80 
House & Garden 
A dignified hall 
group coidd consist 
of a seat and high 
stands showing sim¬ 
ple fret ornamenta¬ 
tion, with Ming 
jars on the stands 
and an old tapestry 
for b a c k g round 
CHINESE FURNITURE FOR 
AMERICAN 
ROOMS 
We Can Use Oriental Furnishings to Better Advantage 
When We Understand How the Chinese Use Them 
D. E. NEWELL 
T O THE average American, Chinese 
furniture suggests heavy ornately 
carved pieces called ebony by Chi¬ 
nese dealers and auctioneers. The country 
has been flooded with these atrocities and 
discriminating home-makers have given 
them a wide berth. Their existence is due 
to foreign firms in Canton who introduced 
European shapes some sixty or seventy 
years ago to the Chinese carvers who cov¬ 
ered the forms with elaborately executed 
dragons, phoenixes and floral motifs. 
Contrary to the prevailing idea, native 
Chinese furniture is, in the main, of ex¬ 
treme simplicity. Dignity and simplicity 
are the keynotes of Chinese taste, and native 
Chinese furniture, contrary to the prevailing 
idea, is of a distinctly simple nature. The 
Chinese, w 7 hile willing to make anything for 
profitable export, never adopted the heavy, 
(Below) A rare model of a Chinese 
bench. The original belonged to the 
Silversmiths’ Guild in Canton 
certain parts of central and northern China 
there are variations without number. As 
paper is, in general, used to admit light, 
the grilles are naturally rather closely de¬ 
signed for practical reasons. The walls of 
Chinese interiors are almost invariably 
plain surfaces, which results in a sense of 
quietness and peace in harmony with the 
reflective mind of the Chinese and from 
the modern point of view, these plain sur¬ 
faces for backgrounds cannot be improved 
upon and are accepted as a principle of 
interior decoration. 
In temples and palaces the columns and 
ceilings are gorgeously decorated in gold 
and colors, but the decorative note of the 
dwelling is always the note of dignified 
simplicity. 
In the better homes sets of four or eight 
Chinese paintings with long scroll-mounts 
(Below) An unusual bench with or¬ 
nament in the form of a joo-e-head 
scepter, which symbolizes longevity 
ornate type for their own domestic use. 
The native architect’s opportunity for 
interior ornamentation is confined to the 
richly carved entrances and window-grilles. 
The intricate gilded carvings of the door¬ 
ways, with their designs of birds and flowers 
contribute more than the furniture to the 
rich effect of the Chinese interior. 
The window grilles, in contrast to the 
doorways, are often very plain, though in 
A simple model of the 
convetitional size Chi¬ 
nese table, 18" x 36", 
with fret decorations 
