A portrait of a couple in love by studio of Youqua (act. 1840-1870)
With red printed artist's studio label verso: “中環怡東酒店 (Excelsior Hotel, Central) / Yoeequa Painter / Old Street no. 34 / Queens Road no. 129”
In a Chinese finely carved and lacquered wooden frame
Oil on canvas, H. 43 x W. 30 cm (oval)
This portrait of a black man and woman, by a Chinese artist, in an exceptional Chinese carved wooden frame, made for the European market, is a true culture bender and a merging of several iconographic elements from around the world. Together, the painting and the frame form an allegory of love. The painting shows a man and woman in a loving embrace, dressed fancifully, with an idyllic landscape behind them. The exceptionally elaborate, carved, and pierced lacquered hardwood frame that encompasses the painted lovers is decorated with numerous amorous couples in pagodas and other architectural motifs, surrounded by scrolling foliate designs.
Both the painting and the frame are in the mid-19th-century Chinese export style. The label on the back of the painting informs us that it was made by the Yoeequa Studio, more commonly spelt as Youqua. This studio originally started in Guangzhou (then Canton) at number 34 Old Street and later opened a second studio in Hong Kong at Queen's Road number 107 (see Crossman). By the 1850s, Youqua was regarded as the best studio at that time and was referred to as the "celebrated Chinese painter, Youqua." The labels with the Hong Kong address also read at the top “中環怡東酒店” (Excelsior Hotel, Central). Interestingly, the label on the painting we offer here reads Queen's Road number 129 instead of 107.
Between circa 1840 and 1870, the Youqua Studio produced some of the finest export paintings on a variety of materials, including watercolours on pith paper and oil paintings on canvas and cotton. The main production of oil paintings often consisted of repeated depictions of particularly well-known sights.
Provenance:
John Francis Rogers (1826-1906), China; by descent in family private collection, United Kingdom
Literature:
- Crossman, C. L. The Decorative Arts of the China Trade, Woodbridge, 1991, pp. 198-202.
- Hedde, I., Renard, E., Haussmann, A., and Rondot, N. Practical Study of the Chinese Export Trade. p. 177.
- Lacambre, Geneviève. Translated by Benjamin West. "LAGRENÉ Théodose de (EN)." Collectionneurs, collecteurs et marchands d'art asiatique en France 1700-1939 – INHA, 21 Mar. 2022.
Part of the China collection.
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