Painting of the Day: Girl with a Fan, 1864

Girl with a Fan, 1864
William Dobson
Watercolor and gouache.
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Influenced by the tastes and styles of their Queen, the Victorian public preferred idealized portraits of young girls.  Such depictions arose beginning with Queen Victoria's reign as the fresh-faced young woman took the throne.  Since the queen was an attractive young lady, similarly innocent faces became the subject of oil paintings, watercolors and prints of all kinds.

This painting by William Charles Thomas Dobson (RA, RWS, 1817-1898) is rendered in watercolor and gouache.  It  was described in the words of a contemporary as having “a roundness and sweetness which is never sensual.”

William Dobson began his career as a prolific painter of religious themes.  His greatest hope was to revive popular interest religious art.  Nevertheless, the audience was limited and Dobson went on to paint less ponderous subjects like this attractive picture.  Dobson often peppered his works with a stylized orientalism which successfully increased their public appeal.  From 1842 until 1894 he exhibited many paintings in this style at the Royal Academy.

Here, we see Dobson’s rather inaccurate depiction of an Asian girl in a turban and a striped silk brocade robe.  It was painted in 1864, not from life, but in his studio, using props which Dobson thought would seem authentically Asian.

Gifts of Grandeur: The Buckler Chinese Fan, 1850-60

Chinese Fan with Lacquer Box
1850-1860
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Made between 1850 and 1860, this fan is supported by sticks of gold-painted lacquer.  The leaf is a blend of paper and silk.  Each side of the leaf features a different scene: on one side, flowers and birds are depicted; while on the other, a fantastical Chinese garden scene has been rendered. The faces of the figures are of applied ivory with applied silk for their clothes.

This fan was exported to England from either Canton (Guangzhou) or India.  Such fans were brought into Europe in the tens of thousands, and the more expensive examples were supplied with their own box.   In this case, the box of lacquered wood is more luxurious than the fan itself.  


Fans like this one were made for the mass market and were often produced in an assembly line style of manufacture.  The speed with which this fan was manufactured is  are clear when one notices that the tiny ivory faces have been haphazardly applied to the fan.  In fact,  in some cases, the female faces have been stuck on to male bodies.

Reverse.

Punch’s Cousin, Chapter 476

Pete extended his strong, veined hand to Robert and effortlessly pulled him to the scalding hot deck.

“We gotta be quick, Sir.”  Pete warned.

“I know.”  Robert nodded.  “Mr. Punch!  Your Grace!” He began to holler.  “Can you hear me?”

“Yes!”  Punch responded.

Robert heard his friend’s voice below them, through the hot floor of the deck.

“They’re below us.”  Robert grunted.

Pete looked around and spotted, tucked against the rail, a wooden box filled with tools which had hastily been left behind by one of the ship’s workers.

Darting quickly toward the box, Pete grabbed a large hammer which he then used to beat the floor with all his might.

“Cover your heads!”  Robert shouted.

Below them, Mr. Punch pulled Marie by her waist against the wall.  Marie shrieked as the ceiling above them began to splinter beneath Pete’s forceful blows.

Within minutes, Punch could see daylight above them through the smoke which had already begun to billow out of this new-found opening.

Soon, the hole was large enough to fit a body through it.

“Pick up Marie and hand her to us.”  Robert shouted down.

“Who dat lady?”  Pete frowned.

“It’s Marie Laveau.”  Robert replied quickly.

“The Voodoo Queen?”  Pete’s eyes widened.

“Yes.”  Robert nodded.

“You want me to pull her up here?”

“I do.  Please, Pete.  She’s actually been very kind to us today.”

Pete snorted.

“She really has.”  Robert urged his new friend.  “Please.”

“As you say,”  Pete shrugged.  He reached through the hole while Robert held the man around his waist to keep him from falling.

Though it was a struggle, Punch picked Marie up by her armpits and held her as high off the ground as he could.  Marie extended her hands and Pete grabbed them, pulling her up to join him and Robert.

“Thank you!”  Marie sobbed.  “Thank you so much!”

Pete sniffed and looked cautiously at Marie before reaching into the hole again.

Punch held up his arms but quickly realized that Pete couldn’t reach him.

“Can you jump?”  Robert asked loudly.

