Chinoiserie Garden Scene Plate – Dutch Delft, c.1740

Description
This finely painted faience plate from mid-18th-century Delft presents a refined Chinoiserie scene featuring a robed figure and a bird within a stylized garden, framed by pavilions, flowering shrubs, and scrolling borders. Executed in underglaze blue with overglaze enamels of iron-red, yellow, green, and aubergine, the palette imitates Japanese Imari ware yet displays the precision and symmetry typical of European craftsmanship. The central composition balances delicate linear brushwork with vibrant decorative elements around the rim, reflecting the fascination for Oriental motifs that swept through Europe during the Rococo era. The reverse bears a distinctive triple-leaf blue mark, associated with Delft workshops producing export wares inspired by Arita porcelain. This plate embodies the elegance and cross-cultural artistry of 18th-century European faience, merging Eastern inspiration with Western decorative refinement.

Artist
Anonymous Delft artisan, Netherlands, c.1740.

Artist Details
Produced in Delft, a leading Dutch ceramics center renowned for its tin-glazed faience and early imitations of Japanese Imari porcelain. Artisans of this period skillfully adapted Oriental motifs to European tastes, achieving a balance between technical mastery and decorative exuberance.

Movements
Chinoiserie / Rococo Decorative Arts

Artist Influenced by
Influenced by Japanese Arita and Chinese Kangxi porcelain designs adapted for the European market.