Zoe Designs Vintage: Recent Finds: Monumental Antique Victorian Chinoiserie Bamboo Hall Tree

Antique Victorian Chinoiserie Bamboo Hall Tree

This is an antique, Victorian, bamboo hall tree, in the Chinoiserie style. Truly monumental, standing nearly 8' tall, and 3 1/2' wide.

Chinoiserie was a style popularized in 18th century British design among the elite.

Although generally attributed to the design styles of China, British designers were also inspired by Japanese and other Asian styles. This hybrid of styles led to a romanticized, and uniquely Western, view of Asian style.

Designers created fanciful landscapes, filled with exotic birds and magnificent pavilions. The swept lines of pagodas were incorporated into furniture, and other pieces. Asian styles of clothing, and figures, were popular. Some of the Asian styles were copied directly from Chinese paintings, while others were straight from the imagination of the designer.

During the 19th century, and the Victorian period, chinoiserie style became popular among the growing middle class, with the introduction of items made for the mass market.

In the latter half of the 19th century, Japan opened its ports to British trade, this inspired designers in many new ways.

Bamboo poles and panels were imported from Japan to be used as a furniture material.

Natural motifs, such ad birds, flowers and even insects were used.

Circular and geometric forms were incorporated into simple, unadorned furniture. Straight lines and undecorated surfaces contrasted with the much more formal, and overstated, Victorian design.

Designers blended British, Chinese and Japanese elements to produce items that both satisfied the public's growing desire for the a desire for the "exotic', but were also relatively inexpensive.

As the 19th century drew to a close, the popularity of chinoiserie style waned.

An even more stylized version chinoiserie saw a resurgence again in the 1920's, with the advent of the Art Deco movement.

More Finds
Here are some other pieces we'll be getting on our shop soon.

If you see something you are interested in before it's listed, let us know.