HISTORY:
Oh My! While my wife has been handing me a LOT of her treasured English chinaware (that needs to live in a new home due to space issues) and some porcelain figurines which take up too much space in the cabinets and she now prefers to display her "other" figurines from Royal Doulton and Volkstedt.
These two figurines were made and decorated in Taiwan by a company that is reasonably well known for their production of collectibles back in the 1980's - she doesn't think they are operating any longer.
While these were Taiwanese made, they were made by hand to a very high standard and the hand decoration is of a very good quality too. No "Dresden Lace" of course, perhaps lacking a little in the finest of details but still very presentable alongside other figurines.
Why do I say "sisters"?
You see, bone china, ceramics or porcelain collecting is (for us) a very personal thing and in most cases we actually name our pieces - not names given by the creator of these works but names that we like.
These two ladies are obviously Caucasian, we feel French in ancestory, and dressed in a very similar fashion (the same pattern on the waist coat of Genevieve and the ankle length dress of Charlotte, as sisters do!
Oh, I didn't introduce the ladies ...
Genevieve is the sophisticated country "girl", probably never handled the earth in her life but she likes to dress for roaming around country meadows and loves a hat! Yee Haa!
Charlotte on the other hand is elegant and yet still enjoys a frolic in the garden picking flowers, but not for too long mind you! She dresses herself in a very elegant manner, even when walking in the meadows picking flowers in her bare feet.
Sisters bonding, enjoying the wonders of nature ... lovely
That's my wife's imagination at work for you! The new owners might like to continue this "tradition" or simply call them a couple of figurines, which seems rather boring to us.
Enough said ... let's get down to the description of each figurine.
NOTE: Both sisters are available individually ("Oh I like Genevieve but that Charlotte ... well she's a bit too prissy!" - women can be so picky!) OR purchase the two sisters together and as a "reward" for keeping their family together, an automatic discount will apply at the checkout area.
Bonus! not only do you help keep the ladies together but you save some money too
UNIART (TAIWAN) - Porcelain Hand Decorated Figurines
Produced in Taiwan
Circa 1980's period
White hard paste porcelain base material
Hand decorated although the artist(s) are not credited
Gold gilding is sparingly used on both figurines
Genevieve stands at 280mm while Charlotte is slightly shorter at 270mm, it's all in the hat that Genevieve is wearing.
Weight of either figurine is 700g
Stable flat base but with no felt added - handy to prevent the ladies sliding around on a smooth glass display cabinet shelf, we just didn't bother adding the felt.
Simple metallic "stick on" label on the underside of both ladies to identify who bought them into the world.
Let's talk a bit about each of the sisters ...
GENEVIEVE
She has the hat on, knickerbocker type pants and a White waist jacket
A happy lady with a small smile as she sits beside Charlotte on a tree stump. No shoes are worn and the feet/toes detail is reasonable but not very detailed (toe nails are not painted etc) She is holding an Orange wicker basket of meadow flowers. Love her hat with the feather in the top! It's a shame that Genevieve didn't apply any face powder! This reflected light from the camera does not do her face justice, in reality she is has much softer facial tones.
The standard of hand decoration is very high and the colouring chosen is realistic, particularly her face which is always the first thing we look at. Same as in real life, you meet someone for the first time and eye contact, already judgements are being made! Take a look at the closeup of her face, gaze and you may come to like her too ...
CONDITION:
Just lovely! There are NO cracks, repairs or restoration, crazing evident at all.
There is no discolouration at all, no stains and the colours are bright and vibrant
The most sensitive areas such as her long delicate fingers and those flower petals are UNBROKEN, there is no damage at all to this girl! Her waist length jacket is patterned in the same style as Charlotte's evening dress.
The detail in the decoration is very good but not up there with a Volkstedt piece! Little buttons on the jacket yes, but the lack of detail around her hands & feet plus the join (as viewed from the rear) between her leg and the tree stump is a bit clumsily decorated.
CHARLOTTE
She oozes elegance from head to toe, in fact she is SO overdressed to be out in the flower meadows, but that's Charlotte for you!
She also has a slightly hidden smile while sitting alongside Genevieve on a much shorter tree stump, she seems more "reserved" and not as outgoing as her sister. Wicker basket held in the crook of her right arm and she picked a couple of extra flowers which are sitting in the fold of her pale Yellow apron. Although a more reserved facial expression, she doesn't mind showing her ample bosom. Again, as with Genevieve, it's a shame that Charlotte didn't apply any face powder! This reflected light from the camera does not do her face justice, in reality she is has much softer facial tones.
The standard of hand decoration is very high and the colouring chosen being quite realistic, again we particularly like her face, this is always the first thing we look at. For most people it's the same as in real life, you meet someone for the first time and ... eye contact, already judgements are being made! Take a look at the closeup of her face, gaze and you may come to like her too ...
CONDITION:
Just lovely! Again, there are NO cracks, repairs, restoration or crazing evident at all.
There is no discolouration at all, no stains and the colours are bright and vibrant
The most sensitive areas such as her long delicate fingers and those flower petals are UNBROKEN, there is no damage at all to this girl! Her dress is full length, "Oh my goodness Charlotte, why do you wear those fancy clothes out here in the meadows?" But these ladies are "close" and they like to wear the same patterned clothing.
The detail in the decoration is very good but not up there with a Volkstedt piece! The lack of detail around her hands & feet plus the complete lack of decorative detail UNDERNEATH her dress (plain White) - a good piece of Volkstedt would never leave the works like that!
Since I have now completed taking a few photographs and describing each of the sisters, they are now separately packed in sealed clear plastic to maintain their current beautiful, clean condition.
When shipped, of course these will be well protected from the rigours of the transport companies!
