Ric Swenson on fri 13 jul 07
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Buenos Dias from JingDeZhen,
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CCTV-9 , the international Chinese media station, based in Beijing had a pr=
ogram recently about China Red glazes. It is common to seee programs on hi=
story, language, the arts, ceramics,etc. ( CCTV -9 is available on cable ne=
tworks worldwide. We have it in Atlanta too) The program was about a rese=
arch chemist named Hu Tian Fe, a man who for some years and with little fin=
ancial resource, studied the original copper red glazes which, according to=
archeologists originated in Chang Cha, Hunan Province.
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Hu Tian Fe was curious about red colored glazes and after many years of re=
search, developed cone 13 cadmium encapsulated glazes for commercial use. T=
he bright China red is now very popular in China and is exported widely. It=
is more predictable than the copper red, which has a tendency to have gree=
n inclusions or to be peach blossom pink and green. I remember John Taylor'=
s grad. thesis and exhibition at University of Puget Sound in 1976. He deal=
t with the vagaries of peach blossom copper glazes. Seeing this program als=
o reminded me of my visit to Brother Thomas at Weston Priory in 1981 in Ver=
mont. His copper reds were spectacular and thrilling to hold. I have had s=
ome luck myself with copper reds on porcelain forms.
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Buildings in this area of China, and I suspect in most areas of Asia are ma=
de of steel reinforced concrete and brick. The damp, the insects and other =
factors make concrete a natural material. There are many mines around Jing=
DeZhen...among them are copper, gold, coal, clay, gypsum, etc. and there ar=
e several cement manufacturing plants near here. Folks are not allowed to =
live on the first floor of buildings here. It is forbidden by the governme=
nt to occupy the first level of a house. That is to say, you can cook there=
and store things there, but you must sleep on the second or third floor of=
houses and apt. buildings. Apartment buildings usually house shops / store=
s, etc. on the first level. It is thought.... and felt that the first leve=
l is too damp for sleeping accommodations. The roofs of buildings are also =
concrete and /or tiled ceramic. I have not seen any threat of floods here, =
but maybe that is a part of the reason for these rules on non-occupation of=
first floors of buildings.=20
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On most buildings you will see thermal accumulators, gathering the heat of =
the sun's energy to supply hot water for showers and washing. Most laundry =
is hand washed. Few people has washing machines and no one has a clothes dr=
ier or dishwasher that I know of here. Air conditioners and fans are common=
and use the majority of power consumed by the general population.
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I have had time in the past week to relax and 'smell the roses'. I awoke t=
he other day at 5 AM and appreciated the sunrise at dawn. At 5 AM, the 2 =
or 3 dozen small bats were still swarming around the courtyard behind the d=
orm. I opened my patio windows and marveled at their dexterity...being bli=
nd and all. I assume they were there to feast on small insects and mosquito=
s, for which I thanked them. The sky was quit dark and the mountains appear=
ed gray rather than their usual daylight pine green color. The half moon p=
ointed toward the East and the sun peeked over the mountains little by litt=
le. Gradually the sky warmed to reveal clouds of white and blue with a ting=
e of pink and orange. The bats were replaced by swallows and other small bi=
rds who silently darted around the sky. A large white bird winged it's way=
to the West...too far away for me to identify. Maybe a heron? A high fly=
ing hawk surveyed the earth, probably seeking a snack for breakfast. The s=
un became a large orange ball. The mountains were again green. The cock be=
gan to crow which signaled several dogs to begin barking. The small, old wo=
man in the courtyard below my fourth floor room began sweeping the yard wit=
h her twig broom. By 7 AM the sun was a blazing orange sphere and I could =
feel the heat of the day approaching. It turned out to be a beautiful, if =
quite warm, day. At dusk, I returned to my window and watched the first sta=
rs, the moon and the bats return. Nice to have time to appreciate life's mi=
racles.
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I'm off tomorrow to travel for the rest of the summer. I've worked hard th=
is past term to make enough money to spend some down-time in Beijing and Mo=
ngolia and who knows where else the time will take me?
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Students have evaporated to their hometowns and campus is now occupied by t=
he few students who stay to study, or live too far away to afford the trip =
home. Of the 14,000 students, only a handful remain here now. I will visit=
the family of one of the 'thermal technologies' professors in their hometo=
wn in Inner Mongolia. It will be interesting to live in a yurt and ride hor=
seback and eat mutton barbeque. Maybe will have time to visit the terracott=
a warriors and of course all the wonders of Beijing. I plan to buy some Ol=
ympic swimming venue tickets for next August. 380 days until the start of =
the 2008 Games.
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I am in the process of setting up a web site at ;
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www.ricswenson.com
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it's under construction now... and I hope to have some images of my recent=
works there soon.
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Happy potting.
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and remember to "keep your stick on the ice"
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Ric
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_________________________________________________________________
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Lee Love on sat 14 jul 07
On 7/13/07, Ric Swenson wrote:
>
> Buenos Dias from JingDeZhen,
>
>
>> CCTV-9 , the international Chinese media station, based in Beijing
had a program >recently about China Red glazes.
Check this copper red out (it is copper sandwiched between clear glaze
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=110146490610
--
Lee in Mashiko, Japan
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/
"To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts." -
Henry David Thoreau
"Let the beauty we love be what we do." - Rumi
sacredclay on sat 14 jul 07
What a beautiful, beautiful, posting! I felt like I was really there as
you described the rising dawn. Don't ever stop posting! some of us are
literally hanging onto your words! Warmly, Kathryn Hughes in NC >
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