Chinese furniture

What is now considered the Chinese aesthetic had its origins in China as far back as 1500–1000 BC. The furniture present in some of the artwork from that early period shows woven mats on elevated floors, sometimes accompanied by arm rests, providing seating accompanied by low tables. In this early period both unadorned and intricately engraved and painted pieces were already developing. High chairs, usually single ones, had existed as status symbols, effectively thrones, since at least the Eastern Zhou period (771–256 BCE), but were not used with tables at the same level. The process of integrating traditional culture and contemporary style in furniture was initiated by designers such as Zhu Xiaojie, Chi Wing Lo, Chen Renyi, Shan Fan, Shi Jianmin and Song Tao, but many others have since joined the movement, notably Lv Yongzhong, Lydon Neri, Rossana Hum Jiang Qiong’er, Jeff Shi Dayu, Wen Hao, Shen Baohong, Studio MVW, Chen Darui, Zhong Song, Chen Yanfei and Jerry Chen. During the Ming and Qing dynasties previous bans on imports were lifted, allowing for larger quantities and varieties of woods to flood in from other parts of Asia. The use of denser wood led to much finer work, including more elaborate joinery. A Ming Imperial table entirely covered in carved lacquer, now in London, is one of the finest survivals of the period. == Ming dynasty furniture ==

Chinese furniture flourished in Ming and Qing dynasties; as the result, the Ming-style furniture and the Qing-style furniture become the representative traditional Chinese furniture people often see today. Suzhou, an area in Jiangsu Province, is distinguished by the fine production techniques of Ming-style furniture. Shape, style and culture Ming dynasty furniture is distinguished by its simplicity of shape. It does not focus on the rich and complicated decorative patterns but the elegance of style and the beauty of lines. For example, the backrest of Ming furniture is in the shape of "S" or "C". This special shape conforms to the characteristics of the human spine curve, allowing people to sit on their backs to rest and relieve fatigue. Various materials are used in inlay, including enamel, bamboo, animal's horn or teeth, jade, stone, copper, etc. However, Ming furniture does not aim to have all the luxuries in one piece, instead highlighting the beauty of wood through the raw materials. These metal fittings not only serve aesthetic purposes, but simultaneously enhance wear resistance. Material Ming furniture is made of a wide range of materials, including wood, stone, and other auxiliary materials. The choice of wood is usually hardwood, such as huanghuali (黄花梨), red sandalwood, rosewood, chicken-wing wood (鸡翅木), beech, and Cassia siamea. Among those hardwoods, huanghuali was especially popular in the Ming dynasty because of its texture, color, and odor. Among all the stone materials, marble, agate, and Nanyang stone are the common materials for inlay. Rattan, rope, and bamboo are often used as auxiliary materials in Ming furniture as well. ==Four categories==

Chinese furniture traditionally consisted of four distinct categories, all formed by the mid Qing dynasty, but each with its own unique characteristics. • Beijing category (京式家具): characterized by its simple build, directly developed from Ming dynasty furnitures. • Guangzhou category (广式家具): incorporating western influence, fully formed in the 19th century but dating back to at least 17th century. Characterized by the adoptation of Baroque and Rococo artistic styles, use of native timbers in the Lingnan region, and the decorative mounting of marble and the shells of shellfish. • Shanghai category (海式家具): characterized by its decorative carving and carved lacquer. • Suzhou category (苏式家具): Suzhou area is the main birthplace of Ming-style furniture in China, so Su-style furniture is a typical representative of Ming-style furniture. ==Material==

Classic Chinese furniture is typically made of a class of hardwoods, known collectively as "rosewood" (紅木, literally "red wood")(紅木). These woods are denser than water, fine grained, and high in oils and resins. These properties make them dimensionally stable, hardwearing, rot and insect resistant, and when new, highly fragrant. The density and toughness of the wood also allows furniture to be built without the use of glue and nail, but rather constructed from joinery and doweling alone. According to the Chinese industry standards the woods are grouped into eight classes: Furniture and carving made from these wood species are typically referred to, in the market, as "Hongmu Furniture" (紅木家具, literally "rosewood furniture")(紅木家具 ). Due to overlogging for the said furniture, most of the species are either threatened or endangered. Chinese furniture using precious wood also has property attributes, which is appreciation. This is due to the use of precious hardwood and high labour costs, durability, and it can be passed on to future generations as property. Hardwoods like Huali Wood (花梨木 ) and Suanzhi (酸枝 ) are the most representative, and the price of the raw material spiked over the past decades. Taking Huali Wood as an example, one of the most famous and expensive precious wood, the price skyrockets due to the scarcity of old trees. The growth cycle of Hualimu tree is extremely long making it unimaginably difficult to become timber—800 years. By the end of the Ming dynasty, all of Hualimu tree was felled in China. The price of Hualimu is 8-12 million RMB (approximately1.5-2.4 million CAD) per ton in 2004. In 2020, the price increased to 18 million RMB (approximately 3.4 million CAD) per ton and is expected to keep increasing. In China, some manufacturers grasped this opportunity by replicating the traditional design from precious hardwood with the help of machinery making the old design more accessible to certain consumers. There is a niche market for high-end collectors to appreciate traditional Chinese furniture not only for the timeless design but also the opportunity to invest or to show social status. ==Construction==

