Chiang Yee at the Betty Joel Gallery, 1936

Posted: September 17th, 2021 | No Comments »

In January and February 1936 the artist Chiang Yee had his first solo exhibition in the UK – ‘Exhibition of Modern Chinese Pictures and Fans’, which included Chiang’s paintings and some Qing Dynasty fans. The exhibition was held at the Betty Joel Gallery, 25 Knightsbridge near Hyde park Corner.

It was a fitting venue for Chiang. Betty Joel was originally Mary Stewart Lockhart, the Hong Kong-born daughter of the British diiplomat in East Asia James Stewart Lockhart. A portion of her youth was spent in Weihai. She married a Royal Navy officer called Joel and so Betty Joel. In England she became a noted textiles and interior designer in part creating the art-deco interiors of the 1930s, with elements of Chinoiserie and having rugs made in Tianjin for sale in England (I’ll post some rugs another day).

Anyway, here is her shop, workshop and gallery at 25 Knightsbridge where Chiang exhibited.

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