Sintered Bond

By AN XINZHU

The launch ceremony of the 2022 Jingdezhen Yangjingpiao Ceramic Art Exhibition

Ceramic art event in Jingdezhen promotes friendship

Art has always been the most charming part of a country’s image, and this is fully evidenced by Jingdezhen, a city in Jiangxi Province famous for porcelain making for thousands of years.Currently, more than 5,000 foreign artists are living in the small city, which is known as China’s porcelain capital. They design and produce porcelain articles and sell them all over the world.They are called yangjingpiao, literally meaning foreign migrants in Jingdezhen.

The 2022 Jingdezhen Yangjingpiao Ceramic Art Exhibition and the Dialogue Between Chinese and Foreign Ceramic Artists opened in Hanxi Village,Fuliang County of Jingdezhen in Jiangxi Province on 9 November. It was jointly hosted by the International Cooperation Department of China Federation of Literary and Art Circles (CFLAC), the Centre for Europe and Africa (China Today) under China International Communications Group (CICG), Jiangxi Provincial Federation of Literary and Art Circles, and the Publicity Department of Jingdezhen Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

Under the theme of Reinforcing People-to-People Connections and Building a Cultural Bridge for International Exchanges on ceramic art, the event is aimed to facilitate communication and integration between ceramic cultures in China and other countries,promote friendship, and strengthen bonds between their peoples. More than 100 officials, diplomats, and artists across the world attended the event.

In his speech delivered to the event, CICG Vice President Lu Cairong said that since 2012, the CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping at its core has paid greater attention to cultural progress. It set forth new requirements and new plans for building China’s cultural confidence and strength in the report to the 20th CPC National Congress, which was held in October. As home to a number of renowned ceramic kilns, masterpieces,and artists, Jingdezhen is a pivotal place for the heritage of China’s ceramic art. Today people gather in this city again to review and pay homage to its long history of cultural exchanges, Lu said.

CICG is an international communication organisation that shoulders the mission of introducing the CPC and China to the rest of the world. It has been committed to promoting mutual learning between civilisations and increasing the international appeal of Chinese culture.Lu compared its function with that of camel caravans and sailing boats in ancient times, which is to open up channels for exchanges of objects and ideas as well as mutual learning between peoples worldwide.

Porcelain and ceramic have been cultural symbols of the Chinese nation since ancient times. It was through them that the rest of the world knew of and began to understand China.

Cultural significance of ceramics

Dong Zhanshun, director general of the CFLAC International Cooperation Department, highlighted the important role ceramic art plays in the global spread of Chinese culture. The gathering of artists from all over the world in Jingdezhen for mutual learning and exchanges echoes the remark of Chinese President Xi Jinping that “civilisations become richer and more colourful through exchanges and mutual learning.”The CFLAC International Cooperation Department has endeavoured to create opportunities for exchanges and cooperation between Chinese and foreign artists and to build platforms for foreign artists to better understand China and Chinese culture. He hoped that the foreign artists in Jingdezhen develop their careers in the city,produce works that will reach all parts of the world, and tell stories of cultural exchanges and mutual learning through their own experience.

Sergey Manasaryan, ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to China, gave a speech via video link. He said that porcelain and ceramic have been cultural symbols of the Chinese nation since ancient times. It was through them that the rest of the world knew of and began to understand China. As a key supplier of commodities traded along the ancient Maritime Silk Road, Jingdezhen has made indelible contributions to cultural exchanges between the East and the West.The ambassador hoped the event would provide a new opportunity to revitalise ceramic art, make it more popular, promote the adoption of new techniques, and advance its innovative development.

Ye Qing, president of Jiangxi Provincial Federation of Literary and Art Circles, said that his federation has explored elements of the regional culture of Jiangxi - including ceramic art - and has been active in international cultural exchanges in recent years. With the support of CFLAC and CICG, it organised the 2021 and 2022 “China Today Arts Week,” which included exhibitions on decorative patterns of porcelain from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) and works by masters of ceramic intangible cultural heritage. These activities have increased the appeal of Jiangxi’s culture abroad.

Open to artists

According to Deputy Mayor Jiang Minqiang, Jingdezhen has been a city without walls since ancient times, open to artists from various countries who are interested in China’s ceramic culture. They come here to study, work,and live, drawing inspiration from this millennium-old ceramic hub, as well as contributing to the innovative development and spread of ceramic art. A scholar in the Qing Dynasty described the bustling Jingdezhen as “artisans come here from all directions, and their products are sent to all parts of the world.” This scenario has been playing out to date.

According to Lu Pinchang, vice president of Jingdezhen Ceramic University, tens of thousands of jingpiao - literally migrants to Jingdezhen - are chasing their dreams in this city, which is known as an international hub of handicrafts and folk arts. This has made Jingdezhen one of the top four clusters of new arts along with Beijing, Shanghai, and Hengdian(in Zhejiang Province).

Lu Cairong (centre) talks with an American ceramic artist at the exhibition

Attendees of the 2022 Jingdezhen Yangjingpiao Ceramic Art Exhibition

Allan Denis Naymark is a jingpiao from the US. Out of interest in Chinese porcelain, he began to learn this art since the age of eight. Naymark was amazed by Jingdezhen when he first visited the city in 2013, and moved here in the summer of 2015. He cited the long history of its ceramic sector, the traditional techniques that have been passed on to date, and a complete industrial chain as the city’s main appeal for ceramic artists like him. Naymark runs a studio in Jingdezhen,and plans to create some large-sized works there. CA