Object Type
This print is an etching. An etching is produced by biting lines in a metal plate with acid to hold ink. The lines on the plate are filled with ink which is then printed onto paper.

Design & Designing
The Far East had long held a fascination for Westerners since traders, and later the various East India companies, had introduced exotic oriental goods to Europe. This print is a page from "A new book of Chinese designs, the first pattern book of Chinoiserie" [Chinese-inspired] designs published in 1755 by the French painter and designer Jean-Baptiste Pillement (1728-1808). This early print demonstrates how Pillement adapted traditional French Rococo ornament into his own idea of Chinese patterns suited to English taste. The design includes typically French Rococo shapes and recalls grotesques (a system of decoration based on Roman wall paintings) by the French master Jean Bérain (1639-1711). The delicate structure and wispy foliage on which a man in Chinese costume is resting are all characteristic of Pillement's work and suggest a fantastic, airy world which the artist delighted in portraying.

Time
The elegant Chinese style adopted by Pillement had already been introduced to France by artists such as Jean-Antoine Watteau (1684-1721) and Francois Boucher (1703-1770). In England Pillement's work was very influential and widely used. His patterns have been identified on lacquered and marquetry furniture silver enamels textiles porcelain and earthenware.