The (potter's) wheel of life

• Source: Global Times
• [10:47 July 14 2010]
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Part of Gao Yifeng's blue and white collection.

By Liu Mengyue

Besides its obvious functionality, the craft of ceramics has long been favored for purely decorative purposes. And its long cultivation has seen pottery studied avidly by historians searching for tangible clues to any number of long vanished cultures. And while aged or antique ceramics are still highly popular, artists in Shanghai, at least, are giving a new lease of life to this most ancient of crafts.

Perhaps China's most famous ceramics are the "blue and white wares" largely pro-duced today in Jingdezhen, famed as the country's "porcelain capital." While depicting a range of subjects such as cranes and dragons, the most popular theme has traditional-ly been flowers. (The Chinese word for this type of pottery is qinghua - literally "blue flowers"). Ceramacist Gao Yifeng draws on this tradition in his work at the Pottery Workshop based in Xintiandi. "But I like to apply a freer style with the blue glaze," he told the Global Times.

In a series of pieces which he calls The Transformation of Forms, the ceramic glaze features a variety of abstract designs: some resemble the flow of water, others a range of mountains, while some suggest swimming tadpoles. But they all share one factor: the use of water and ink in the drawings. "When I am creating in my studio, I often find myself in a place of transition; and it's a place where I feel influenced by traditional water and ink which is the very essence of Chinese calligraphy," said Gao. "Though I am able to consciously decide what shapes I would like the glaze to be, it always turns out to surprise me. I can never get two pieces to look exactly the same and that's the most fun part of the job." And just as Chinese water and ink paintings traditionally focus on nature, Gao is similarly influenced by the natural world. An aerial view of the landscape during a flight in the US, for example, inspired him to replicate undulating mountains and winding rivers in another collection of works.