Chinoiserie: An Icon of the Hamptons Coastal Style

Chinoiserie: An Icon of the Hamptons Coastal Style

The 1930s Hollywood Regency style, the era of serious glamour and opulent decor, had its foundations in Chinoiserie. Porcelains and ceramics in blue and white oriental motifs were the most coveted Chinoiserie pieces because of the skill and artisanship required to make them. European artists tried their very best to copy Ming jars, bowls, pots, and vases but failed to replicate the quality of Chinese porcelain or the meticulously artistic detailing of Oriental artists.

Chinoiserie today continues to be a classic paragon of decorative opulence. It is still so much in vogue especially in interiors inspired by coastal, Hamptons or Plantation expressions. The zooming popularity of the Ming style is not confined to jars, lamps, bowls, pots, and vases. Artwork now highlights portraits of singular Chinoiserie pieces to grace walls with their exotic grace. 

Chinoiserie artwork can augment a sparse Ming collection display. If you only have two or three pieces of Ming vases sitting on your console, for instance, you can augment their visibility by hanging two amply sized giclée portraits of these lovely blue-and-white covetables. 

A triptych of framed chinoiserie prints can add a classic touch of affluence, hung above a mantel, bed, or buffet table. Their blue-and-white palette and general opulent connotation often bring fresh, upscale nuances to coastal-styled interiors.  

Ginger jars were the first homeware on offer several years back when Hamptons Home was but a fledgling online company. These have remained to be its most sought after. Whether as solid ceramics or gorgeous artwork, chinoiserie today is revered as an icon of the Hamptons aesthetic.

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