Realizing Chinese Dreams through Porcelain Artwork

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　　Craftsmen¹ of Chinese porcelain² make every effort to realize their Chinese dreams by displaying the elements of traditional Chinese culture through their delicate works of art. CRI's Zhou Heyang brings us the story.

 

　　Porcelain, also called 'fine china', featuring delicate textures³, pleasing colors, and refined sculptural techniques, was one of the earliest artworks introduced to the western world through the Silk Road.

 

　　Produced in the form of bowls, cups, tea sets, vases and jeweled cases, Chinese porcelain has been hugely popular among both Chinese and foreign customers for centuries.

 

　　This level of popularity has led to many Chinese people dedicating themselves towards making porcelain works of art.

 

　　Li Xuewu, the Chairman of the Luoyang Peony Porcelain Corporation, created particular porcelain artworks featuring patterns of Luoyang peony flowers at the end of 2009.

 

　　According to Li, it is incredibly hard for someone like himself who has no professional porcelain background to create satisfactory products; especially in the beginning.

 

　　"There are more than 1000 kinds of Luoyang peony in 9 different color variations. In order to make our products precise in color, we have to continue to adjust the color and glaze⁴ the products numerous times. For the pattern of the Luoyang Red Peony, we tried more than 1000 times before finally fixing the right color. But I'm still not satisfied even now."

 

　　It isn't only beginners who experience this kind of problem. Even for porcelain masters with professional backgrounds, working in this industry is still extremely hard.

 

　　Yang Jinlan, founder⁵ of the Miaoyin Red Porcelain Workshop, was born in Yixing, a city famous for its red porcelain products.

 

　　"When I glaze teapots, I have to stay up late. During the busy period, I can only sleep for 2 or 3 hours everyday because I must finish all the products on time. When that happens, I even contemplate⁶ quitting this career and giving up making red porcelain."

 

　　However, Yang has persisted and is still in the red porcelain industry. Now, she has a more definite goal to realize her Chinese dream via her artistic⁷ teapots.

 

　　"Shandong Province is the hometown of Confucian culture. I want to exploit my products based on this culture, and I've already made my first teapot featuring elements of Shandong culture. Although I haven't found any deficiencies in it, I still want to improve my artwork to a higher level."

 

　　Of course, mixing porcelain artworks with local Chinese cultural elements is a common idea shared by many porcelain artists. Li Xuewu also wants to introduce his beloved Luoyang peony featured within his works to more people inside and outside China.

 

　　"My goal is to learn the advantages of different porcelain artists so as to display our peonies and innovative⁸ products, and promote the culture of the region around Luoyang in the form of artwork and gifts. That's the way of realizing my Chinese dream."

 

　　This year, Li will showcase his products at many exhibitions throughout China and aboard, allowing more people to realize the beauty of Luoyang's peony culture.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Zhou Heyang.

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