mug

Title

mug

Creator

unknown Chinese

metalworker; enameler

Chinese

People's Republic of China [Zhongguo]

Date

c. 1972

Type

drinking vessel

work

Medium

porcelain enamel

metal

pressing; high firing

Extent

10 cm (4 inches) [diameter at mouth]; 10 cm (4 inches) [height]

Identifier

SC-17-02

SC-17-02.jpg

Rights

To request permission to publish or reproduce this work, please contact the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art.

Description

The white ground is decorated with a transferred still life image of two ping pong rackets, red and green, with ribbons on the handles, and a white ping pong ball on a green surface representing a ping pong table. Colorful flowers and green leaves surrounding the rackets add a festive note. A blue inscription: "Friendship" [in Chinese characters - Youyi] appears above the paddles. This theme celebrates what was known in foreign [i.e. Western] circles as the "ping pong diplomacy" of 1971, which preceded the visit of Richard Nixon, President of the United States of America to the People's Republic of China and the establishment of US-PRC diplomatic relations.

pictorial mark: "The Masses Construction Brand, Shenyang Enamel Factory" [in Chinese characters - Dahzong Jianshe pai Shenyang shi tangci chang].

on bottom of mug

This object was acquired by the donor at Panjiayuan Market, Beijing on September 11, 2005.

Subject

cultural artifacts; propaganda

Source

Donor's notes

Publisher

Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art. State University of New York at New Paltz (New Paltz, New York, United States)

Study Collection. Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art

Relation

http://hvvacc.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/sdma/id/5111

Coverage

Cultural Revolution

modern Chinese styles and periods