38 
House & Garden 
REVIVING the DECORATIVE PANEL 
How Pictorial Papers and Rich Fabrics Can Be Used to Set 
in JJ’alls for Their Enrichment 
M. H. NORTHEND 
AS a background for furniture, 
T \ very picturesque effects can be 
obtained by using inserted panels, 
which break the long wall space 
architecturally, and relieve the mon¬ 
otony of painted or papered walls. 
This scheme, quite popular today 
in pretentious houses, is nothing 
more than the revival of a custom 
originated centuries ago in China. 
Chinese picture panels were imported 
by Dutch missionaries about the 
middle of the 16th Century. These 
were striking in effect, exotic in char¬ 
acter and piquant, intermingling 
quality and individuality. A few 
architects of that day said they were 
an ugly fad, which would undermine 
the chaste principles of classic art. 
One, Isaac Ware, became so inflamed 
by their use that he published a book 
on classic architecture in 1776, in 
which he bemoaned the introduction 
of these panels which would eventu¬ 
ally take the place of sculpture and 
corrupt art. 
The panels, themselves, were the 
same as were used in the Chinese 
houses, and hung as a picture on the 
wall—fastened to a small rod top 
and bottom, similar to a parchment 
scroll. There is no record of the 
Chinese having pasted them to the 
walls. 
Dutch and French Panels 
The Europeans, enamoured with 
this novelty, said that if tapestries, 
fabrics and leathers were adaptable 
for panel use, why not this paper? 
Though the Chinese were the first 
to originate this idea, soon afterward 
they were made in Holland, and we 
find interesting Dutch wall panels in 
a few old houses, that are being re¬ 
produced for our modern require¬ 
ments. These represent quaint Hol¬ 
land scenery, and are direct antece¬ 
dents of the scenic wall paper which 
has become so popular today. 
During the reign of Louis XVth 
beautiful effects were worked out in 
wall panels. The religious ladies of 
St. Cyr became interested in this 
work, and have left us charming 
souvenirs of their artistic skill. Louis 
XVI backgrounds have also come 
into favor in our 20th Century homes. 
While this period had little influence 
on exterior architecture, it left its 
mark on interior decoration. It was 
during his reign that wall treatment 
'came to be of paramount importance. 
Paneling was widely used, natural 
wood, generally of oak or light col¬ 
ored walnut being paneled, and on 
these were painted landscapes. 
This paneling can readily be re¬ 
produced; a few of the originals are 
still in existence. It is large, verti¬ 
cally oblong, the width varying ac- 
.4 rose and white chintz , copy of an old French painting, is in 
the cardroom of the Boston house of S. Eliot Guild, Esq. 
\\\\\ \\\\\ 
In the Jeremiah Lee mansion at Marblehead, Mass., is found 
this example of Colonial imported paper panel 
cording to the proportions of the 
room; some are narrow, others fairly 
wide. They are let into the wall 
space in a symmetrical manner, the 
boundary molding often being en¬ 
riched with carved and applied mo¬ 
tifs. The color schemes included 
green, yellow and buff. The wood¬ 
work of the room was utilized for 
the framework; sometimes it was 
gilded. Watteau and Fragonard 
painted a great variety of pastoral 
scenes and graceful arabesque com¬ 
positions for these panels. Occa¬ 
sionally these inserted panels were 
adorned with characteristic motifs, 
as we find floral wreaths, knotted 
ribbons, and other decorative effects 
used. They were either applied di¬ 
rectly to the wood, or worked out on 
canvas and inserted flat into the 
wood panel. Silks, velvets and bro¬ 
cades were often employed for panel 
filling, as were also painted linens 
and chintz. The method of using 
these was practically the same, the 
fabric being stretched on the flat of 
the panel. 
Using Fabrics and Paper 
Today we are introducing this 
same idea into our houses, using 
paintings, fabrics, and paper as in¬ 
serted panels. In the old Colonial 
house the Chinese custom was fol¬ 
lowed—pictorial wall paper was in¬ 
serted in panels. An example of 
this can be found in the Jeremiah 
Lee Mansion at Marblehead, Mass., 
built in 1768. The paper was made 
in London. Its backgrounds are in 
gray, and the scene is a Roman ruin 
with heraldic devices and armorial 
effects surrounding the panels. 
For the modern decorative panel 
we can use verdure patterns, old time 
chintzes, and reproductions of in¬ 
teresting tapestries and fabrics, such 
as the exquisite Toile de Jouy de¬ 
sign, in which birds and flowers are 
used as motifs. The last are ren¬ 
dered in a manner characteristic of 
the old Chinese hand-painted deco¬ 
rations. Some interesting specimens 
represent the frivolic peasant art in¬ 
fluence, and We come across designs 
charged with a barbaric Orientalism 
as revealed in a Japanese manner in 
the old Parisian drawings. The 
most interesting are the French, with 
their classic interpretations produced 
on light backgrounds. 
As we turn back to these delight¬ 
ful old-time features, it is quite es¬ 
sential that we take into considera¬ 
tion, not only the wall spaces they 
are to occupy, in our modern day 
homes, but the other furnishings of 
the room—for these panels form a 
part of the wall treatment. They 
serve as a background for the fumi- 
