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Ming’s Dynasty: An exclusive
MING’S DYNASTY
Bai Ming is one of China’s leading contemporary ceramicists with pieces on show across the globe. In an exclusive interview with Antique Collecting he describes his work and place in the tradition of Chinese pottery
aesthetic, giving the work a more contemporary feel. Using traditional techniques to produce an exquisite object is, however, a slow process. To paint freehand on a large vessel, you must maintain the force, variation and connection of each line, even though each line is almost the same. It takes time and requires a gradual accumulation of skill, it’s not something you can master in a day or two.
On the other hand, some of my recent works require no skill at all. I might suddenly be moved by the velvety texture of a piece of clay which compels me to make it into a piece of art. If I had to be specific, I would say that I am an artist rooted in Asian culture living in the present.
WHAT CHANGES TOOK PLACE DURING THE ECONOMIC REFORM?
It’s hard for outsiders to comprehend the impact of the reform and the opening-up that took place in the 1980s and 1990s. It was as if all of a sudden we could see the world. We were desperate to understand the world and eager to express it through our art. We also saw how ceramics could be made differently.
The most thrilling thing at that time was to learn how it was done and to break away from existing aesthetic modes.
The interesting thing about China, however, is that its extraordinary tradition and ceramic culture will always be there. No matter how novel or innovative you are, it will always call you back. At the time, I wrote
HOW IMPORTANT IS TRADITION IN YOUR WORK?
Many museums and artists have asked me: Are you a traditional artist, a contemporary artist, or even an artist of the future? I suppose I am a bit of all three. When you discuss tradition with someone, regardless of where they’re from, you’ll find each person’s understanding of it is in fact very simple and everyone seeks something different from tradition. For me, it’s the same.
You’ll see my ceramic works take form in two different ways. On the one hand, they can be very traditional. I might, for example, use entirely traditional language and techniques, but remove some of the more complex details to suit today’s minimalist
Above Bai Ming (b.1965) Entangling Blue Lines, 30.5cm, 2011
Above right Bai Ming (b.1965) Blue Lines of Released Water Series II (detail), 46cm, 2012
Right Bai Ming (b.1965) An Ode to Soft Lines, 46cm, 2012
a book called The Traditional Crafts of Porcelain Making in Jingdezhen. As a university teacher, besides my own practice, I also had academic responsibilities so I undertook extensive research into the Chinese ceramic tradition – its meaning, as well as the techniques, craftsmanship and processes. Tradition, in the ‘90s, did not enjoy the attention is gets today and so it became something incredibly valuable.
This concurrent exploration of old and new was the most extraordinary thing about that period of time and I am most thankful for those decades.
WHEN DID CERAMIC MAKERS BECOME CERAMIC ARTISTS?
It’s something that has been changing. Of the people making ceramics in the 80s and 90s, very few became ‘artists’, because until then ceramics were associated with craft and production, they were made simply to satisfy the market.
Since the founding of new China [in 1949], ceramics was classified as part of ‘light industry’ and had nothing
Far right Bai Ming (b.1965) Lines Roaming as they Please, 62cm, 2009
Right Bai Ming (b.1965) Between Porcelain and Stone Series III, 49cm, 2004
Below left Bai Ming (b.1965) Lingering, Diameter 29cm, 1995
Below right Bai Ming (b. 1965) Intertwined Blue and Brown Lines, 66.5cm, 2010
to do with art and culture. The shift in view today is down to the development of China’s higher education, as well as an increasing regard for art and culture in China, and the country’s economic development. Once ceramics became works of art and not just products, their value increased and this led to a rapid development in the field. Whereas in the ‘90s it was unlikely for there to be more than one or two ceramics exhibitions nationwide, nowadays in Jingdezhen alone
I suppose there are several tens, if not as many as a hundred, exhibitions of contemporary style ceramics. “Modern ceramics” in China became widely recognised in the 1990s. This revival of Chinese ceramics is therefore closely connected to a few important artists and their constant experimentation with using clay to express, exploring different techniques, and relying on the artist’s ideas and creativity. This led to a new aesthetic mode and opened up space for expression within ceramic arts.
