Monday, November 07, 2016

Garnitures: Vase Sets from National Trust Houses




The Victoria & Albert Museum recently debuted a new exhibition that is right up our alley: Garnitures: Vase Sets from National Trust Houses.  Garnitures, which are matching sets of vases and vessels, came into fashion in the seventeenth century, when upper-class Europeans began fervently collecting and amassing Chinese porcelain.  Typically displayed on mantelpieces, on tops of cabinets and chests, or over doorways, garnitures are usually comprised of odd-numbered pieces, which, when displayed, create a pleasing sense of symmetry.

Although garnitures fell out of favor by the Victorian era, many porcelain collectors, aesthetes, and decorators continued to garnish their interiors with these ceramic sets.  (By the way, the term "garniture" is derived from "garnir", which is the French word for garnish.)  Still today, you can find garnitures employed by the likes of Carolyne Roehm, Alex Papachristidis, and Andrew Gn, whose uses of garnitures can be seen below.

But back to the V&A exhibit.  There, you'll find all kinds of wonderful examples of garnitures from such National Trust Houses as Dunham Massey, Tatton Park, and Kingston Lacy, where the three-piece garniture seen above can be found.  Accompanying the exhibit is a book which provides an overview of both the exhibition and the history of garnitures.  In the U.K., the book is titled Garnitures.  In the U.S., however, the book's title is Vase Mania.  Although the U.S. title has a bit more zest, I can't help but wonder if it was dumbed down for the American audience.  Perhaps I'll leave that conversation for another day.


Some examples of vase mania, which bear no relation to the V&A exhibit:

 Proof that garnitures don't have to be blue-and-white.  In the Paris home of antiquaires Patrick and Josephine Fremontier.


 A set located in the background of a young Vincent Fourcade's home.  (Photo by Slim Aarons.)



 Carolyne Roehm has a passion for blue-and-white porcelain and ceramics.



 A blue-and-white garniture, atop a cabinet in the Paris home of the Comte and Comtesse Hubert d'Ornano.


 A garniture, displayed on a table, in the Chinese Blue Drawing Room at Catherine Palace, Tsarskoye Selo, Russia



A bedside garniture, in a room decorated by Alex Papachristidis.





Based on the three photos above, it is clear that fashion designer Andrew Gn has vase mania.

12 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:02 AM

    I still collect blue and white porcelain today and I never grow tired of it. My collection isn't as extensive as some of these pictured, But I did buy two more pieces of it over the weekend. Also over the weekend I purchased Mark Sikes book, "Beautiful" and I am happy to see that even someone as young as Mark likes blue and white. Thank you Jennifer. LK

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    1. LK, Blue-and-white porcelain will forever remain a design classic!

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  2. Patricia Ferguson @Unefleurunjour10:50 AM

    Dear Jennifer Boles,
    Thank you so much for the mention of my display at the V&A. The original title was Vasemania, but we changed it to make sure the word 'garniture' was included for posterity and for google word search. So absolutely no dumbing down, just not updated from a year ago, and Amazon is still showing the old title! I have tweeted your account to my handful of followers!

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    1. Dear Patricia, Congratulations on your display! How I wish that I could see it in person. I am planning to order a copy of the book, which I believe will be an excellent addition to my library. And thank you for the clarification of the title.

      Jennifer

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  3. Hello Jennifer, I love garnitures and similar displays of china when they are on wide shelves or surfaces. You show an appealing variety of effects here.

    Have you been to the Palace Museum in Taipei? Although they don't concentrate on export wares, their collection of Asian ceramics is absolutely tops, including blue/white Yuan and Ming pieces that will amaze you (that is if you can tear yourself away from their Song dynasty wares).
    --Jim

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    1. Dear Jim, I am not familiar with the Palace Museum, but I'm off to visit their website in hopes it will show images of their collection. It sounds like quite a treasure trove!

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  4. Anonymous11:48 AM

    Thank you for letting us know about this fabulous exhibit and the catalogue, Jennifer, and thank you to Ms. Ferguson for the curating and the writing. I won't be in London anytime soon, but have already ordered my copy of the catalogue.

    By the way, for anyone who can't find the catalogue available at Amazon etc., I was able to find a copy at www.bookdepository.com, which is always my go-to for UK titles. Free worldwide shipping and no minimum, which is wonderful for something like this...

    Becky

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    1. Becky, I've purchased books from that site as well, and I agree with your recommendation.

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  5. I love antique blue & white Chinese (and Japanese) porcelains--makes rooms look finished and snappy. Thanks. Mary

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  6. Anonymous12:36 PM

    Anyone know what fabric (I assume it's not paper) is on the wall in Fourcade's room?

    The d'Ornano room is fantastic except for that illuminated display case.

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    1. I've done a bit of research, and sadly, I can't determine which fabric was used for the walls. It's very unique looking, no?

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