Realizing Chinese Dreams through Porcelain Artwork

　　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.

1 craftsmen   

n. 技工

参考例句：

• rugs handmade by local craftsmen 由当地工艺师手工制作的小地毯
• The craftsmen have ensured faithful reproduction of the original painting. 工匠保证要复制一幅最接近原作的画。

2 porcelain   

n.瓷；adj.瓷的，瓷制的

参考例句：

• These porcelain plates have rather original designs on them.这些瓷盘的花纹很别致。
• The porcelain vase is enveloped in cotton.瓷花瓶用棉花裹着。

3 textures   

n.手感( texture的名词复数 )；质感；口感；（音乐或文学的）谐和统一感

参考例句：

• I'm crazy about fabrics textures and colors and designs. 我喜欢各式各样的纺织物--对它的质地，色彩到花纹图案--简直是入了迷。 来自辞典例句
• Let me clear up the point about the textures. 让我明确了一点有关的纹理。 来自互联网

4 glaze   

v.因疲倦、疲劳等指眼睛变得呆滞，毫无表情

参考例句：

• Brush the glaze over the top and sides of the hot cake.在热蛋糕的顶上和周围刷上一层蛋浆。
• Tang three-color glaze horses are famous for their perfect design and realism.唐三彩上釉马以其造型精美和形态生动而著名。

5 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

6 contemplate   

vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视

参考例句：

• The possibility of war is too horrifying to contemplate.战争的可能性太可怕了，真不堪细想。
• The consequences would be too ghastly to contemplate.后果不堪设想。

7 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

8 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。