Periods Of Decoration: Embroideries. Made in needlepoint and silk during all historic periods of decoration, usually by women.
The use of Oriental rugs. It has often been stated that a room in which a large and beautiful Oriental rug is used needs little else in the way of decoration. Certainly it needs little else in the way of patterned surfaces. As a consequence, plain or inconspicuously patterned coverings for chairs and sofas are usually necessary to avoid confusion and to act as a foil and contrast. From a decorative angle, the dominant colors in an Oriental rug should set the color scheme for the room and should be re¬called in the draperies, upholstery coverings, and walls, if possible. Orien¬tal Rugs should be used only in formal rooms. They are suitable for all the sophisticated types of Decoration that are based upon the historic periods.See Also Chief Decoration:The Ming dynasty (1368-1644). During the Ming dynasty all the arts received great encouragement from the emperors. The advancement in the making of porcelain was designated by a greater variety of beautiful colors. Plain-colored glazes, which had, in previous dynasties, furnished the chief decoration, were supplanted in popular favor by monochrome pattern decorations, although the plain glazes continued to be used side by side with more ornate pottery. New motifs such as birds and fish were added to the old floral patterns. This was the period of the blue-and-white porcelains, in which flower patterns in several shades of blue were placed on a cream-colored field and the whole covered with a glaze of a very faint bluish tinge. These were the porcelains that were popular with the Europeans and that had a great influence on English porcelain. Occa¬sionally the colors were reversed and white flowers were placed on a blue background. In the latter part of the Ming period, additional variety in the technique of color Decoration was developed, and the beginning of polychrome Decoration was evident in Ming enamelled ware and in Ming "three-color" ware, which took its name from its patterns wrought in the combinations of three colors. These colors were usually selected from a palette of dark violet-blue, turquoise, aubergine-purple, yellow,
and white.
Great age of porcelains, jades, and cut stone, with elaboration of form and Decoration of pottery. Extensive trade with Europe.
The last two Chinese dynasties were those that greatly influenced Western art in the 18th century, because of the exportations of pottery to England and France.
The Ming dynasty (1368-1644). During the Ming dynasty all the arts received great encouragement from the emperors. The advancement in the making of porcelain was designated by a greater variety of beautiful colors. Plain-colored glazes, which had, in previous dynasties, furnished the chief decoration, were supplanted in popular favor by monochrome pattern decorations, although the plain glazes continued to be used side by side with more ornate pottery. New motifs such as birds and fish were added to the old floral patterns. This was the period of the blue-and-white porcelains, in which flower patterns in several shades of blue were placed on a cream-colored field and the whole covered with a glaze of a very faint bluish tinge. These were the porcelains that were popular with the Europeans and that had a great influence on English porcelain. Occasionally the colors were reversed and white flowers were placed on a blue background. In the latter part of the Ming period, additional variety in the technique of color Decoration was developed, and the beginning of polychrome Decoration was evident in Ming enamelled ware and in Ming "three-color" ware, which took its name from its patterns wrought in the combinations of three colors. These colors were usually selected from a palette of dark violet-blue, turquoise, aubergine-purple, yellow,and white.
On The Other Hand See Originality Of Decoration And Form:Present day trends in the design of houses and gardens are toward simplification. Functionalism is considered good. So is originality, provided it is not too ex¬treme. Originality that comes from strain and striving for the unusual defeats its purpose. It lacks restraint. Superficial Decoration has been discarded. Along with the gingerbread and curlicues of late nine¬teenth and early twentieth century archi¬tecture have gone geometrical flower beds, tortuous paths, elaborate fountains, com¬plicated rustic work, gazing globes and other features that once cluttered gardens. The best gardens of today are lovely and
livable.
The early years of the 18th century were given over to experimenta¬tion and to analysis of the Oriental products and to a greatly increased pub¬lic and collector's interest in the porcelain of the Orient. As rewards in¬creased, many skilled artists and sculptors were attracted to the industry. Easier transportation and improved technical facilities in firing made it possible to obtain and use clays from foreign countries. It was therefore no longer necessary to work native clay.
As compared to the early pottery, the porcelain made in England was always lacking in originality of Decoration and form. It is perhaps only natural that with an avowedly imitative product, the ornament should also be copied. The Decoration of English porcelain in the 18th century falls into four periods of imitation: first, the period of Oriental influence; second, that of the Dresden style; third, the Sevres influence; and last, the classical revival, which everywhere seems to have been the prelude of esthetic decadence.
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