Archives for posts with tag: furze
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Coconut Lids

11/06/2012 //
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DIA100mm, China

This is a pair of lids made with coconut shell and inlay with pewter, they would have been matched with a coconut shell cups but unfortunately the cups are not absent.  Coconut as a material for tea ware has been used since the Ming dynasty, mainly as an exotic gift to the imperial court from the Hai Nam area.  See also our previous post of the Coconut Teapot.

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

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Categories JT pottery, wood

Silver Kettle

11/05/2012 //
0

DIA20xH40mm, Thailand

This miniature silver kettle was selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

Since we have the kettle on, I will share with you a Thai Iced Tea (Cha Yen) recipe.

INGREDIENTS

  • 5 Tbs Thai tea powder
  • 4 Tbs sugar
  • 3 Tbs sweet condense milk
  • 2 cups water
  • milk
  • ice cubes
  1. Bring the water to a simmer, turn off the heat and add the Thai tea powder
  2. Stir and let it brew for 5 – 10 mins
  3. Pour the tea over a fine sieve or a cheeze cloth to get rid of the tea leaves
  4. Add in the sugar and the condense milk, stir well and let it cool down
  5. When it has cool down to room temp, fill a glass with ice and pour in the tea
  6. Add in a dash of milk and enjoy!
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Categories metal, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, toy

Oil Flask

11/02/2012 //
3

DIA50xH100mm, China

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

In the old days this flask would have been used in the kitchen for keeping oil or soy sauce for cooking.  Now with the hairy crab (Chinese mitten crabs) season coming up, it would be ideal for serving Hua Diao wine.  Being pottery, you can submerge the flask into hot water to heat up the wine.  Now talk about pottery and hairy crab, I cant help to show a piece of my work.

W120xD80xH40mm, Hong Kong (not for sale)

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Categories container, figurine, JT pottery, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, pottery

Wooden Box

11/01/2012 //
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DIA130xH50mm, China

Comparing to the wooden box shown in the previous box, though both of the boxes are round, this is a more economical and sustainable way of achieving around wooden container.  Unlike the previous post where the box is lathes out from a solid piece of wood, this box smartly uses the idea of wooden bending and of course a circular cylinder is always the strongest form (apart from a sphere).

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

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Categories container, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, wood

Candle Stand

10/30/2012 //
3

DIA75xH165mm, China

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

This is a traditional Chinese white glaze candle stand, this can be seen by the small hole on center of the top dish.  The traditional candle has a bamboo stick attached to the bottom, the candle would be secured by inserting it into the small hole.  Candle stands have been around since the 3 Kingdoms period (210AD) until the Tang dynasty they have been more descriptive and elaborated capturing the shape an animal or a plant, etc.  From the Sung dynasty, the form became more utilitarian and the 2 level form are the most common.

Talking about candles, I would like to share with you the candles hand made and designed by my friend Maha Alusi in Berlin.  And of course her view on “Passing Moments”.

http://mahaalusi.com/

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Categories lighting, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, pottery

Stack Firing Bowl

10/29/2012 //
2

DIA 140xH65mm, Hong Kong

This bowl is an example of the traditional mass production of craft which is still 100% handmade.  Notice the ring at the bottom of the bowl?  That it is unglazed?  It is not part of the pattern of the bowl but a feature of the production of the bowl itself – stack firing.

If you turn a bowl over, you will notice that the bottom of the plinth is a bit rougher, that it hasn’t got any glazing.  This is because if the glaze is there, under the heat of the kiln it would melt and cause the work to stick to the kiln board, that’s why the potter would carefully clean off any glaze.  Normally when firing each item would be placed on a kiln board and at some distance apart from other works.  In the Qin dynasty (220BC), demand for pottery is high, stack firing becomes popular in the common kiln.  The bowls would be stacked on top of each other (like how the bowls are arranged  in your kitchen cabinets), about 10 pieces tall.  To prevent the glazing on the bowl sticking together the glazing on the inside of the bowl (where the plinth of the upper bowl is touching) is removed,  hence the unglazed ring.  This would yield a lot more work in a single firing – tradition mass production.

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

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Categories container, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, pottery

Plum Blossom Cup

10/26/2012 //
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DIA50 x H45mm, China

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

This Chinese porcelain tea ware is decorated with plum blossom, however, the white on the brown glaze just reminded me of Bambi.  Its not surprising that Chinese name for the Sika deer is plum blossom deer.

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Categories container, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, pottery

Silver Bracelet with Peanut and Budai

10/24/2012 //
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DIA 40mm, China

This is one of the gift for the Chinese baby’s shower (normally on the 100th day of its birth), a silver bracelet with the pendent of Budai and a peanut.  You must be wondering why these 2 items would be selected for a child as an ornament.  Budai, the laughing buddha, is an incarnation of Maitreya, however, this image of Maitreya is only found in China but not in India.  It is believed that the image of the laughing monk with a belly and a bag originated from a monk in the Five Dynasties, an incarnation of Maitreya and known for his joyfulness, forgiveness and kindness, for this he is always depicted to be followed with a group of children.  For a child to be wearing Budai would be giving her the blessing and a hope that his character would rub in a little.  As for the peanut, it is known as the fruit of longevity, bringing health and fertility.  In old rural China when medical and hygiene was poor, this blessing to the child is a wish of parents for some extra help for his well being.

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

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Categories jewellery, metal, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil

Rooster Bowl

10/19/2012 //
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DIA130xH30mm, China

This was at the one time the most common bowl in the Guang Dong and Min Nan area, a bowl that is used in homes, street hawkers and local eateries, now a days they have been replaced by the durable plastic ware   Each bowl is hand printed with rooster, plantain and a flower.  There are a reasons of how the rooster made it to be the decoration for this popular bowl.

For the Chinese, the rooster is a protector of evil (see post Clay Rooster Whistle), it has also contained the 5 Chinese virtues (Knowledge = comb, Strength = footing distance, Bravery = fighting its enemy, Benevolence = calling others to feed, Credit = crowing every morning).  And finally, in the old days meat is a scarcity for common people, dishes are often decorated with chicken or fish to spice up the meal.

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

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Categories container, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, pottery

Double Happiness Bowl

10/17/2012 //
0

DIA 150xH50mm, China

This item selected by Furze for the Something Old Something New exhibition and is available at both Mountain Folkcraft and Soil.

This is a folk version of the double happiness bowl; on the refined version the bowl is decorated with the word 囍 (double happiness) and a winding stem pattern that is popular in the Qing dynasty.  While the design is passed down from an official kiln to a commoner’s kiln, the design is abstracted over generation of craftsman.  This is likely to be due to that the craftsman are mostly illiterate and the design was taught to the young apprentice almost as a symbol from their master who has learnt it the same way.  Nevertheless, this abstracted bowl is known to them also as the double happiness bowl, equivalent to the original item.  The painter Wu Kuan Chung made this observation about the under glaze decoration of commoner’s kiln; some ideas which was inspired by daily life, they can being transformed into another type of art form by subtraction, multiplication or other means as long as it is still tied to the origin of living.

Can you spot the work 囍 and the scrolling foliage pattern?

Here are some hints;
the first 2 are folk version of a less simplified bowl and the last being a more refined version.  (I somehow preferred the abstracted version)

Answer: the pattern that looks like # is the word 囍 and the three circle is part of the scrolling foliage  pattern.

春 023

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Categories container, Mountain Folkcraft X Soil, pottery
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