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1884.117.57

Oil painting in gilt frame showing a man in a red hat and two women looking out through a window. [LKG 26/11/2009]

1884.117.57

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Collection type
Object
Description
Oil painting in gilt frame showing a man in a red hat and two women looking out through a window. [LKG 26/11/2009]
Long description
Oil painting in gilt frame showing a man in a red hat and two women looking out through a window. The man is wearing a brown skirt with a yellow-brown coat, both of which are decorated with horizontal red and blue patterns. He is holding a long ?pearl necklace. Behind him a tall wooden door stands open and the interior within contains wooden tables, one with a white flowered plant in a white container on, the other with two square boxes. A second set of doors, this time green and blue can be seen to the left side of the painting. The interior floor is covered with terra-cotta tiles. Above the table with the plant, a pair of long posters or paintings have been painted, these are framed with pale green borders and show foliate images. The right side of the painting shows the exterior wall of the building, with a large window and green ornate railing. A green canopy awning hangs above the window. The woman standing closest to the window wears a red robe with blue cuffs. This is patterned with horizontal designs in blue and grey. She is holding her hands to her head, and wears an orange-brown hat. The second woman stands behind her, and is holding out an orange-lined coat to the first woman. She is wearing a blue robe with red detail over her visible shoulder. She also wears an orange head dress. In the background to the left side of the window a large wooden chest stands on a table with an open and slanted grey top section, possibly for writing on. In the foreground outside the window five potted plants are shown, arranged around a tiled ?pool. Three of the plants are flowered, from left to right these are red, white and yellow. The remaining plants are a small grass-like shrub and a bondi tree. The frame is made of wood with ornate mouldings in the corners, and it has been painted in gold. Some of the corners have been damaged and the gold paint has chipped away. The canvas itself is quite badly buckled and the left side of its bottom edge has pulled up and out of the frame. [LKG 26/11/2009]
Geographical reference
China
Asia > Eastern Asia > China
Unknown
Date / Period
Date made: Before 1884
Date collected
Prior to 1884
Acquisition information
Donated: 1884
Materials and processes
Material Oil Paint, Material Pigment, Material Wood Plant, Material Plaster, Material Metal, Material Canvas Textile, Process Painted, Process Framed
Dimensions
Width 610 mm, Length 755 mm
Object numbers
Accession number: 1884.117.57
Research and responses

Caption prepared for The Public Catalogue Foundation: 'This painting is one of a set of four pictures, all depicting Chinese interiors, that came to the Museum as part of the founding collection given to the University of Oxford by General Pitt-Rivers in 1884. Pitt-Rivers purchased the painting some time before 1874, probably from a dealer. The artist, date and further provenance are unknown. In this painting the artist has included a variety of potted plants. One of them, the miniature tree in the rectangular tray, shows the Chinese art of penjiang or 'tray scenery'. Such trays often featured not only trees, but also a rocky landscape - here a small rock can be seen rising next to the tree. This art has become popular in the West under its Japanese name, bonsai.' [FB 14/11/2012]

Associated publications
Illustrated in colour on page 270 of The Colleges (R–W), The University, The Rhodes Trust, Vol. 2 of Oil Paintings in Public Ownership in Oxford University (London: The Public Catalogue Foundation, 2015). NB The image appears with a minimal caption, with further details appearing on page 298. For the online version, go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/yourpaintings/galleries/locations/the-pitt-rivers-museum-university-of-oxford-7496 [JC 18 11 2015]

Search terms: Picture and Graphic Art, Painting

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