For quite a long time, I confess I’ve been haunted by the mysterious image of a Chinese Equestrienne painted in the early 1920’s by Zhiying Studios in Shanghai as a promotion for PairBelles Cigarettes (from “Pair Of Belles”, also known throughout China back then as “Two Beauties Brand”). Back in the days when Shanghai was known as “The Paris of the East” as a hustling, bustling hub of commerce, this wondrous work of art selling tobacco products was commissioned and I have I found the subject matter most fascinating and compelling.

Knowing full well that in that day only the wealthier families could afford the upkeep of household pets; this image is even more remarkable since it portrays a woman of obvious good breeding and social distinction (witnessed by her stylishly bobbed hair, elegant deco period riding costume and leather crop), standing next to a magnificent mount, gazing at the artist with a twinkle in her eye and an almost imperceptible smile playing at the corners of her mouth. I inevitably find myself comparing the set of her mouth with the half smile of the Mona Lisa, and wondering what thoughts were going through her mind as she posed so serenely and confidently. Her look could almost serve as a social commentary on the times.

The mystique of this wondrous work of art is topped off with the cool stare of the horse, and the intricate brocade border with elements of the Ming and Tang dynasties woven in. Part of an unpaid rescue effort to digitally restore a quantity of vintage posters of China and Japan (1920’s-1930’s) this particular poster took over 2 weeks and 100 hours of painstaking work (parts of the border were missing as well as being faded and torn) to bring it back to the day it first appeared, carefully maintaining the intent and vision of the original artist. (Heavy handed restoration work can change and destroy the spirit imbued into art by the original artist, so great care has to be taken to not go too far.)

As the sole digital restoration artist for the project, which turned out to be the world’s largest collection of digitally restored vintage advertising posters, I was especially intrigued by this one work of art, and still wonder to this day who the model really was and what were her thoughts as she posed. I have always thought of her as the Chinese Mona Lisa. Is it just me, or can anyone else see a resemblance?

This image is one of the digitally restored masters that can be seen at The Old Orient Museum, and the direct URL is:

http://oldorientmuseum.com/two_beauties_brand_cigarettes.html

Posted by Vincent Lexington Harper, image courtesy Restored Treasures © MMII.

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