Yixing teapot with lid thumbnail 1

Yixing teapot with lid

Teapot
1984 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This teapot is a contemporary piece of ceramic ware produced in Yixing, in China's Jiangsu Province. The Yixing kilns have been known for their teapots since the 16th century.

The local clays have a high sand content and can be cream, red or warm brown. The teapots are not usually glazed, but burnished and fired, and unlike the majority of Chinese crafts, they can be signed by the potters. This example has the mark of Jiang Rong, a famous woman potter now honoured in China as a National Craft Master.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Teapot
  • Lid
TitleYixing teapot with lid (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Stoneware, clays of various colours, painted
Brief description
Yixing ware. Teapot with lid, in form of water chestnut, Jiang Rong, Yixing, China, 1984
Physical description
Decoration: Water chestnut in form
Box: Padded box. Booklet 'A million pairs of hands' in register with FE.60&A-1984 gives biography of maker
Dimensions
  • Height: 181cm
  • Width: 176.0cm
Production typesmall batch
Marks and inscriptions
'Jiang Rong' (seal mark) on base
Gallery label
(2007)
Teapot in form of water chestnut
Made by Jiang Rong
About 1984
Yixing kilns, south China

Unglazed stoneware
Museum no. FE.31-1984
Object history
Bought in Hong Kong by Rose Kerr, AK/ in course of trip to China to acquire 20th c. material in 1984
Historical context
designed for tea brewing
Production
Jiang Rong (1919-2008) was a renowned zisha artisan from Yixing, Jiangsu Province. She was named a 'Chinese Arts and Crafts Master' in 1995. Jiang's works, known for their technical excellence and lifelike qualities, won national awards and were used as state gifts. She excelled in creating teapots that mimicked natural forms. Jiang's accomplishments mark her as a key figure in 20th-century Chinese crafts.
Summary
This teapot is a contemporary piece of ceramic ware produced in Yixing, in China's Jiangsu Province. The Yixing kilns have been known for their teapots since the 16th century.

The local clays have a high sand content and can be cream, red or warm brown. The teapots are not usually glazed, but burnished and fired, and unlike the majority of Chinese crafts, they can be signed by the potters. This example has the mark of Jiang Rong, a famous woman potter now honoured in China as a National Craft Master.
Associated object
Bibliographic reference
Rose Kerr, 'Contemporary Chinese Crafts', 'V&A Album 4' (1985), p.322, fig.6: Frances Wood & Rose Kerr, 'Chinese collections', 'Crafts',77 (Nov/Dec, 1985), p.37 K.S Lo, 'The stonewares of Yixing', (Sotheby's/Hong Kong UP, 1986), pp.178, 224,227, pls.LII, 146
Collection
Accession number
FE.31&A-1984

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Record createdFebruary 12, 2000
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