Room 56c: Britain & the Indies
This room looks at the development of British art and design in the late 17th and early 18th centuries as a result of Britain's burgeoning trade with Asia and the Americas. Tea, spices, porcelain, lacquer, silks and cottons were imported from Asia. The fashion for imports from Asia stimulated imitations and adaptations, in particular, painted furniture which was described as 'japanned'. British makers often did not distinguish between the different countries of 'the Indies' and mixed images and motifs to create what appeared to them to be an exotic effect.
Room 56c is on Level 2 of the V&A South Kensington.
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Handmade in Britain
This important book forms part of the Handmade in Britain partnership between the V&A and the BBC. Published as the culmination of a year-long sea…
Buy nowEvent - Handmade in Britain
Thu 20 June 2013 14:00
V&A Curator Joanna Norman discusses the ongoing V&A/BBC4 television series Handmade in Britain.
Book online
