In my eyes, these irregular fragments have their own unique beauty. Porcelain shards are imperfect and incomplete, and the original piece that the long-ago artist created is lost forever. Still, the beauty remains. And also I feel that we can grasp something of ancient people’s ideas and their striving for excellence in their art through the porcelain shards.
In China, shards of ancient ceramics are collectible antiques - and they should be, because they are beautiful and historic! But they are a difficult sort of antique to display, unlike furniture or paintings, or even intact ceramics. Even if you love porcelain shards like me, you probably would put your collection aside in a case at home and often forget to look at it, only occasionally taking it out for appreciation.
One of the things I try to do with my pieces is to give these little pieces of art, with all their historic and cultural value, a new life! After all, they come from objects that were once in daily use or prized and displayed in a place of honor in the home. I want more eyes to see and appreciate the beauty I have come to love.
The porcelain shards that I use for my jewelry have a long history. Most of them were discovered from my treasure hunting at antique markets. My main collection items are the shards with delicate patterns, pure colors, and intact ceramic surfaces. And my favorites are those rare shards with human figures.
To make my pieces, the porcelain shards first need to be cut to a manageable size for jewelry and the edges must be ground smooth. I then draw a design for my piece and start to create. In each design, I try to retain and respect the original artistic charm of the porcelain as much as possible - I want to keep as much of the pattern as I can, and make the shapes of the shards I use reflect the patterns. In the process of creation I don't confine myself to any one tradition, but generally I draw at least some inspiration from Chinese traditional culture and art. I try to integrate these bits of ornately decorated artworks from traditional culture with a clean, simple, modern aesthetic. I hope that my works not only can express Chinese traditional culture, but also accentuate an individual's beauty as wearable art, and blend with many different fashions of clothing.
Ancient ceramics is a sophisticated art form with a profound cultural background. To me, only silver suits the refinement, texture, and preciousness of the shards I use. Any less precious metal would be unsuitable, and gold I feel would distract the eye from the shards themselves, my little treasures. So I prefer to use a simple silver setting for my jewelry.
I hope you'll experience different feelings when you appreciate these works at different times, or in different moods. I hope wearing one of my pieces can add some spice, serenity, or enlightenment to your life. Anyhow, I hope you feel the pure and simple joy when you look at a beautiful porcelain shard. And if you buy one of my pieces, I hope you love it deeply.
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