Inheritor dedicated to passing on traditional black pottery making techniques in China's Jiangxi

A craftsman in Jing'an county, east China's Jiangxi Province, has spent decades carrying forward traditional black pottery making techniques.

Wu Yingfang is a provincial-level inheritor of Jing'an black pottery making techniques.

The discovery of an "eggshell black pottery cup," which is black inside and out and is as thin as an eggshell, in the county in 2011 deeply impressed Wu.

As black pottery making techniques had been lost in the county, Wu decided to revive the craft.

Wu Yingfang examines a black pottery work. (Photo courtesy of Wu Yingfang)

Through continuous exploration, Wu finally remade an eggshell black pottery cup, which is only 0.2 millimeters at the thinnest point, in 2014 by leveraging traditional ways and overcoming technical difficulties.

He even raised the firing temperature from 600-900  degrees Celsius to over 1,280 degrees Celsius. The appropriate use of natural materials and technological innovation also resulted in a naturally glossy surface.

Jing'an black pottery making techniques were later listed as a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage (ICH), and Wu became a provincial-level inheritor of the craft. Wu's two sons have followed in their father's footsteps to pass on the traditional craft.

To improve the inheritance of ICHs, Wu was actively involved in setting five provincial standards, including one on traditional black pottery. He also established Jing Kiln, or Jingyao in Chinese, an ICH exhibition hall and a black pottery experience room, integrating the research and inheritance of the traditional black pottery techniques with educational tours, to attract black pottery enthusiasts from around the world. Jing Kiln was recognized as a black pottery research base by the Jiangxi Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology.

Wu takes pride in passing on black pottery making techniques, sharing the story of a young woman from Beijing who has been learning the craft from him for nearly nine years and is now able to create her own black pottery works.