China wallpaper graces Irish home
Hand-painted images central to Westport restoration project, Julian Shea reports in County Mayo, Ireland.
Aspectacular room-covering Chinese artwork is undergoing restoration as one of the centerpieces of renovation in one of Ireland’s most historic ancient houses.
The site of Westport House in County Mayo boasts a history dating to the 1500s, having been the home of legendary Irish pirate Grace O’Malley, who led rebellions against the English and was once regarded as the embodiment of the spirit of Irish independence.
The current house, whose founders were related to O’Malley by marriage, was built in 1730. After centuries as the seat of the Browne family, it has been owned since January 2017 by local businessmen the Hughes brothers, whose family firm Portwest sells outdoor clothing and work safety wear in more than 130 countries. Last year, they secured a government grant of 20.2 million euros ($21.2 million) — the largest given to a single project — toward a 75.5 million euros restoration plan to make the house and its gardens a tourist attraction at the heart of the local community.
One of Westport House’s most famous features is the Chinese room, with 200-year-old handpainted wallpaper covering the entire room as one continuous piece of art. As part of the restoration, the paper has been taken down to undergo treatment to return it to its full glory.
“The restoration is a big project but it’ll be worth it because the paper is incredible,” says the house’s chief guide, Kathryn Connolly.
“First we’re making the whole house watertight, then there’s lots to do because of the damp and water ingress.
“There were holes in the stonework big enough to put your hand in, so in April 2021, conservator David Skinner and his team spent a week taking down the paper. It’s in storage upstairs, laid flat, on breathable material to let air run through it and dry it, and to prevent it getting mouldy.”
The last residents of Westport House were Jeremy Browne and his family, who moved out in 1969. When he died, it was left to his five daughters, who fell victim to the financial crash of 2008, and after years in legal limbo, in December 2015, it was put up for sale.
“It’s the gem of the town, but for that year it was on the market, someone could have bought it as a private residence and we’d all have been shut out,” says Connolly. “But since the Hughes brothers, whose grandfather was once a tenant farmer in a cottage on the estate, bought it, there’s been no looking back.”
Skinner, who is overseeing the paper restoration, says the way Chinese wallpaper is made ensured it had lasted well.
“Western paper is usually made out of linen and cotton fibers but Chinese paper is made from tree bark fibers, certain varieties of mulberry, and is in many ways better,” he says. “It comprises a very thin top layer, almost like cigarette paper, with the design painted on it, then two more coarse layers behind it, which made it strong and easy to handle and apply to the walls.”
The contrast between repeatedpattern Western wallpaper and the hand-painted Chinese artwork would have been “startling” to 19thcentury European eyes, he says, and the robustness of the paper ensured its colors are still vivid.
“There wasn’t a sudden calamitous event that spoiled the paper, it was just time taking its toll,” he explains.
Once removed, the paper undergoes a carefully controlled washing before the old backing papers are removed, and once dry, replaced. There is one section over the fireplace where the design has faded, but Skinner says it would be wrong to try to fill in any gaps.
“That area will go through the same relining process but it will be left rather washed-out looking, not reconstructed,” he says, adding that it would be fascinating to have a Chinese social historian view the finished restoration to explain the significance of its details.
The room dates to the 1770 expansion of the house.
Connolly says clues found in restoration suggested the paper was from around 1790, but not put up until around 1820.
“At that time, anything Chinese was fashionable, and to have a Chinese room would have been a great way of showing your wealth. There are no repetitions in the design, everything is different, and every detail has messages in it, about things like the social and economic status of the characters, so it will be incredible to see it in all its glory.”
In 2018, as part of a visit hosted by the Mayo Local Enterprise Office, He Tiancai, vice-governor of Shanxi province, visited Westport House and was delighted to see a dresser from his own province in the Chinese room.
“He couldn’t believe it, he said he’d not seen anything like it since his childhood back home,” says Connolly.
In around a year’s time, it is hoped that other visitors will be able to see what the vice-governor saw.
“There’s lots to be done, so it may take longer, but we hope it can be back up in 12 months,” Connolly says. “The house already feels and smells different, which is encouraging.
“We hope that by 2026 the house will be done and we can kick on with the grounds and the Grainne O’Malley visitor experience we’re going to build. It’s a massive project, not just for Westport but for the whole region. But it will definitely be worth it.”