Washington Winter Show 2018

48 introduced armchair travelers and craftsmen alike to the styles and motifs associated with the Far East. While most European countries had direct access to trade with China, the American colonies were prevented from direct trade as part of the Navigation Acts of 1651. Prior to American independence, these pattern books would have served as important sources for local craftsmen in what can be described as “trickle down Decorative Arts,” a term coined by Robert Leath to describe the evolution of locally made objects in the Chinese taste in 18th-century Charleston, South Carolina. 9 One trend in furniture decoration that was widely imitated on both sides of the Atlantic was the Chinese use of lacquer decoration. True Asian lacquer objects are coated with the treated and dried sap of a specific tree, Toxicodendron vernicifluum . European cabinetmakers had been imitating Asian lacquered pieces since the 17th century using a technique known as “japanning.” In 1688, John Stalker and George Parker published their Treatise on Japanning and Varnishing . Japanning differs from true Asian lacquer in that it relies on a resin-based varnish that is similar to shellac. One particularly interesting aspect of chinoiserie in Great Britain was the vogue for japanned clock cases. While some cases were made in China for export, heavy duties were placed on imported furniture after 1701, so British cabinetmakers used gesso, paint, and layers of varnish to create their own fanciful designs for both tall case and bracket clocks. 10 An excellent example of this trend is the ca. 1765 bracket clock by London clockmaker John Taylor in the collection of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (fig. 2). The same decorative technique was employed on serving trays and other objects of tinware and papier-mâché. In 1772, Henry Clay of Birmingham, England, patented a process for manufacturing a heat-resistant paperware composed of multiple layers of hand-pressed paper. 11 Papier-mâché was lightweight and could be carved, cut, and lacquered like wood or metal. The material was ideal for japanned designs, and chinoiserie motifs were popular for trays produced by Clay & Company. Wallpaper was another significant manifestation of chinoiserie. In the 18th century, Chinese wallpapers were immensely popular on both sides of the Atlantic. European and English papermakers sought to imitate the fanciful designs of the Chinese-produced wallpaper calling their work “mock India pictures,” “Chinese Pieces,” and “Chinese Papering.” 12 In 1761, Alexandria merchant Charles Digges advertised “stain’d Paper for Rooms, in the Gothic and Chinese taste” that he had recently imported from London. 13 In 1832, the French manufacturer Zuber introduced their Décor Chinois pattern, a paper that more closely imitated