“If I do, when I land this whole floor is gonna splinter ‘neath me when I land, it is!”  Punch shouted.

“The trunk!”  Marie screamed, pointing through the hole to a large steamer trunk which had been left behind by another passenger during their hasty retreat from the burning trip.

“Coo!”  Punch mumbled, hurrying over and pulling the trunk closer to the hole.  He could hear the floor beneath him groan and he knew he only had a few seconds before it gave way completely.

Standing on the trunk, Punch reached up and felt the reassuring grasp of Pete’s hands on his own.  Before he knew what had happened, he found himself above.

Wrapping his arms around Robert he began to weep.  “Where’s everybody?”

“They’re all safe.”  Robert said.

“We gotta get off here.”  Pete said firmly.

Pete helped Robert, Marie and Punch scramble toward the lower deck and to the long ramp which led to the dock.

Spotting his family on the pier, Punch began to run.  Sprinting toward Marjani with his hands extended, Punch scooped up Colin and held him tightly.

Adrienne cried with joy as she watched Punch embrace his nephew.

“Me boy!”  Punch swept.  “Me boy!  And, me kin and the Toby Dog.”

“We got your puppet, too, Uncle Punch.”  Columbia said brightly.

“Here, that’s fine.”  Punch nodded, tears running down his face.

“And, your jewel box, too.”  Gamilla added.

“Don’t care ‘bout none of that.”  Punch said.  “All that I got can burn up, it can, long as me chums and my son and the waggy-tailed pup is safe!”

Robert and Pete joined the group, followed by Marie.

Robert smiled, “Everyone, this is Miss Marie Laveau.”

The group eyed her suspiciously.

“We’re very glad that you’re safe,”  Adrienne said finally. “Charles tells us that you were very brave and kind to our family.”

“I done realized,”  Marie began, “that I’d been wrong.  I ain’t gonna tell ya that I’m a good woman cuz I ain’t.  But, I hope you know that I mean it when I say I’m sorry for what I done.”

“We understand.”  Cecil nodded.

Punch silently counted the heads to everyone, smiling finally.  “We’re all here, we are.  Nice and safe.”

“Not yet.”  Marjani shook her head.

“How you mean?”  Punch asked.

Marjani and Marie exchanged looks.

“What’s going on?”  Cecil asked.

“We gotta get off this pier.”  Marie nodded.

“But,”  Punch protested.  “We’re goin’ to England.”

“The ship is ruined, Your Grace.”  Charles replied. “We won’t be leaving today.”

“Where we gonna go?”  Punch’s eyes widened.

“Back to the house on Royal Street.”  Robert shrugged.  “I’m sure Meridian will welcome us back temporarily.  We’ll make arrangements to leave on the next ship.”

“Oh no,” Marie shook her head.  “You can’t go back there.”

“Why not?”  Robert asked.

“Sir,”  Marjani spoke next, “What of Edward Cage?  If he sees Colin, he’s gonna try to…”

Robert raised his hand, shaking his head. “Say no more.”

“Besides,”  Gamilla frowned.  “There’s that Miss Evangeline over there.  She ain’t done tryin’ for to make trouble.”

“You’ll come with me,”  Marie smiled.

“You?”  Gerard hissed painfully.

“I’ll protect all of you.”  Marie answered.

“Last time I was at your house, you witch, you had me beaten to a pulp.”  Gerard croaked.

“I’m truly sorry for that,”  Marie responded.  “But, you all gotta trust me now.  I won’t let nothin’ happen to ya.  You can wait at my house ‘til you find out when the next ship for England departs.”

“No.”  Gerard snarled.

“I don’t think we have a choice.”  Robert said quietly.  “Marjani’s correct.  If Mr. Cage knows we’re still here, he’ll come after Colin—he’ll come for all of us.”

“He’s been shot, he has.”  Punch grumbled.  “What can he do to us?”

“Have you forgotten that he has an army of men at his disposal who want nothing more than to do his bidding?  Odo alone is enough of a threat.”

“What of Pete and his friends?”  Gamilla asked.  “We can’t just leave them here—not after all they’ve done for us.”

“We’ll be fine, Miss Gamilla.”  Pete smiled.

“Nonsense,”  Marie interrupted.  “You’ll all come with me.  I’ll see to it that all of you are safe.  Please let me.  I owe you all so much.”

