Peranakan Chinese Porcelain

With over 800 unique photographs, this Chinese arts book is a feast for the eyes. Produced exclusively for wealthy Chinese communities along the Strait of Malacca in the 19th and early 20th centuries, Peranakan Chinese porcelain is enjoying a resurgence of interest among collectors. Straits-born Chinese, or Peranakans, in Penang, Malacca and Singapore, used this ornate and colorful enamelware on festive occasions such as weddings, birthdays, anniversaries and Chinese New Year. Peranakan Chinese Porcelain is richly illustrated and includes key information on reign marks and factory marks. In-depth discussion of the motifs, colors, forms and functions of Peranakan Chinese ceramics makes this an invaluable reference. Supporting photographs and text introduce related aspects of Peranakan culture including architecture, dress, cuisine and customs, making Peranakan Chinese Porcelain a wonderful contribution to the history of the Straits Chinese.

This beautifully illustrated volume presents Straits Chinese porcelain, a little known category of 19th century polychrome enamelled porcelain made in China exclusively for export to the Straits Chinese communities of Southeast Asia. Glossary and bibliography included.

Discover the rarified Peranakan (native-born Chinese of Southeast Asia) aesthetics that are today highly sought-after for their beauty: distinctive furniture and ceramics, textiles and jewelry, and many other art objects. Peranakan Chinese Home displays these extraordinary objects, visible markers of a highly developed culture. The broad range of beautiful objects which the Peranakan Chinese created and enjoyed in their daily lives is astounding. Each chapter in The Peranakan Chinese Home focuses on a different area and presents objects used or found in those spaces. Each piece is described in the context of their utility as household objects, as part of periodic celebrations to mark the Chinese New Year and other holidays, or in important life passage rituals relating to ancestor worship, birth, marriage, mourning and burial. The meaning of the rich symbolic and ornamental motifs found on the objects is discussed in detail and key differences are highlighted between Peranakan objects and similar ones found in China. A fascinating mix of Chinese, European and Southeast Asian influences, the distinctly Peranakan identity of a people and their culture is beautifully portrayed through objects and archival photographs in this lovely and exotic book.

A Peranakan Legacy captures the rich heritage of a fast disappearing way of life and put on record many traditions and practices which were previously handed only down from generation to generation. The term ‘Baba’ is used to refer to the Straits-born Chinese or Peranakans. The Babas boast a unique culture and way of life that is an amalgamation of Chinese and Malay customs and etiquette. Their culture is perhaps best captured in the beautiful clothing, stunning jewellery, pretty porcelain and other artefacts used in daily living. Girls were taught, from a young age, how to cook a variety of elaborate meals as well as crafts such as beading and embroidery. The result is a rich legacy of splendid kebayas (embroidered blouses), beadwork and various other items. Through lavish, full-colour photographs of Peranakan artefacts and clothing, this book explains the origins of the various customs and traditions. While some customs are still practiced today, other more complicated ones have disappeared as modern babas adapted to contemporary lifestyles which are deemed more convenient and practical.

Geschiedenis van Chinese kooplieden die zich vestigden in Maleisie aan de Straat van Malakka

This longtime Malaysian fashion icon was originally a long, straight, Arab-inspired top of plain woven cotton. The Nyonyas, the women of the early Peranakan community, gradually transformed it into a shapely, embroidered, translucent blouse, fastened with a set of chained brooches and worn with a matching hand-drawn batik sarong. Sheer, romantic, alluring, yet sedate, the designs of Nyonya kebaya crosses several generations and cultures. This book showcases the collection of Datin Seri Endon Mahmood, wife of the Prime Minister of Malaysia.

With over 630 striking color photos and illustrations this Chinese art guide focuses on the rich tapestry of symbolism which makes up the basis of traditional Chinese art. Chinese Art: A Guide to Motifs and Visual Imagery includes detailed commentary and historical background information for the images that continuously reappear in the arts of China, including specific plants and animals, religious beings, mortals and inanimate objects. The book thoroughly illuminates the origins, common usages and diverse applications of popular Chinese symbols in a tone that is both engaging and authoritative. Chinese Art: A Guide to Motifs and Visual Imagery is an essential reference for collectors, museum-goers, guides, students and anyone else with a serious interest in the culture and history of China.