Chinese wallpaper in Britain and Ireland

Chinese wallpaper has been an important element of European interior decoration for three hundred years. As trade between Europe and China flourished in the seventeenth century, Europeans developed a strong taste for Chinese art and design. The stunningly beautiful wallcoverings now known as 'Chinese wallpaper' were developed by Chinese painting workshops in response to western demand. A sophisticated synthesis of eastern and western art, these wallpapers were an early-modern global product and they are still popular and influential today. In spite of their spectacular beauty, Chinese wallpapers have not been studied in any dept until fairly recently. This book provides an overview of some of the most significant Chinese wallpapers surviving in the British Isles. Sumptuously illustrated, it shows how these wallpapers became a staple ingredient of high-end British and Irish interiors while always retaining a touch of the exotic. The book charts their stylistic development, allowing individual papers to be more securely dated. It also touches on the China trade, the crucial role of the paper-hangers and the social significance of Chinese-style decoration in Britain.