's Zhongshan Building Construction of traditional wooden Chinese furniture is based primarily of solid wood pieces connected solely using woodworking joints, and rarely using glue or metallic nails. The reason was that the nails and glues used did not stand up well to the vastly fluctuating temperatures and humid weather conditions in most of Central and Southeast Asia. Further, the oily and resinous woods used in Chinese furniture generally do not glue well, even when pre-cleaned with modern industrial solvents. Platform construction is based on box designs and uses frame-and-panel construction in simple form during earlier periods evolving into more and more modified forms in later periods. While earlier pieces show full frame-and-panel construction techniques, different parts of the construction were modified through the centuries to produce diverse looking pieces which still share the same basic construction. First the panel, originally complete, is subject to cut-out sections, followed by further reduction to what may appear to be simply decorative brackets. Further refinement of the same pattern lead the shape of the decorative brackets being incorporated into the shape of the surrounding frame and simultaneously the two mitered vertical pieces comprising a corner become one solid piece. Pieces start to have small cross-pieces attached to the bottom of the feet rather than a frame that is equal on all sides and finally, with evolution of the complex woodworking joints that allow it, the cross-pieces are removed entirely, leaving a modern table with 3-way mitered corners. Unlike European-derived styles, table designs based on this style will nearly always contain a frame-in-panel top, the panel serving as the tabletop center and the frame sometimes also serving as what would be rails on a European table. Cabinets in this style have a top that does not protrude beyond the sides or front. The critical element in almost all pieces of this type is the mitered joints, especially the 3-way mitered joining of the leg and two horizontal pieces at each corner. The yoke and rack construction differs critically in the way that the legs of the piece are joined to the horizontal portion (be it tabletop, seat or cabinet carcass) using a type of wedged mortise-and-tenon joint where the end grain of the leg is visible as a circle in the frame of the tabletop. The cross-pieces (stretchers in the Western equivalent) are joined through mortise-and-tenon joinery as well. A mortise (卯 ) is a slot or recess, and a tenon (榫) is the projecting end of a piece of wood formed to fit into a corresponding mortise. Mortise-and-tenon joinery is an extremely old construction technique that has stood the test of time and is still being used today. The legs and stretchers are commonly round rather than square or curvilinear. The simplest pieces are simply four splayed legs attached to a solid top, but more complicated pieces contain decorative brackets, drawers and metal latches. Cabinets in this style typically have an overhanging top, similar to Western-style cabinetry. Bamboo construction style, although historically rooted in pieces made from bamboo, later saw many pieces made from hardwood with patterning to imitate the look of bamboo, or simply in the style of previous pieces made from bamboo. The construction is more similar to the yoke and rack style with some apparent crossover. ==Gallery==

File:Huanghuali wood furniture, China, - Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art - DSC09138.JPG|alt=|Huanghuali wood furniture, China, - Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art File:Chinese style furniture in Bang Pa In Chinese style palace.JPG|alt=|Chinese style furniture in Bang Pa In Chinese style palace File:Qing Furniture.jpg|alt=|Qing Furniture File:Ming Furniture 01.jpg|alt=|Ming Furniture File:Ming Furniture 02.jpg|alt=|Ming Furniture File:HK SWCC 上環文娛中心 Sheung Wan Civic Centre 6th Floor Exhibition Gallery 中信國際拍賣 Sincerity Auction preview Chinese furniture armchairs Nov 2018 IX1 01.jpg|alt=|Chinese furniture armchairs File:Qing Red Lacquer Furniture.jpg|alt=|Qing Red Lacquer Furniture File:Landscape with Pavilion Screens by Yuan Jiang and Wang Yun, 1720 (2).jpg|alt=|Landscape with Pavilion Screens by Yuan Jiang and Wang Yun, 1720 File:Ming Furniture Models from Tomb of Pan Yongcheng 02.jpg|alt=|Ming Furniture Models from Tomb of Pan Yongcheng File:HK Central 禮賓府 Government House 開放日 Open Day interior furniture Horse in art April-2012.jpg|alt=|HK Central Government House Open Day interior furniture Horse in art File:Design for Export Furniture MET DP807524.jpg|alt=|Chinese traditional chair. File:Chinese bed, 19th century.jpg|alt=|Chinese traditional bed, 19th century File:Design for Export Furniture MET DP807526.jpg|alt=|Traditional chairs and tables. File:Chinese garden seat, Qing dynasty, mid 19th century, hongmu wood, HAA.JPG|alt=|Chinese garden seat, Qing dynasty, mid 19th century, red wood File:Chinese clothes rack, Qing dynasty, dated 1823, hongmu wood, Honolulu Academy of Arts.JPG|alt=|Chinese clothes rack, Qing dynasty, dated 1823, hongmu wood, Honolulu Academy of Arts File:Tea caddy, Chinese - Indianapolis Museum of Art - DSC00646.JPG|alt=|Tea caddy, Chinese - Indianapolis Museum of Art File:象牙插屏-Pair of Table Screens with Flowers and Birds MET ASA5.jpg|alt=|Pair of Table Screens with Flowers and Birds File:Chinese Poems and Calligraphy MET LC-TR 189 2ab 2019 sr1-003.jpg|alt=|Chinese Poems and Calligraphy screen File:明晚期 嵌螺鈿漆花鳥紋座屏-Table screen MET DP-14362-001.jpg|alt=|Late Ming dynasty table screen File:明晚期 嵌螺鈿漆花鳥紋座屏-Table screen MET DP-14362-002.jpg|alt=|Late Ming dynasty table screen File:清晚期 盧葵生款 剔紅郭子儀賀壽圖屏風-Screen with birthday celebration for General Guo Ziyi MET DP211894.jpg|alt=|Chinese screen with birthday celebration for General Guo Ziyi File:Qing Screen Set on a Stand 02.jpg|alt=|Qing Screen Set on a Stand File:Qing Screen Set and Chair with Ivory Inlay.jpg|alt=|Qing Screen Set and Chair with Ivory Inlay ==See also==