[Shunga] « Le plaisir des saveurs sans limite » Album de cinq peintures érotiques chinoises.

Album comprising 5 erotic gouaches (glue paintings) on silk. On the first page, the title and signature of the painter as well as a red stamp. While the title can be translated as: A Source of Endless Interest, or, The Pleasure of Limitless Flavors, the painter's name could not be translated. Each painting is signed with a stamp, an extremely rare condition, as these erotic productions were always anonymous for fear of censorship or possible reprisals. The rarest element being the manuscript title as well as the painter's name on the title page. This painter could therefore display his name in this pictorial genre while it was forbidden to produce such works.
Book mounted accordion-style, covered with blue brocaded silk composed of Chinese motifs. Mute beige title label sprinkled with gold. Paintings on ochre silk mounted on cardboard and bordered with beige silk. Superb condition and very fine freshness throughout, both paintings and book.
This type of representation is most often crude, in a naive style using ink and watercolor. All the paintings here are in traditional glue (which can be likened to the gouache technique) and are remarkable for their finesse and elegance. One notices a beginning of three-dimensional representation of characters and drapery, which is rarely the case in this type of production. The erotic scenes take place in richly furnished interiors. The whole follows the canons of Chinese erotic aesthetics, thus one does not see the women's feet, always shod and fitted with tiny feet. The date we give is of course approximate, the collection possibly dating from the late 19th century or a few decades after 1900.