In Pursuit of Beauty : Intangible Cultural Heritage Series in the Yangtze River Delta

Preface

“The tea picked in Grain Rain is sealed with bamboo leaf while the Zisha pot is recently bought in Yixing city”.

Yixing Zisha pottery began in Song Dynasty, developed in Ming Dynasty and flourished in Qing Dynasty. It originated from the five-colour clay in Yixing which is endowed by nature. And the clay was shaped by the hands of local craftsmen into simple and elegant Zisha wares which had a delicate texture, classic color and lustre in elegant taste. Zisha pots are conducive to getting the flavor out of the tea and the more they are used the more they turn into jade-like warmness and smoothness. In this way, teapots made of Zisha clay have always been cherished by generations. Gong Chun in Ming Dynasty was the pioneer of the art of Zisha pots, followed by Shi Dabin, Chen Mingyuan and others famous Zisha masters who were dedicated to exquisite craftsmanship and passed on the technique for several generations.

During the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period, Fan Guangshan and his son Fan Qinren in Yixing were good at making Zisha wares. According to I Ching, Book of Changes, the greatest moral virtue is caring about life. Therefore, Zisha pots made by them were all inscribed with Chinese characters “Da Sheng” which referred to “greatest” and “life” respectively and Fan Guangshan and his son were known as Fan Dasheng while their works “Dasheng Pot”. The Dasheng Pot, which were in generous, simple and elegant style with fine craftsmanship, were valued by Chinese people while won many international awards, gaining considerable reputation at home and abroad at that time. Nowadays, as time goes by, the title of “Dasheng Pot” is still passed on from generation to generation.

Mr. Fan Weiqun, the fourth generation of “Dasheng Pot”, was born in a ceramic family, and got the instruction from Wu Tongfen, Xu Hantang and other famous masters of Zisha, thus taking root in the right direction to the broad road of Zisha pottery art. At the same time, he is devoted to reading and researching with a humble heart, open mind and critical thinking during his forty-year pursuit of pottery learning. Finally, he is succeed in inheriting the skill of “Dasheng Pot” and leads a new trend of the times. Zisha pots he made including “Water-Chestnut-Flower-Shaped Teapot” and “Teapot with Bamboo Design” are typical “Dasheng Pot” with classic beauty and elegant taste. Pots such as “Sweet-scented Offerings” and “Twin Flowers” which develop on the basis of tradition are fine and stylish with both ancient charm and characteristics of the times. “Formlessness” and “Water and Cloud” and other pots are in a style as grand as universe which explore the connection between human beings and the nature, conveying philosophical thoughts far beyond the object itself.

Mr. Fan Weiqun’s works are rooted in tradition and yet seek for new changes, reflecting not only the vitality of the traditional intangible cultural heritage of Zisha pottery in the contemporary times, but also the inheriting of spirit of craftsmanship through Fan family’s “Dasheng Pot”. The torch of Zisha pottery art needs passing down in generation. Now Mr. Fan Weiqun has set up the Zisha Co-operative Society in Xiwang Village and opened a museum where people can learn Zisha making to feed back his hometown and make a contribution to the cause of rural revitalisation. Yixing Zisha pottery, a national intangible cultural heritage, is also riding the wind and waves to start a new journey under the joint efforts of contemporary Zisha artists.

With the support of Yixing Bureau of Culture, Sports, Radio, Television and Tourism and Yixing Museum, Suzhou Museum has the honour to join hands with Mr. Fan Weiqun to select more than 60 sets of Zisha wares for this exhibition. We invite you to read the story of the Fan family’s “Dasheng Pot”, to appreciate the charm of contemporary “Dasheng Pot”, and to comprehend the philosophical ideas contained in the artefacts. Last but not least, we thank Mr. Fan Weiqun for the generous donation of his Zisha work “Loop-handled Teapot with Four Caved-in Corners and Design of Bamboo and Drum” to enrich the collection of Suzhou Museum.

Xie Xiaoting

Director of Suzhou Museum

January 2025