“Coo!”  Punch nodded.  “We accept your offer, magic Chum.”

Did you miss Chapters 1-475?  If so, you can read them here. 

Unusual Artifacts: A Venetian Fan Handle, 1550

Fan Handle
Gilt Brass, designed for a feather fan.
Made in Venice, c. 1550
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Here we see what was once the handle of a feather fan.  Such luxurious hand fans were introduced into Tudor England through import from Venice, Milan and Genoa. In the early Sixteenth Century, Italian fan makers borrowed the lush look of these feather fans from designs which had been brought to Europe from Asia.  Such fans were very expensive to make and ownership of one confirmed the user’s status and rank.

This exquisite fan handle is comprised of gilt brass which was cast, pierced and engraved with an Eastern-influenced Moresque ornament.  In this case, a Moorish design is created through stylized, interlaced geometric patterns like those which evolved in Arab civilizations of the Near East and in the Moorish states of Spain.

The handle was designed to be durable.  When the fan's feathers became ratty, they could be replaced with new feathers which were arranged in the metal handle. This gilt-brass handle was, actually, a less extravagant version of the style.  Higher-end handles were crafted of carved ivory, gold or silver. The feathers would come from a native bird, but usually, more expensive feathers from exotic birds such as peacocks, swans, ostriches or, even parakeets would be used—especially for the finer gold or ivory handles.

Fans like this one were worn attached to the belt of the dress by a metal chain or silk cord.

This example comes from Venice, Italy and was made ca. 1550.

Object of the Day: A Trade Card for Standard Rotary Shuttle Sewing Machines

Trade cards weren’t always just rectangular.  Very often companies commissioned cards of unusual, dye-cut shapes to advertise their products.  This card dates to about 1880 and is shaped like a hand fan—still a fashionable accessory at the time.  Not only that, but the fan is decorated in the Chinoiserie style which was popular.  A portrait medallion depicts a stylish young woman.

This trade card advertises “Standard” Rotary Shuttle Sewing Machines, claiming that they’re the “Best on Earth.”  Very often, these cards were printed so that they were blank on the reverse.  The cards would be distributed to retailers and distributors by the manufacturer.  The blank space on the back allowed the retailer to use a stamp to emblazon the card with their own information.  That’s what we see here.

The reverse—stamped in deep purple ink (now a little faded):

C.W. Kerstetter

Dealer in

Watches and Jewelry, Sewing Machines,

Needles, Oil and Supplies, Agent for

Standard Rotary Shuttle Sewing Machines.

Clearly, by the spelling of “jewelry,” we can see that this card was for an American retailer.  If it had been for a British shop, the word would have been spelled, “jewellery.”  Standard flourished in Cleveland Ohio at the turn of the Twentieth Century.  

Mastery of Design: The Joseph Gold and Mother-of-Pearl Box, 1749-50

Box of Gold with Mother-of-Pearl Inlay
1749-1750
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This box—possibly made to hold snuff—is crafted of gold which has been inlaid with mother-of-pearl in a Chinoiserie design.  It was made in France between 1749 and 1750 and was imported to England in 1838. 

The box was a gift to the V&A from Mrs. Samuel S. Joseph.

Unusual Artifacts: A Straw Marquetry Bellows, 1770

Bellows, c. 1770
French in the Chinoiserie Style
Straw marquetry on a wooden frame.
The Victoria & Albert Museum

A bellows such as this would have been used to maintain a fire by puffing air into it in order to add oxygen, encouraging it to burn more fiercely.

This bellows was made in 1770 as part of a suite of decorative, but useful items, designed for use in a fashionable “Chinese”-style interior.  The scene, in the popular Chinoiserie style, depicts two men in loose robes and long moustaches holding a parasol and a cymbal. 

This is a work of straw marquetry—a technique which developed  in France between circa 1760 and 1830. The technique was achieved with straw which was split and flattened, then glued into place on thin paper on which the design had been drawn. This paper was then glued to a wooden carcass, which was usually covered first with a thicker paper. Color would be added to the surface, and then varnished to achieve the glossy appearance of marquetry.

Straw marquetry was most often used for small objects like this bellows, but sometimes, larger pieces of furniture were decorated in this way.  However, because the straw work is very fragile, it is very rare for pieces to survive in good condition.