Jingdezhen, China's porcelain capital, has transformed in the last 10 years from a smoky, coal-burning town to a place with cleaner air thanks to switching kilns from coal to gas. The town has a history of porcelain production for over 1,700 years and remains an important center for the craft today, with half the town's workforce employed in the industry. Jingdezhen offers visitors opportunities to observe porcelain production, visit historical sites related to porcelain, and purchase a wide variety of ceramic pieces.

1. ART JINGDEZHEN
Though China’s porcelain capital has emerged from the
technological dark ages, Edward Genochio still finds the town
up to its ears in history − not to mention ceramics and people
potty about the stuff
Though China’s porcelain capital has emerged from the
48 I NOVEMBER 2005

2. y old travel diary tells me that
I have been to Jingdezhen
before − in 1996. February
3 to be precise. I stayed a
day, changing buses between
Lushan and Huangshan. And
yet this time, rolling back into
town on my bicycle nearly 10
years later, the place seems wholly unfamiliar.
I recall it smelling of coal and soot, chimney-studded and smoky, a town
still shrouded in the glorious grimness of the early industrial revolution. A
stack of tall brick chimneys remain, visual monuments to the Jingdezhen
I remember, but real, deep-down memories come from the nose not the
eyes. The smells and smoke, and with it the Dickensian aura, have gone,
and I simply don’t recognise the place.
Teacher Dai breaks off from his Saturday evening badminton to reassure
me: my olfactory memories are not faulty. “Ten years ago, we began
converting our kilns from coal to gas. A simple change of technology has
transformed this town. We can breathe freely now. And the quality of our
porcelain has improved too, thanks to the gas kilns.”
Porcelain runs deep in Jingdezhen’s history. The layer of discarded
porcelain shards and kiln debris under its streets is said to be 30 feet
thick in places. The city has been doing the pottery thing for at least
1,700 years.
The place got its big break in the Song dynasty, when the potters of
the town, then known as Changnan, picked up a juicy commission from
Emperor Zhen Zong. Local artisans took to stamping their bowls and
vases with the emperor's era name − Jing De − and in time the town itself
assumed the name of its imperial patron.
By the Ming dynasty, Jingdezhen had become a major export centre.
Several hundred kilns turned out hundreds of thousands of pieces each
year and, conveniently located not far from the original Ming capital at
Nanjing, it continued to keep the emperor and his concubines in teacups.
When the capital moved north to Beijing, Jingdezhen maintained its
connection to the court via the waterways of Poyang Lake, the Yangtze,
and the Grand Canal.
Not every pot is fit for an emperor though. Mass-production − by the
masses for the masses − powers Jingdezhen’s economy today, with the
industry employing around half the town’s workforce.
For the visitor, Jingdezhen is a treat. If you aren’t into porcelain when
you arrive, you probably will be by the time you pack your bags and leave.
The locals are so keen on the stuff that they make their lamp posts out of
it, and their enthusiasm rubs off.
History buffs will find history for sure, but this town’s past is seen
through the prism of (yes, you guessed it) porcelain, which makes a
refreshing break from the temples, palaces and tombs through which
Chinese history is most often laid bare for visitors. The Ancient Kiln site
is a working museum of old-style ceramic production where you can see
the whole process − following a vase as it metamorphoses from a lump
of clay, via a potter’s wheel, to the finished article, fired in a traditional
wood-burning kiln.
The constant thread of porcelain helps history merge seamlessly with
the present in Jingdezhen. Many of the factories are happy for impromptu
visitors to wander and observe at close quarters. Just leave any clumsy
tendencies at the gate: mass destruction looms as you edge backwards for
that perfect camera angle.
"Did you that know your word ‘China’ comes from Jingdezhen?”
enquired a big bare-chested man as he poured liquid clay into vase
moulds. “Our town used to be called Changnan. Our porcelain, and
our name, reached Europe and a slip of the tongue turned Changnan
into China.”