HOW ARE YOUR WORKS CURATED DIFFERENTLY GLOBALLY?
Different countries, and even museums within one country, approach my work in different ways. Initially I wanted to be in charge of my own exhibitions. When I exhibited at the Centre Culturel de Chine in Paris in 2010, I was in charge of the display because I felt that surely an artist knows their work best.
In 2014, however, when I had a solo exhibition at the Musée Cernuschi, that changed. The museum’s curator at the time was a specialist in ceramics with a deep understanding of Japanese and Chinese form, and the museum itself has a reputation for exhibiting Chinese artists who have gone on to become famous, such as Wu Guanzhong (b.1919) and Zao Wou-ki (1920-2013).
The curator of that exhibition selected some of my works I would not have chosen while ignoring others that I felt were important. But the experience taught me that handing your work over to a curator can reveal unexpected surprises. I saw my own work in a whole new light.
In Nice last year at the Musée des Arts Asiatiques, my works were placed inside the Japanese, Chinese, Indian and Southeast Asian galleries, alongside the original museum objects which were left in place. The aim of the curator was to demonstrate that my work is better understood against a backdrop of Asian culture in general and not just Chinese culture. I thought it was very interesting.
Above Bai Ming at work
Left Bai Ming (b.1965) Perfection with Defects Series II, diameter 58cm, 2003
Right Bai Ming (b.1965) Superimposed Relationships Series I, 20 x 15 x 9cm, 2017
WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ART AND COLLECTING?
It’s a question well worth discussing, but as a contemporary artist it’s also a challenging one. In the past I didn’t like discussing this topic, but after visiting museums around the world I believe collecting is one of the most fundamental ways to spread art and culture. Only through collecting can the essence of a time period be preserved.
Every artist has their individual creativity, whether they are famous or not, but I believe if a person’s work has no impact, it is in large part due to the fact it did not enter the hands of a collector or a museum.
DO YOU COLLECT YOURSELF?
I don’t collect artworks seriously, but I do collect things from day-to-day life that interest me or spark memories
– rocks, fossils, driftwood – things that are linked to eternity and the gradual passing of time.
I enjoyed visiting flea markets when I was in Europe and found myself attracted to objects with a sense of time and a human touch. For example, in France I picked up some old books with tattered edges, smudges and stains. Although I couldn’t read them, somehow, I felt I could really understand them, they touched me. I don’t collect with any specific purpose, it just depends on where life takes me, but when I see the things I’ve collected, often simple and not particularly valuable, they give me a sense of purpose.
IS COLLECTING CONTEMPORARY CERAMICS POPULAR IN CHINA?
Yes, and there are people who specifically collect contemporary ceramics. One person I should mention in particular is a friend of mine in the US, Steve Alpert, who sadly passed away recently. He amassed the most incredible collection of contemporary ceramics from all around the world. His collection was so vast even the bathroom was used to store it.
I hope – if his family wishes of course – that one day I can find a museum or individual in China to take his collection. It is a collection that grew out of a true passion and has a significant research value, so if it can enter a museum, that value can be shared.
It is through collecting, that contemporary works of art are recognised and protected. It is something done for the present, but also for the future. I believe that how we treat tradition is a sign of how we treat the future.
Bai: The New Language of Porcelain in China is published by ACC Art Books priced £30, to order a copy go to www.accartbooks.com
Left Bai Ming (b.1965) Wondrous Red Awakening Dreams, diameter 48cm, 2010
Right Bai Ming (b.1965) Superimposed Relationships Series IV, 20 x 15 x 9cm, 2017
Below right Bai Ming (b.1965) Between Porcelain and Stone Series V, 32.5cm, 2007
Below Bai Ming (b.1965) Red Soul Stone Series II, 102cm, 2003-2012
