Canton School, China, mid-19th century

Canton School, China, mid-19th century.
"Landscapes".
Set of four oil paintings on canvas.
On the reverse of each painting is a red stamp stating "Nam Cheong Painter" and a label from the shipper "André Cheneaux & Fils".
Old restorations on the craquelures and wear on the gilt wood frames.
Measurements: 35 x 29,5 cm (with frames).

Set consisting of four landscapes depicting maritime and harbor scenes of the Pearl River Delta region, identifiable respectively as "The nine-story pagoda at Whampoa", "The entrance to a temple on the waterfront", "The fort of Dahangjiao" and "A junk in the sea".

Nam Cheong is one of the few identified China Trade artists. It is assumed that he had a studio in Whampoa in the 1850s, as many of his known works depict the Whampoa pagoda and its surroundings. A painter of ships and harbor scenes, Nam Cheong used a distinctive color palette. His paintings are stylistically identified by the pink and red tones of distant clouds and a gentle sea with a soft play of light in the foreground. Some of his paintings are signed or stamped on the reverse, but most are stylistically identifiable. In the 1860s, Namcheong opened a studio in Hong Kong on Queen's Road. The sign for his studio can be identified on the second floor of an elegant building in a photograph taken by local photographer Afong Lai in the late 1860s, which reads "Nam Cheong de Whampoa, Portrait & Landscape Painter & c. No.70.