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Introduction

Beauty in Hand

The Art of the Fan
June 1 - August 18, 1990

Used as simple tools, the first fans provided a cooling breeze, stirred up fires, or winnowed grains. These fans, probably made of leaves or plaited grasses, were in use throughout Asia, Southeast Asia, Egypt, and Ancient Greece and Rome. The nineteenth century Chinese example of a plaited palm-leaf fan in this gallery is descended from these early fans, as shown by its resemblance to the fan held by the Greek tanagra figure, also in this gallery.

Eventually the fan's decorative possibilities were discovered, and in this more elegant form it became associated with people of rank and status. Intricate fans decorated with feather mosaics were used for ceremonial purposes by the ruling Aztecs and Incas of Central and South America, while in China and Japan rigid and folding fans, painted by leading artists, became objects of connoisseurship. Rulers in India preferred the peacock-feather fan whose "thousand eyes" symbolized constant vigilance over the kingdom.

At the end of the fifteenth century, Europe was introduced to South American and Asian fans as a result of the discoveries of Columbus and the opening of the East to the China trade. The fan's great beauty and luxury made it a much sought-after status symbol. Feather fans and, later, folding fans were seen in the hands of many of Europe' s monarchs and aristocracy. The fan became a noticeable favorite of Queen Elizabeth I, who appreciated the fact that it helped to accentuate the beauty of her hands, of which she was very proud. She is often portrayed holding a white ostrich-feather fan; a descendant of the first feather fans brought back by Columbus, it also acted as a symbol of England's growth as a sea power.

At the same time feather fans were introduced into Europe by Columbus, the first Asian folding fans entered Italy via the ships of the early Portuguese traders with the East, who enjoyed Papal trade concessions. The folding fans of the East quickly became popular throughout Italy and soon spread through the rest of Europe, reaching England by the beginning of the sixteenth century. By this time the fan had become a treasured fashion accessory used by the aristocracy throughout Europe.

Selected Objects

European

Brisé fan, 1880-1900

French

Fan, ca. 1860

Thomas Wilson Dorr

fan, ca. 1845

Late Coastal culture Peruvian

fan, 1000-1500 CE

French

Fan box, ca. 1871

American

Folding fan and box, ca. 1871

Edmund Soper Hunt, designer

Fan, ca. 1868

Japanese

Fan, ca. 1896
No Image Available

French

Fan, ca. 1860

Théophile Alexandre Steinlen

Chemins de fer de l'Ouest, 1900

American

Brisé fan, ca. 1880

John W. Green

Fan, 1892

Stefano Della Bella, designer

An Oval Fan Containing an Italian Rebus on the Subject of Fortune, 1600s

Unknown artist

Fan, 1855-1905

French

Fan, early 1700s

Faucon, manufacturer

Brisé fan, ca. 1900

Katsushika Taito II

Landscape, 1840s

Hintzman & Co., manufacturer

fan, ca. 1880

Chinese

fan box, early 1800s
No Image Available

Unknown artist

folding fan; fan box, 1800-1825

German

Folding fan, 1750-1799

French

Fan, ca. 1860

Attributed to Zhang Xuan

Woman on a Horse, 1800s

French

Brisé fan, ca. 1840

French

Folding fan, ca. 1871

John W. Green

folding fan, 1892

Dutch

Folding fan, 1750-1799

Stefano Della Bella, designer

An Oval Fan Containing an Italian Rebus on the Subject of Love, 1600s

French

Folding fan, ca. 1810

French

folding fan, ca. 1905
No Image Available

Thomas Wilson Dorr

fan, ca. 1845
No Image Available

Gilbert Associates, manufacturer

fan, 1988

English French

Folding fan, ca. 1805-1810

French

Folding fan, ca. 1770

French

Fan, ca. 1900
No Image Available

French

Fan Design, ca. 1800

Attributed to Tang Di

Landscape with Two Pines, 1300s

After Alfred-Émile-Léopold-Joseph-Victor Stevens

Mother and Child in an Interior, 1800s

American

Fan, ca. 1920

European

Brisé fan, ca. 1810

Martha Weatherbee

folding fan, ca. 1900

Jacques Villon

folding fan, 1904
No Image Available

French

folding fan; fan box, ca. 1905

French

Brisé fan, ca. 1800

Austrian

Portrait of Marie Antoinette, late 1700s

French

Brisé fan, early 1900s
No Image Available

French

Vues d' Auvergne (fan design), late 1700s

Chinese

Feather fan, mid 1800s

Greek

statue; sculpture, 300-250 BCE

Chinese

Folding fan, mid 1800s

American Shaker

fan, 1800s

George Keiswetter

Brisé fan, ca. 1890
No Image Available

European

Brisé fan, ca. 1880

European

Brisé fan, ca. 1866

English

Fan, 1790-1800

European

Folding Fan, ca. 1860

Japanese

Folding fan, ca. 1876

French

Fan, ca. 1780

French

Folding fan, ca. 1780

French

Folding fan, ca. 1860

French

Brisé fan, 1830-1840

English French

Fan, ca. 1900

S. Lévy, manufacturer

Fan, ca. 1898

Utagawa Hiroshige

Sparrow and Bamboo (Take ni suzume), 1840's

London Ptg. & Litho. Co., manufacturer

fan, ca. 1880

Chinese

folding fan, early 1800s

Joseph Paelinck

Frederica Wilhelmina, Queen of the Netherlands, 1817

S. Lévy, manufacturer

Nosegay fan, ca. 1898

More objects +

Exhibition Checklist

Beauty in Hand : The Art of the Fan

June 1 - August 18, 1990
View Checklist PDF

RISD Museum

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