Dignity, sympathy, participation
Dignity and grace in the commonplace
| Mass-produced ceramics and simple metal ware employed economies of large-scale production. Bowls and cups might be made in a repetitive process yielding up to 10,000 pieces in one kiln firing. This vernacular art involved both control and openness. In particular, a moment remained for light hand-decoration, and the firing produced variation in glazes that further personalized the later pleasure of looking and handling. Sparsely decorated iron water pots and other iron domestic objects are similarly robust while retaining a lightness of touch and playful variety in form. The aesthetics of this has continued until recent times. |   |   | |
| Teabowls Song period (960-1279) Private collection | Cistern Iron, 19th or early 20th century Fujian | ||
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| Water storage jars Pottery, 20th century Northern China | Vase Iron, 20th century Northern China |