Wooden Chinoiserie Demi-Lune Side Table. Geometric designs below the top, with four sturdy plain legs connected to a simple crescent shape above the feet. 

Condition: Commensurate with use. 

Size: 36 x 18 x 31 1/4 in. 

Chinoiserie is the name for the European interpretation and imitation of Chinese and other Sinosphere artistic traditions, especially in the decorative arts, garden design, architecture, literature, theater, and music. The aesthetic of chinoiserie has been expressed in different ways depending on the region, and is directly related to attempts over many centuries to emulate popular styles or control the flow of commerce between the East and West. It is related to the broader current of Orientalism, which studied Far East cultures from a historical, philological, anthropological, philosophical, and religious point of view. First appearing in the 17th Century, this trend was popularized in the 18th Century due to the rapid rise in global trade with China (during the High Qing era) and the rest of East Asia. As a style chinoiserie is related to Rococo, which are both characterized by exuberant decoration, asymmetry, a focus on materials, and stylized nature and subject matter that focuses on leisure and pleasure. Chinoiserie focuses on subjects that were thought by Europeans to be typical of Chinese culture. There was a decline in interest in the style after the end of the Georgian Era, due in part to the Opium Wars, but towards the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th Century the style saw a revival, with multiple resurgences since then. Chinoiserie also had some parallel in “Occidenterie,” which was Western styled goods produced in 18th Century China for Chinese consumers. Although this was a notable interest of the Kangxi Emperor and Qianlong Emperor, as shown by the architecture of Xiyang Lou, it was not restricted only to the court. Occidenterie artifacts and art were accessible to a wider variety of consumers in the Sinosphere, as they were domestically produced, and their influence can still be seen in modern Chinese architecture, fashion, and design, not to mention the shared effect both movements had on worldwide culture and art overall.

#5827 . 

Commensurate with use.