We were lucky enough to arrive in the middle of the Chinese holiday for Labour day. This meant the Pottery Workshop was super buzzing with lots of people coming for the markets. It was so busy that our driver had to stop the van we were traveling in and get out to move parked scooters that were blocking our path. There were people, porcelain and scooters everywhere!
The front gate to the Pottery Workshop full with the holiday crowd.
This is the view looking out over the Pottery Workshop buildings from the studio. Really not a bad place to be spending my next 9 weeks!
There are piles of Porcelain everywhere. Even in the street.
We were able to visit plenty of Artisan studios and see the craftsmen at work.
This is a throwing studio where the thrower and turner work side by side. If you take a pot thrown by someone other then the turners partner he will not know how to turn it. They are trained together over 3 years where the first year consists of wedging clay and cleaning the studio.
A large tile workshop. It was very impressive to see two men roll out a tile over 2meters wide in what would be the size of a standard single car garage.
Artist Charlotte Cornaton in the big tile factory.
This lady applies on-glaze decals all day long!
We could have been eaten by a dog! Apparently this sign say do not enter and that there is a guard dog. Thank goodness for our translators!
This is the super crazy amazing glaze shop! It has every sort of glaze you could ever dream of with a room full of great samples. You then fill out a form with how many half kilos you would like and they then fill water bottles with already mixed liquid glazes that are ready to be sprayed. I hope I can remember which each one is as their description is all in Chinese.
Me carrying home a selection of glazes!
The beautiful view I get from my bedroom window which is over looking the Pottery Workshop courtyard.
A traditional factory ceiling.
This is the clay factory where they are making the 'Big Ware' porcelain which I am trying to use. All the machines are huge including this pug mill.
Porcelain wagons ready to roll.
One of the many public kilns. This is a smaller one. Apparently you drop your work off for firing and if they are firing that day you simply pick it up the same time the next day. There is no worrying about firing schedules or temperatures as most of the kilns fire a standard high fire and all the porcelain and glazes suits that!