Butterflies Correspondence Cards

Description

A favorite motif seen in Japanese decorative arts, this graceful butterfly on our charming correspondence cards is adapted from the interior design of a tray from a late nineteenth-century Japanese lacquer box that once held poem cards and other stationery items. The unknown artist rendered a striking design of exquisite butterflies in maki-e lacquer. The range of colors achieved in this example is characteristic of the revival of maki- e technique sponsored by the Meiji government, which was spurred by the demand for Japanese lacquer in Europe and the United States as a result of the international expositions in Paris (1867), Vienna (1873), and Philadelphia (1876).

25 gold-embossed white correspondence cards and 25 white envelopes per box. 6 1/4'' x 4 7/8''.

Art History

A technique developed to the highest degree in Japan is the use of gold and silver in powder form, either mixed in to form gold or silver lacquer or sprinkled over the lacquer surface to create a graduated gold or silver effect. Indeed, the Japanese exploited every physical property of lacquer: as a liquid for painting; as a solid surface that can be built up in certain areas of a composition; and as an adhesive, especially for gold and silver (in either foil or powder form). The resulting works often display great subtlety and delicacy, and maki-e lacquer is one of the supreme achievements of Japanese decorative art.