And so we have china, the stuff our teapots were made of, and China
(Changnan), the place where they were made.
It was only in the 18th century that the secret of porcelain production
cametoEurope.Thepracticearrivedcourtesyofacraftypieceof industrial
espionage by the Jesuit missionary Pere d’Entrecolles, and the efforts of
German alchemist Friedrich Böttger. Wisely, Böttger gave up trying to
turn base metals into gold, and concentrated instead on seeking the secret
of ‘white gold’, or Chinese porcelain.
The secret, as Jingdezhen potters had known for more than a thousand
years, lay in using the right combination of clays and feldspars (minerals).
The most famous of these is kaolin, or china clay, which gets its name
from the high ridge, or Gao Ling, just north of Jingdezhen, from where
it was mined to supply the town’s potteries. Mining at this site was halted
at the end of the Ming dynasty when local peasants complained that the
process of washing out gravel impurities from the clay was ruining the soil
in their fields. However, given the importance of Jingdezhen porcelain to
the imperial household, this superficial agricultural protest was probably
just a symbolic act of political resistance to the incoming Qing dynasty.
You can trace the history of imperial porcelain production at the
Porcelain Museum and the Museum of Ceramic History. If that whets
your appetite and loosens your purse-strings, head to the Jiayang Ceramics
Factory, where good-quality reproductions of Song,Yuan, Ming and Qing
pieces are made and for sale.
It can take a day or two to get your head around all the changing styles in
porcelain production but, to save you the time, here’s an instant-expert-all-
you-need-to-know-two-minute primer, with a couple of technical terms
PAGE50-51PHOTOGRAPHY:EDWARDGENOCHIO,PANORAMASTOCK
and China (Changnan), the place where they were made.
51NOVEMBER 2005 l

3. − in Chinese − thrown in at no extra charge. It should help to impress
the locals if nothing else.
Start with monochrome yingqing (misty blue) glazed pieces of the Song
era, then move on to the (primarily) blue-and-white work of the Yuan
dynasty. The latter were produced when Mongolians ruled China. Look
out for clues in the painting: burly northern blokes riding horses, often
with a falcon perched on their fist. By the Ming dynasty, glaze technology
had moved on and wucai or five-coloured wares became both possible and
popular. Check the reds − if they're pale and washed out, it’s probably
Yuan; if they're bright and vibrant, then plump for Ming. As for Qing
stuff, well, you'll know it when it hits you. At its best it's superbly intricate
and detailed; at its worst, and a lot of the rest of the time too, it’s gaudy,
in-your-face and the stuff of nightmares. Just a personal opinion, mind.
Jingdezhen is not all history. It is also home to a burgeoning
contemporaryartscene,withanumberofnativeartistshelpingtoestablish
ceramics as a pure modern art form in China. The Zhe brothers, Zhe
Le Geng and Zhe Jian An (also known as ‘Douzi’) are at the forefront
of these efforts. Exhibitions of their work, which seductively fuse the
traditional and the avant-garde, have toured China and overseas. They
have also devoted part of their studios to their Folk Kiln Arts Research
Institute, where their growing collection of old Jingdezhen folk ceramics,
including a Song dynasty chess set, is on display.
The Jingdezhen Institute of Ceramics is home to a number of
distinguished modern ceramic artists, some of whose work is presented
in the exhibition hall. However, the ‘Man with the Key’ is often out to
lunch, sometimes for days at a time, so getting a look inside can take
persistence.
All of which leaves shopping. Walk little more than a dozen strides
down almost any street in the town to find a porcelain emporium of some
description. For the widest choice of modern commercial pottery in one
placethough,headforthehugemarketjustsouthofPeople’sSquare,orthe
even larger porcelain city in the northeast of town, across the river. Both
have hundreds of small shops selling everything from two-inch potlets
to towering five-metre vases. A pair would look rather grand standing
astride your front door, don't you think?
