Fixed under Chinese glass with a decoration of two young women

China, Canton, circa 1810–1820

Export painting fixed under glass

Height 30.4 cm — Width 23.3 cm — Depth 3 cm

This Chinese reverse glass painting, executed in Canton around 1810–1820, illustrates the finesse and sensitivity of Cantonese export paintings intended for the European market. Two young women, closely embracing, embody the then-fashionable sentimental theme of female friendship or ideal sisterhood, so prevalent in late 18th-century European painting and engraving.

The workshops of Canton interpreted European engravings imported from London or Paris—particularly those after Adam Buck, Angelica Kauffman, or Cipriani—with remarkable virtuosity, adapting them to the tastes of Western patrons. These portraits of friends, sisters, or confidantes reflect the rise of an intimate and moral iconography, mirroring a society sensitive to domestic virtues and private affection.

The reverse glass painting technique involves painting directly onto the back of a glass plate, beginning with the highlights and details before finishing with the background. Here, the artist has created a blue background painted directly onto the glass, surrounding the composition with a small oval gold border: a subtle invention that simulates a frame and highlights the soft hues of the face and fabrics. This blue, uncommon in Chinese reverse glass paintings—where black backgrounds predominate—lends the work a tender and luminous atmosphere.

The whole has remained in its original gilt frame with fine beading and is in very good condition: the painting has never been removed, and the original background is perfectly preserved.

Through its refinement and delicate subject matter, this work eloquently illustrates the encounter between the European taste for sentimental portraiture and the technical excellence of Chinese export painters active in Canton at the beginning of the 19th century — a unique artistic dialogue at the heart of the art trade between East and West.