All things old China - books, anecdotes, stories, podcasts, factoids & ramblings from the author Paul French
English artist Edward Roper Stapleton Sandys (1845-1909) best known for his work in New Zealand but who visited Hong Kong- ‘Shau-Ki-Wan’ (Shaukeiwan) and Victoria Peak, both c.1880s
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A Bank of China branch, Shenyang, I photographed in August 2004. Housed in a fantastic modernist building.
The former site of the Fengtian Automatic Telephone Exchange Building is located at No. 34 Taiyuan Street, Heping District, Shenyang City, and was built in 1928. Designed in 1927 by the Civil Engineering Department of the former Kwantung Government’s Internal Affairs Bureau, the three-story reinforced concrete structure was listed as an immovable cultural relic of Shenyang City in 2004 and upgraded to a protected cultural relic unit of Shenyang City in 2008, with a designated protection area and construction control zone.
The building’s facade is divided into three sections with dense vertical lines, blending Western retro architecture with traditional Chinese architectural features, while retaining some Western decorative patterns. It belongs to the Japanese modern architectural style.
In 2024, the building was converted into a hotel. The conversion process followed the relevant requirements for cultural relic protection. It’s not the Jianli Guji Hotel.
Thanks to everyone who came out to Hatchards on Piccadilly last night to hear myself and Frances Wood on The Last Emperor (and Empress) of China, and to Hatchards for organising tickets, books, wine. If you happen to be passing their lovely store they have signed copies too…
Another quick post from the Gwen John retrospective now on at M2 in Edinburgh. Japonisme influences in 1920s Paris – Gwen John, “The Japanese Doll”, c.1920, Oil on canvas. A still life set against the same backdrop of the artist’s Paris studio room.
In a letter to Rodin written around 1908, John described walking to ‘a certain shop on the Boulevard Montparnasse… where they have Japanese prints in the windows and dolls and all kinds of other Japanese things. When I go for a walk I always go there to look in the windows.’
On loan from Amguedfa Cymru (Welsh Museums).
Hey Hong Kong – my new book The Last Emperor of China: Twilight of the Forbidden City is now available in all branches of Bookazine. It’s their Book of the Week and there’s 10% off with their B+Rewards loyalty scheme….
A visit to Modern 2 in Edinburgh and the Gwen John exhibition, Strange Beauties (until 4/1/27).
John (1876-1939), the sister of Augustus John , studied at the Slade under Henry Tonks and then under Whistler in Paris. I wrote recently about Whistler’s appreciation of Chinese objets and Japanese art for the South China Morning Post reviewing the Whistler retrospective at London’s Tate (which ends incidentally on September 27). Click here to read.
John adopted Whistler’s appreciation of Japanese art and attempted to replicate it making her sketches, ‘definite and clean like Japanese drawings.’ Here, as an example given in the M2 exhibition, is “Self Portrait, Nude”, Sketching, graphite pencil on paper from c.1910
“We are delighted to welcome authors Paul French and Frances Wood to Hatchards to discuss:
The Last Emperor of China:Twilight of the Forbidden City
Step into the otherworldly splendour of the Forbidden City, its red walls and golden rooftops shimmering at the heart of Peking…
In the early 1920s, China’s boy ruler Puyi and his child bride Wanrong were sequestered within the ancient citadel: a city-within-a-city, a haven prohibited to all except the imperial family and its scheming courtiers, fawning servants and corrupt eunuchs. An emperor without an empire, Puyi did not know from one day to the next whether he would experience restoration or assassination. Two years later, the couple was expelled into eternal exile, bringing an end to the centuries-old Manchu dynasty.
This extraordinary scenario has captivated us for generations – but we have not known the full story. Now, bestselling historian Paul French draws upon previously unpublished sources, including memoirs, diaries and letters, to take us deep inside the hidden world of Puyi and Wanrong and the cast of colourful characters that surrounded them. What emerges is a sweeping tale of tradition and revolution, of duty and intrigue – and a young married couple facing a hostile world. It is a mesmerising portrait of a dying regime: the final days of Imperial China as they have never been seen before.”
Wednesday, September 9 2026 – 6.30pm
To RSVP and more details click here
