Spring 2024 Li Jia Ting Collection Gaiwan #1

This collection was made by Li Ya Ting 李亚婷, he studied ceramics making in Kunming, then went to work in Jianshui for a couple of years before setting up his workshop in Pu’er City in 2018.

All the pieces are handmade and wood-fired. He has a small kiln which he fires four times a year. He refines the clay himself using local soil. Most of the pieces are first shaped on a wheel and then adjusted by hand, some are only built by hand.

Firing lasts for three days, the kiln then needs to cool down for three more days. During that process, the parts of the ceramic pieces exposed to the flames will cook more than the other side, which means the pieces typically have a ‘strong side’ and a ‘soft side’. As ash flies around, it will settle on the surface of the clay and form a thin glaze, this process is random and not all the surface is covered in glaze.

When a lot of fuel is loaded into the kiln, oxygen becomes lacking in the air, and the fire will grab oxygen atoms from the clay, changing its color, this is called reduction firing. Again, the reduction doesn’t occur on the whole surface, this is what creates patterns of different colors.

The placement of the pieces in the oven will affect the outcome, but a lot of it is left to the chaos of fire.

Li Ya Ting loves drinking tea, and you can easily feel that when using his teaware. The handling is great, the pour doesn't drip, and the texture of varying coarseness keeps you entertained at the tea table.