CityU-HKBU Paired Talks on Art Histories - Lecture Series 7: Lustrous Layers: Lacquer Across Media
Date: 2 December 2024 (Monday)
Time: 7-9 pm
Format: Hybrid mode (Onsite: Room 6-213, 6/F, Mau Ming Wai Academic Building, City University of Hong Kong/ Online via ZOOM)
Language: English
Speakers:
LIU Xialing (Ph.D. in Art History, Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing, Visiting scholar at Utrecht University, Netherlands)
NG Sandy (Assistant Professor, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University)
Discussant & Moderator:
WANG Lianming (Associate Professor, City University of Hong Kong)
Moderator:
WANG Yizhou (Research Assistant Professor, Hong Kong Baptist University)
Registration
Registration is required for online/onsite participation. Please complete the online registration form on or before noon, 29 November 2024.
Link:
https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=__Dug-9lcEiJ3OG5yOQ1b5pYCLVYnYhJsAzG0qf8YatUNEFMSko1Qk5OMEVTV05aS1dUSFZGWUtKSy4u&route=shorturl
Cross Cultural Knowledge and Material Appropriation in Lacquer Design by Dr. Sandy NG
Lacquer was introduced to Europe in the sixteenth and seventeen centuries and became fashionable during the Art Deco period (1920s-1930s). Lacquerware is largely associated with luxurious designs including jewellery, toiletries, and the interiors of ocean liners. The combination of lacquer and mother-of-pearl grew hugely popular. This talk examines a main feature in Art Deco vanity cases-the reuse of original Chinese lacquer inlaid with tinted mother of pearl mosaic or marquetry and other precious materials. In order to preserve the ancient technique and the integrity of precious designs, high jewellery houses collected original lacquer pieces from major antique dealers. Panels were extracted from existing bowls, tables, or trays and then refabricated with embellishment of enamel, jade, coral, lapis lazuli, onyx, cabochon gemstones, and diamonds in Art Deco ensembles. This talk will also explore cross cultural aspects of design transfer in lacquer panels that were made in Paris based on Asian models. Many western inlays were the creation of European craftsmen including Vladmir Makowsky, a Russian émigré artist working in Paris. He specialized in creating Chinese lacquer and gemstone design using traditional Chinese iconography and perspectives to emulate authentic effect of Chinese design. His tablets are set within a geometric border of enamel in Art Deco pastiche, combining traditional Asian manufacturing methods with Art Deco designs and vibrant colour schemes.
Speaker Biography
Sandy Ng is an Assistant Professor of Culture & Theory in the School of Design of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. She received her PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London). Her published works include articles that examine hybrid modernism and the formation of female identity in painting as well as cultural metaphor and female mental health in design. She was a Visiting Research Fellow at the Bard Graduate Centre in the United States and is presently College Art Association’s caa.reviews Field Editor for Design History. Her commissioned edited volume titled The Dynamics of Modern Asian Design-Material Culture and Social Agency is currently in production. Her book entitled Portrayals of Women in Early Twentieth-Century China: Redefining Female Identity through Modern Design and Lifestyle is published by Amsterdam University Press. She is presently working on a new project that explores craftsmanship, gender, identity, and materiality.
Inquiry：
Department of Chinese and History, City University of Hong Kong
Tel.：3442 2054
Email：cah@cityu.edu.hk
