WORKSHOP: Chinoiserie Wallpaper
SEPTEMBER 2023

Last weekend was Heritage Weekend and I was invited by Erfgoedcel Brugge (Heritage Bruges) to give a workshop related to the Chinoiserie Wallpaper you see pictured here.

This Chinoiserie wallpaper was discovered in a 18th century house in the center of Bruges (B). Now known as Hof Sebrechts, named after its last private owner professor-doctor J. Sebrechts (1885-1948) who ran a clininc there, the foundations and its gardens do actually date back to the 15th century as it was part of a convent.

To give people a better understanding how these first wallpapers were made I decided to let them 'redo' a figure selected from the design. The 18th century production process was a combination of templates (stencil) and block printing. I digitalised the figure, made it up in layers (so people can imagine how it is build up) and then had a bespoke woodblock made in India.
Since we had little time, we did 1 template (which they had to cut out by hand!) and paint the other colors. Then final, the black lines were printed with the block, so you see the design come to life.

Besides the Chinoiserie wallpaper some amazing handpainted walls (oil on canvas) and local made imitation gold leather are/were decorating this property. Sadly the latter have already been removed by the current owners.

The workshop was a real succes and the +-30 participants all went home with a beautiful piece of wallpaper. Because of this succes and the big demand, I will schedule a more extensive Chinoiserie workshop in my studio in fall. Follow my socials to stay informed or drop me an e-mail and I’ll add you to my mailing list!