Pair of stools or side tables painted and lacquered wood - period: twentieth century

Elegant pair of chinese stools or side tables in wood, painted and lacquered. The cabriole-shaped legs are topped by a round base carved and painted by hand.  The trays are adorned with orange-yellow, red and green floral motifs and a small bird sitting on a branch, magnified by the presence of a "greek key" pattern on the surrounding upper edge. The central base is additionally decorated with floral motifs of yellow and salmon color. All magnified by peking gold highlights engraved in wood. Period: xxth. Circa: 1945-1950. Dimensions: height: 47cm X width: 46cm.                       diameter: 35.5cm. Insoluble resin, rot-proof, of rare resistance and adhering to many materials (wood, metal, leaves, metal, leather...), lacquer was first used as a simple coating to protect weapons, objects or furniture.  But its many qualities were quickly exploited in an aesthetic vein and techniques were developed, always more complex over the centuries. From dry lacquer to painted, carved or inlaid lacquer, a hundred were listed during the ming period (1368-1644).  Widely used in the decoration of furniture and precious objects from the song dynasty (960-1279) to that of the qing (1644-1912), it responded, until the 1980s, to a codified aesthetic and traditional forms.

Ref. : 1PZ8RUGT