Gao Zhenyu made this teapot especially for the V&A collection. It is a replica of a teapot that once belonged to the Chinese monk Ingen Ryūki 隱元隆琦 who travelled to Japan in 1654. Ingen founded the Ōbaku school of Zen Buddhism and is credited with introducing the practice of infusing green tea leaves to Japan. Ingen’s teapot is now kept in the temple Manpuku-ji in Kyoto. It is a key example of early zisha (purple clay) tea wares, which were produced in Yixing, Jiangsu province. Unglazed stoneware zisha teapots are prized for their elegant designs and ability to keep the warmth and flavour of tea.

Seeing Ingen’s teapot while he was a student in Japan caused Gao to reflect upon the possibilities of zisha and its historical significance. Ingen’s teapot, re-created by Gao using the same basic material and techniques, is much larger than later examples of zisha wares. The vessel is formed through repeated patting and smoothing of the clay into shape. With no additional ornamentation, the potter’s skill is fully on display. The size of the piece stretches the technical limits of zisha wares.

Gao comes from a family of important Yixing potters. His mother Zhou Guizhen is a National Master in Arts and Crafts. He studied with the master potter Gu Jingzhou (1915-1996) and completed his Masters in Ceramics at Musashino University in Tokyo. He is unusual among zisha potters in that he is equally skilled in working with wheel-thrown porcelain as he is with the hand-modelling of zisha. He also makes more experimental, studio pottery pieces. He is currently a Researcher at the Chinese National Academy of Arts, and moves between his studios in Beijing and Yixing, which he shares with his wife Xu Xu.