Porcelain

Sources

Tang Pottery. The strong economy and effective government of the Tang era (618-907), coupled with the Tang dynasty’s openness to foreign influences, stimulated the development of porcelain as early as the seventh century or as late as the early ninth century. The kilns of the Yue region produced greenish-colored porcelain well known for its hardness and craftsmanship. Tang porcelain from the kilns of Xing is white and known for its strength and elegant shapes. The Tang San Cat (The Three Colors of Tang), well-known lead glazes developed in the Tang period, allowed the craftsman to decorate porcelain and other ceramics in yellows (ranging to amber and brown), green, and blue. Tang figurines decorated with Tang San Cai are colorful, and their shapes are rounded, natural, and dynamic.

Song and Yuan Porcelain. During the Song (960-1279) and Yuan (1279-1368) dynasties, economic growth and the flourishing of the arts established a solid foundation for the development of the porcelain industry. Official and unofficial management systems efficiently organized craftsmen through a highly developed division of labor, which allowed the quality and quantity of porcelain and other ceramics to reach new heights. Combining art, craftsman-ship, and utility, many porcelain products appeared in various elegant shapes, bright new colors, and beautiful decorations. Song porcelain in green, white, and black came from many production centers. Ruyao (Ru Kiln), located in and around Linru County of Henan Province, is known for its green porcelain, and the translucent porcelain produced by the official kilns there is exquisite and elegant. The “shrimp green” of Ruyao is among the best green porcelains. The Guanyao (Official Kiln) was established by the Song court in Kaifeng and moved to Hangzhou during the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279). The porcelain produced by the Official Kiln has a fine, smooth, even glaze in shades of green and milk white. Its thickness creates a translucent quality. The craftsmen at the Longquanyao (Dragon Fountain Kiln) in Longquan County, Zhejiang Province, were masters of technique and produced porcelain carved in relief and glazed with beautiful colors, mostly shades of green. Craftsmen at another kiln in Longquan County, the Geyao (Brothers’ Kiln), invented the popular crackle-glazed porcelain. Jianyao (Strong Kiln) of Chidun Village in Shuiji County, Fujian Province, was the center for black porcelain. The earth there contains a lot of iron, which turns porcelain made from it black during the process of firing and cooling. The black porcelain produced at this site—in patterns with names such as such as Tuhao (Rabbit Hair), Zheguban (Partridge Speckle), and Yinxingban (Silver Star Spots)—had thick, translucent glazes. In contrast, Dingyao (Ding Kiln) in Ding County, Hebei Province, was famous for its white porcelain, which is extremely refined and decorated with various designs and methods of carving.

Jingdezhenyao from the Yuan to the Ming Eras. Jingdezhenyao (Jingdezhen Kiln) at Jingdezhen in Jiangxi developed into a major porcelain center during the Yuan dynasty, and official and nonofficial (or folk) kilns sprang up all over the town. Jingdezhen porcelain is characterized by its elegant, exquisite shapes and beautiful glazes. By the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), Jingdezhen porcelain glazes

came in some fifty-seven colors. Craftsmen there also perfected true-white porcelain and a red porcelain, breakthroughs in the history of Chinese ceramics. They also developed methods of underglaze and overglaze painting, which allowed craftsmen to add many more layers of color to porcelain.

Sources

Craig Chinas, Art in China (Oxford & New York: Oxford University Press, 1997).

Lan Pu, Jingdezhen taolu (Daibei, China: Eastern Culture Press, 1984).

Rosemary E. Scott, ed., The Porcelains of Jingdezhen (London: Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, 1993).

Laurence Sickman and Alexander Soper, The Art and Architecture of China (New York: Penguin, 1984).

Michael Sullivan, The Arts of China, fourth edition, expanded and revised (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999).

Wang Qisen, Zhongguoyishu tongshi (Jiangsu: Jiangsu Arts Press, 1999).