Jenny Banton

• BA (Hons) History and Archaeology
• Feminising the Orient: The Use of Chinese Wallpaper in 18th and 19th English Country Houses

My project explores the relationship between orientalism and femininity in 18th and 19th century Britain using Chinese wallpapers as a medium to illustrate this link. As a starting point I am using a catalogue of wallpapers displayed in National Trust properties throughout England to determine how Chinese wallpaper designs were adapted to the expectations of Western consumers. The assumption of the Orient as a ‘feminised’ place is suggested through the design motifs and placement of the papers in ‘domestic’ private spaces. London-based wallpaper sellers also marketed the wallpaper specifically to women via business trade cards, therefore, contributing to the overall association of women and the Orient. The central aim of the project is to ask how far the Orient was ‘feminised’ for, and by, the elite female consumer.

Funding source: Newcastle University

Project supervisor: Dr Jane Webster