asia

Owen Jones (1809-1874), one of the most influential English architects, designers, and design theorists of the nineteenth century, wrote this book. Jones selected 100 full-color plates sourced from the motifs of Chinese ceramics, cloisonné works, and carpet designs. In the preface, Jones notes that these magnificent works of Chinese ornament had rarely been seen before the 1860s, describing them as "remarkable, not only for the perfection and skill shown in the technical processes, but also for the beauty and harmony of the colouring, and general perfection of the ornamentation.”

This extremely rare 1940 trade catalog represents the output of 10 state owned ceramics factories in small towns and villages all over the Ukraine after industry was nationalized in 1918. Today, we are more familiar with the graphic arts of Communist Russia as vehicles for propaganda, such as posters. The decorative arts of utilitarian objects, like the tableware featured in this catalog, were also important vehicles for disseminating political concepts of the new social order and Soviet nationalism to the masses in everyday life.

Emperor Kangxi and King Louis XIV of France, also known as Louis the Great, were both considered among the greatest rulers of their respective countries. They have been compared politically and militarily, but few comparisons in artistic achievements have been done. Both rulers came to the throne during childhood. They had excellent skills in riding and archery and both were fluent in a number of languages. As a Manchu emperor, Kangxi had a solid command of Mandarin Chinese and Mongolian whereas Louis XIV was versed in French, Italian, Spanish, and Latin.

In 1913, Yuan Shih-k’ai (Yuan Shikai, 1859-1916) became the first president of the Republic of China after he helped Sun Yan-sen overthrow the last Qing emperor in 1911. In 1915, Yuan proclaimed himself the Hung-Hsien (Hongxian) Emperor but ruled for only 83 days before being forced to back down from his claim. During his very short imperial reign, Yuan ordered Guo Baochang to re-start the manufacturing of imperial porcelain at Jingdezhen which had ceased production with the fall of the last Qing emperor.

Although only about two percent of the population of India is Christian, it is common to find both Christian and non-Christian Indian artists who have used Christian themes in their art. The beginnings of Christianity in India are not well known but tradition has it that the apostle Thomas founded a number of churches in Kerala in 52 AD. Vasco da Gama (1469-1524), the Portuguese explorer, landed in Calicut in 1498 and by 1542 the Roman Catholic missionary Francis Xavier (1506-1552) had reached Goa. These contacts with the west brought examples of European art into the Indian subcontinent.

This book is an invaluable tool for art historians, scholars, dealers, and collectors interested in metal sculptures of Northern India, the Himalayas, and Tibet. It is also an important work for scholars studying Chinese bronzes of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Published in 1981, it remains the only publication providing a timeline of the evolution of the art of these types of metal sculptures. The author, Ulrich von Schroeder, has been studying Buddhist art and culture as an independent scholar since the early 1960s.

Tiles and ceramics produced in Iznik between the 15^th and 17^th centuries represent a significant artistic achievement for Turkey. Tiles were frequently used as decoration in Turkish Seljuk period (1071-1243 AD) architecture for important public buildings. Beginning with the Ottomans in the 15^th century, there was increasing demand for tiles, which were used to decorate the mosques and palaces of their new capital of Istanbul.