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Mother-of-Pearl: A Tradition in Asian Lacquer
December 2, 2006–April 1, 2007
Florence and Herbert Irving Galleries for Chinese Decorative Arts
In the 12th century, craftsmen in southern China refined a long-standing tradition that combined mother-of-pearl and lacquer to create sumptuous painterly scenes of figures in landscapes, flowers, and birds. This installation traces the evolution of this astonishing technology in East Asia, India, and Thailand. It explores the importance of lacquer decorated with minute pieces of mother-of-pearl in interregional trade from the 12th to the 19th century, and the development of global trade, particularly in works made in India and Japan, in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. New acquisitions as well as important works from the permanent collection and several pieces on loan illustrate the astonishing variety of effects found in the use of tiny pieces of mother-of-pearl to create delicate scenes patterned in shades of white, pink, and green.
The exhibition and its accompanying catalogue are made possible by The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Foundation.
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