaze is laid on thicker and the top rim, where the dark red pigment has been added, has a bumpy texture.

Oh, and just in case anyone is interested, the figurines you see in my hutch are all 'midcentury' pieces that I feel support the Chinoiserie style and theme. Of course there was yet another asian or oriental themed trend in the 1950s, but that's another story for another time! The figurine shown with my Mayfair platter is a Kleine ©49.

Going back up to the middle shelf of my hutch to the left is a circa 1913 Johnson Bros Pareekware 8" plate and a Cleveland China sugar bowl from about 1920:

1913 Johnson Bros Pareekware plate, 1913 Johnson Bros antique plate, 1913 antique Pareekware plate, 1920 Cleveland China sugar bowl, 1920 Cleveland China antique sugar bowl, 1920 Cleveland China Art Deco antique sugar bowl, 1920 Cleveland China Neo-Byzantine Revival antique sugar bowl, 1920 Cleveland China Greco-Roman antique sugar bowl, 1920 Cleveland China Chinoiserie Revival sugar bowl

Have you found the bird in the tree on the plate yet? I'm thinking it's a woodpecker. What do you think? Again we have a similar theme and style to the Brownfield & Son dishes and the Royal Doulton plate, with the colorful floral border, interesting patterned inner border and of course the stylized image in the center.

The Cleveland China sugar bowl is actually an Art Deco piece. I'm very fond of the shape of the bowl and I especially like the handles. Although its design influences are the Neo-Byzantine Revival and Greco-Roman movements from approximately 1890 through the 1920s I feel it also fits the aesthetic of the Chinoiserie style.

Also on the middle shelf of my hutch, on the far right, is a c. 1905 Foley Art China Peacock Pottery 8" plate in another quintessentially classic pattern called Indian Tree:

1905 Foley Art China Peacock Pottery Indian Tree plate, 1905 Foley Art China Peacock Pottery antique plate, 1905 Foley Art China Peacock Pottery Antique Chinoiserie Revival dish ware, midcentury asian girl with fan bookend figurine, vintage asian girl with fan bookend figurine, chartreuse asian girl with fan bookend, vintage asian girl with fan bookend made in Japan

Like Blue Willow, Indian Tree has stood the test of time and you'll see many different manufacturers having made a variation of the pattern.

Are you starting to see why I am so jazzed about Chinoiserie Revival design? In just the few pieces I've managed to collect thus far, the repetition of style, like strings on a guitar or keys on a piano, is endless. The formality of the border treatments, coupled with the free-form, energetic center designs are like a piece of music that starts in a major key then suddenly changes to a minor key, surprising the listener, yet not sounding out of place. Amidst the rhythmic and ordered events of everyday life and the chaos of unexpected occurrences we are transported to another world of the designer's own making - a dynamic use of yin and yang principles in which harmony is the end result. 

The midcentury figurine of the girl holding a fan next to the Foley Art China plate is one half of a bookend set, made in Japan. And yes, I searched the charity shop shelves high and low for the other half - presumably a boy, but did not find it. And it wasn't until I got it home that I realized the head had been glued back on. But that didn't matter - it's midcentury, of asian or oriental design, and a classic 1950s color - chartreuse!

So now let's look at the four Alaska H & R 7-1/2" plates on the bottom shelf of my hutch:

1880 Alaska H & R plate, 1880 Alaska H & R Antique Chinoiserie Revival dish ware, 1880 Alaska H & R antique plate, 1880 Alaska H & R antique plate Caravel sailing ship, 1880 Alaska H & R antique plate Alaska Gold Rush, 1950 Ardalt Lenwile China asian girl playing musical instrument figurine, midcentury Ardalt Lenwile China asian girl playing musical instrument figurine, Ardalt Lenwile China asian girl figurine made in Japan, midcentury Japanese figurine

Ok, I'm stumped on the identification here! I have found one reference stating the manufacturer could have been either Hall & Read or Hughes & Robinson. Both companies manufactured earthenware in the late 1880s, and apparently 'Alaska' is the pattern name.

This same reference implied that the Alaska Gold Rush had something to do with the manufacture of this dish ware. Indeed, there were two gold rushes in the state of Alaska between 1897 and 1904, but what the connection is between those events and earthenware plates named Alaska is a mystery. Perhaps more investigation is needed...  

The figurine of an asian woman dressed in white and playing a small musical instrument (on the bottom shelf of my hutch with the Alaska plates) was made by the Ardalt Lenwile China company in Japan in about the 1950s. Again, she is one half of a pair and the only one I have. It doesn't bother me that the figurines I've collected thus far are not pairs and exact matches - I enjoy having an eclectic mix of styles and colors within a theme.

And last but not least, sitting on the very top of my hutch, is a large Burgess & Leigh Indian Tree serving platter, measuring 15-1/2" wide and 13" high.

1862 Burgess & Leigh Indian Tree platter, 1862 Burgess & Leigh Antique Chinoiserie Revival Indian Tree platter, 1862 Burgess & Leigh Indian Tree antique platter, 1862 Burgess & Leigh chinoiserie platter,

This second example (c. 1862 - 1907) shows us another variation of the Indian Tree pattern which has a completely different color palette. Again we have the thematic repetition of an outer floral border, inner detailed border and a stylized image in the center. Shortly after I wrote the blog post about the box of Brownfield & Son dish ware, I wrote another, also quite popular, blog post about this Burgess & Leigh platter entitled Vintage Finds: Antique Burgess & Leigh Chinoiserie Revival Indian Tree Platter.

Well, if you've made it this far, (even if you've only scrolled through and looked at the photographs) I can't thank you enough! I enjoy both collecting and digging into the history of this dish ware and sharing it here with you, dear reader.

If you are interested in styling your own hutch and are wondering where to start, the best place to begin is with something you love. As you can see here, I stuck with one type of antique dish ware and built a collection around that one theme. You might have a piece handed down from a relative or something you just purchased. It could even be the dishes you use everyday. Gather together items that resonate with you and play around and see what you come up with. And most of all, have fun with it.

Oh, and if you would like to know more about the history of my hutch, you can read about it in the post Vintage Finds: c. 1950 James Mont Chinoiserie Limed Oak Hutch.

1880 Brownfield & Son dish ware, 1900 Royal Doulton Pekin plate, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Wincanton plate, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Canton teacup, 1917 Wood & Sons Woods Ware Mayfair platter, Klein ©49 asian girl figurine, 1913 Johnson Bros Pareekware plate, 1920 Cleveland China sugar bowl, 1905 Foley Art China Peacock Pottery Indian Tree plate, midcentury chartreuse asian girl with fan figurine made in Japan, 1880 Alaska H & R plates, 1950 Ardalt Lenwile China midcentury asian girl playing musical instrument figurine

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