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Can anyone give any information at all on this framed picture ? It was within my Great Grand Mothers posessions which i inherited.

Thanks

Anybody ? Anything at all ?

Appreciated.

Despite the title of 'Japanese Performers', this is a Chinese 'gouache' painting on 'pith'. Gouache is a painting medium similar to tempera with gum arabic added for durability, while pith is a kind of rice paper made in China. I believe this picture probably would be described as by someone of the 'Southern School'.

Portfolios of paintings like this were sold in China to foreigners visiting the country or living in various cantonments there during the 19th and early 20th century. Elsewhere at the same time such works were sold at international expositions or world fairs. Here's an example of a Northern School painting by Beijing artist Zhou Peichun, whose portfolios were for sale at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, Missouri in the USA.

Judging from the costuming, I believe there's a chance your painting might have been mislabeled at some point by someone unfamiliar with its origins. However, the reference to 'Japanese Performers' made me wonder if it could have been painted on the spot at an international exposition where Chinese painters would have had a chance to paint Japanese Performers from real life.

Best regards.

Bill H.

Thanks Bill for your reply, appreciated. Infact the writing does say, "perfumery" and not performer as you say. What kind of value would be on such a painting ?

Kind Regards

Value depends greatly on condition. Signed paintings by well-known artists bring premiums at auction, as might be expected.

Some works by Zhou Peichun have sold at major international auction houses in recent years for upwards of a thousand US dollars. You might wish to check eBay or websites like trocadero.com for current prices using 'pith painting' and 'trade painting' as your keywords.

If you wish to get seriously into the subject of these paintings you couldn't do better than to begin by reading about George Chinnery, an English artist who arrived in China during the reign of the Daoguang emperor (1821-50) and as artist and art teacher went on to have great influence on the direction of China trade paintings. Wikipedia.org has an article about him.

I've picked up some nice pith paintings on eBay and also had good luck at estate liquidations, the latter of which venues was where I found the painting here for less than a hundred dollars. It had a title pasted on, reading 'Ascension to the Throne of the Xuantong Emperor' (Xuantong Deng Tai). The original frame was lined inside the back by a Chinese newspaper printed in Shanghai and dated August 22, 1934, which could be about the time the picture was painted.

Best regards,

Bill H.

I couldnt have asked for a better, concise explanation Bill ! thank you very much for your time to respond.

Kindest Regards

Mac

Hi Bill, (happy new year to you!)

I have come accross another pith painting/art and thought you would like a look and maybe shed a little light on any further details?

Kindest Regards

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