Anyone know Chinese revolutionary art?

[Dottore]

I visited China almost 30 years ago, before it was fashionable to do so, and bought a silk wall hanging of Mao that just blew me away. It's the classic "Great Helmsman" pose, but done entirely in handwoven black and white silk threads, and pretty fecking amazing at that.

Someone saw this at my house a few weeks ago and asked if I would sell it. I said I might, because it doesn't really speak to me any more, nor fit in all my other stuff. Since then I have had daily emails asking me to "name" my price. The person that is interested a good friend of a very good friend, so I want to be fair, but have no idea where to start.

Anyone know a source for getting a value on something like this? (I have been to China numerous times since and have kept an eye out for similar stuff but saw only very crude (by comparison) rubbish.)

[The Gaijin]

I will take a great leap here, (pun intended..) and tell you it going to worth something one day. I bet it has value today, but in a few more years will be worth a lot more.

Hand woven silk from that era - some old newly rich cadre is going to be nostalgic for the old days one day..

[javadog]

Ask the friend what he thinks it's worth. Obviously, he wants it. Judging from the frequency of his emails, he may think it is worth a fair bit.

Sit on his offer a while. There are lots of things going up in value right now, in spite of the economy. I've been surprised at the values of some things I have considered selling recently. Some of my "estimates" have been off by half, or more. Take your time to figure it out.

You could always seek an opinion from an auction house that deals in things like this. I've used their services on paintings before.

JR

[javadog]

2 minutes with Google found this:




Here's the description from the site:

Item No.1S0026 Museum Piece
Name: 200cmHeight big sizes Mao Cotton Piece
Material: Cotton
Size(cm): W130 x H200cm
Size(inch): 51.19"W x 78.75"H
Price: US$ 1,200.00

Obviously it is different from yours but maybe it's a starting point.

JR

[MRM]

Revolutionary Chinese art is an interesting market. Mao is undergoing a kind of resurgance in China right now and has been for a few years. Anyone under about 40 doesn't remember the Cultural Revolution, so he is seen as a combination pop culture figure, secular diety, or historical curiosity. I suspect the playas who put Mao air fresheners on their rear view mirrors have some abivelence toward the Great Helmsman.

Because of that, art of him is everywhere. Especially hanging from rear view mirrors. Stamps, coins, etc. are all being plastered with his image, where he was kind of invisible in the 80s and early 1990s.

China is a huge country, so there is a lot of stuff that survived even the Cultural Revolution, but even so, comparatively little revolutionary art survived. Most of the Little Red Books and propaganda got tossed very quickly when it was no longer mandatory. I tried to get copies of the Little Red Book in the early and mid 90s and couldn't do better than finding reprints of his collected works (4 volumes, if I remember correctly). Two years ago his Little Red Book was being sold at every tourist kiosk in the country. It was indeed little and red. I think they were reprinted in Vietnam where the labor rates are cheaper.

Anyway, I suspect that there is a market for it, either with recent Chinese immigrants or back on the mainland. In fact, with the pop culture appeal of Mao now, this might be the time to sell. Or it could be a cultural icon that will increase in value. One or the other, right? What it's worth depends a little on where it came from and who did it. Are there any markings on it? Any idea who the artist was? Where exactly did you buy it? Even knowing which street market you bought it from might give some indication of its value. If it turns out to be from an artist who is now well known, it could be worth a small fortune. If it was handmade by a peasant out of love for the Great Leader, it could still be worth a lot as a piece of Chinese folk art. If it was produced in a factory, it's the equivilent of a limited edition poster and wouldn't be worth nearly as much. The fact that it is silk, especially from that era, suggests that it is a special piece.

Very interesting piece. I've always had a fondness for Soviet era "Socialist Realism".

[Dottore]

Thanks for the replies.

I will keep looking. If anyone knows of a dealer in this kind of art, I would be very interested.

I paid what was then a fair amount of money for it 30 years ago, and know enough about textiles etc to know this is an exceptional piece.

But as you—MRM—correctly say, 99.9% of this kind of art that you find today is contemporary and crude by comparison (ie., nostalgia ware) to the stuff produced in the 1960's. So it's a very narrow market.

[Dottore]

Originally Posted by javadog

2 minutes with Google found this:

Funny website.

Even with the small pictures you can tell that everything is fake—ie., modern. Take a look at the "cultural revolution" canvas army bags with the picture of Mao stenciled on them. Priceless!

[javadog]

Originally Posted by Dottore

Funny website.

Even with the small pictures you can tell that everything is fake—ie., modern. Take a look at the "cultural revolution" canvas army bags with the picture of Mao stenciled on them. Priceless!

Hey,

It's all made in China, you don't expect quality, now do you?

Seriously, I have no idea what the thing is worth. If it were embroidered, I'd expect it to fetch a good price. If it's printed, probably not as much. If it's woven, I'd ask myself how they did that back then...

JR

[Dottore]

Originally Posted by javadog

If it's woven, I'd ask myself how they did that back then...

JR

On a loom. Probably by a child because the fingers are smaller. Much like some of the silk carpets that still come out Turkey today.