A real piece of Jingdezhen will set you back anywhere from RMB 20 to
200,000 and prices depend on quality, artist and tonnage. You can shop
or browse quietly at your own pace everywhere in town − Beijing’s high-
pressure, hassling sales techniques are wonderfully absent.
I’m off now, my bike groaning under the weight of a few acquisitions.
And no, none of them are Qing dynasty reproductions. It will be slow
going, I think, across hilly Hunan, to western Guizhou, from where my
aching legs will be reporting next month.
Out of the Mould: (above)
Pouring liquid clay into
vase moulds; (top right)
The resulting moulded
ceramic vases; (right)
Contemporary teapots on
display at Zhe Le Geng’s
studio
From Jingdezhen, Edward will head south and west into Hunan province, passing
through Shaoshan, Chairman Mao’s birthplace, along the way. He’ll then make for the
hills of southeastern Guizhou, where he will be reporting next month on the Miao and
Dong minority villages around Kaili. Follow Edward’s journey day-by-day on his blog at
www.2wheels.org.uk.
PAGE52-53PHOTOGRAPHY:EDWARDGENOCHIO,PANORAMASTOCK
52 I NOVEMBER 2005

4. Essentials
Go by…
Plane. From Beijing to Jingdezhen with Hainan Airlines (toll free
800 876 8999; www.hnair.com) for RMB 2,500 return. From
Shanghai with Shenzhen Airlines (+86 (0)775 95080; www3.
shenzhenair.com) for RMB 1,000 return. From Guangzhou with
China Southern Airlines (+86 (0)20 950 333; www.cs-air.com)
for RMB 1,880 return.
Bicycle. From Shanghai (seven days, flexible timetable).
Stay at…
Jingdezhen Hotel (Dajiudian)
Good rooms with high-standards − if you can stomach the
horrendous faux-rococo French furniture. Internet-connected
computers in every room is a nice touch.
(+86 (0)798 851 8888; www.jingdezhenhotel.com; doubles
from RMB 336
Jingdezhen Hotel (Binguan)
Enjoys a nice, quiet spot by a lake and park, but staff are not
very on-the-ball.
(+86 (0)798 822 5010; www.jdzhzbg.com; doubles from RMB
320)
Shop at…
Try either of the two huge pottery markets for commercial wares.
For artier, contemporary stuff, trawl the artists’ studios near the
Museum of Ceramics (Deng Xi Ping’s; +86 (0)798 821 0995) and the Museum of Ceramic
Sculpture (Yao Hui Yun’s; +86 (0)798 841 6172). Reproduction antique ceramics, and
some contemporary pieces can be found upstairs from Jiayang Ceramics (+86 (0)798
844 1200; www.jdzjy.com; some English spoken).
Meet the Artists at…
Many Jingdezhen ceramic artists are happy talk about their work with visiting enthusiasts.
A prime contact is Yang Xin Hua (+86 (0)798 851 3231; +86 (0)136 6798 7777) who
is well-connected in the Jingdezhen art world and happy to provide introductions. She is
married to Douzi, the younger of the Zhe brothers. Find her in the mornings at her studio
outside the Ceramic Museum. Note: her English is limited.
Escape to…
The surrounding villages. Take a bicycle or taxi to see kaolin and feldspar quarries in
operation, surrounded by traditional Jiangxi rural architecture.
PS...
Very little English is spoken in Jingdezhen − even in the porcelain shops. Most overseas
visitors (and customers) come from Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan. You might find a
willing guide/interpreter among the students at the Ceramics Institute. Otherwise, your
hotel should be able to recommend a guide, or call Natalie at CITS. She’s a bright spark
and will show you round and interpret for approximately RMB 150 per day. (+86 (0)798
851 3088; +86 (0)136 7798 3702)
Learn to say tao ci, Mandarin for ‘ceramics’.
Beijing’s high-pressure, hassling sales
techniques are wonderfully absent.
With Character: The timeless beauty of Jingdezhen ceramics;
(inset) Rolling the clay at Zhe Le Geng’s workshop
53NOVEMBER 2005 l