Lantern Brocade: A Square Within a Square

A detail of a lantern brocade pattern partition. The basic unit is a square or rectangular outer frame, with the four corners cut by short diagonal mullions, forming a smaller square or octagonal grid in the center, with the overall outline resembling a small lantern; these units repeat regularly and connect to each other. Because of the cut corners, the pattern is softer than a purely square grid, but still rational. The mullions are thin, dark walnut solid wood; the small central grid sometimes embeds a circular jade, copper piece, or frosted glass as an embellishment, appearing only once every few units. The entire partition is full height. Avoid: making every unit embedded with decoration to become cumbersome, making the cut corners curved, making the unit sizes inconsistent, using thick mullions.

Translated from Chinese by AI.

一片燈籠錦圖案的隔斷細部。基本單元是一個方形或長方形的外框,四角以短斜櫺切角,中央再形成一個較小的方形或八角形格眼,整體輪廓像一盞小燈籠;這些單元以規律的方式重複並彼此相連。因為有切角,圖案比純粹的方格柔和,但仍然理性。櫺條是深胡桃色的實木,斷面細;中央的小格眼有時嵌入一片圓形的玉石、銅片或磨砂玻璃作為點綴,每隔幾個單元才出現一次。整片隔斷通高。避免:讓每一個單元都嵌入裝飾變得繁瑣、把切角做成圓弧、讓單元的大小不一、使用粗壯的櫺條。