H. Blanchard, painting on wood with relief decoration in a Japanese style featuring birds, 19th century

  

Decorated with wading birds and other birds, as well as water lilies, all in relief with mother-of-pearl inlays in a Japonese style on a black background, beautifully painted with stylized and cheerful flowers. There is a great sense of poetry in this work, blending reality and imagination. There is also much life and peace in this natural setting. The birds and water lilies are simply magnificent.

I believe this work was born from the skill and imagination of a true artist. Restoration will be needed on one of the wading birds, as well as on a flower whose relief part is missing (see the very last photo). The painting is very beautiful as it is, but it is clear that with a little cleaning it would be even more vibrant, especially the iridescent parts in the birds' plumage which are slightly darkened by dust trapped in the reliefs.

I barely dusted it on purpose.