Yue Chao - Jingdezhen Porcelain Artist

Yue Chao graduated from one of China's most prestigious fine arts universities: Beijing's Central Fine Arts Academy.  This name alone is enough to impress most locals, but what really impressed us about Yue Chao is his quiet demeanor and his flawless craftsmanship.

We first visited his studio Jingdezhen city in November of 2019.  His studio in the city takes the form of a gutted apartment with concrete walls and flooring, wherein he spends hours and hours every day throwing, trimming, and assembling tea cups, gaiwans, tea bowls, tea pots, calligraphy brush holders, vases, and more tea-oriented ceramics.  

In the Summer of 2022, Alex, Xiaoyan, and Derek all visited his larger studio out in the countryside of Jingdezhen.  Here he has his wood-fired kiln which, when fired, is usually fed and fueled through the night by his wife and parents, he has his larger more studio, and a gallery/showroom to drink tea and talk shop.

As it was high summer, they were taking a break from firing the kiln when we visited, but we were able to browse the shelves and cabinets of tea ware and other ceramics.  

One remarkable thing was to see all the "not for sale" pieces.  These pieces fall into one of a few categories, either they are unique pieces that Yue hasn't remade, or they are precious pieces that turned out exceptionally well in the wood-fired kiln, or as a vast majority of these 'not-for-sale' pieces were, they have the smallest of minor defects.  

This cup, for instance got a little warped in the kiln.

This one was made a little too thin.

This orange cup wasn't for sale because it had a few flakes of ash stuck to its bottom!

We asked Yue's wife what the problem was with one such piece.  After looking at it for nearly a minute, she said she wasn't sure why exactly it failed Yue's expectations, but it certainly did in some way.  This really brought home the idea of Yue's meticulous standards of the pieces he sells.

After seeing his studio, knowing his standards, and seeing the overall passion he has for ceramics, it is no wonder the pieces we get from him are always so precious.

Below are are few pieces we carried in 2022!

Below is the formal Artist’s Statement (in Chinese):

岳超 男 汉族 1985年10月15日
中央美术学院城市设计学院本科毕业
中国工艺美术师家协会高级工艺美术师 ，2010年创立个人工作室 从事柴烧研发与制作至今。
作品简介 ：作品采用当代柴烧工艺，借助木柴燃烧过程中产生的灰烬伴随火势像雨点般附着于坯体表面，当温度达到草木灰熔点时与泥土发生化学反应，形成天然釉面。胎土，窑火，落灰三者相互交融而呈现出一种质朴，浑厚、古雅的美，这种表现力完全得自于大自然的馈赠。