China News Service Jinhua, June 3 (Reporter Xi Jinyan Correspondent Cao Jingyi) There is a craftsman Xu Zhongyue in Xiajinshan Village, Tangya Town, Jinhua, Zhejiang. In the era of mechanization, he still adheres to the craftsmanship of black pottery. In the past 35 years, he has dug every clay, and he has built every kiln by himself. He has refined the belief and feelings for black pottery through the blending of mud and fire.
In the Meng Xia season, when you walk into Xiajinshan Village, you can see an antique building. The gate plaque reads: The non-legacy base of the sand pot teapot, also known as the Black Pottery Heritage Museum. Stepping into it, countless black pottery crafts are displayed on the display platform, or beaded and rounded, with a small mouth and a big belly; or a slim figure and a beautiful neck. There are many categories but they are exquisite, each has its own merits.
Thick and simple black pottery utensils. Photo by Huang Wenlong
The silent black pottery can always arouse the memories of people's hearts. For example, the large teapot that drank water when I was young was simple and heavy, and it tasted so sweet in the mouth. There was also a black pottery wine set, and the red cloth head was opened, and the strong and mellow fragrance could no longer be hidden...
"The benefits of using a black clay pot are many. Using it to fill plain boiled water will make you feel particularly cool when you drink it. When you use it to hold tea, the taste will not deteriorate for at least two days," said Xu Zhongyue, owner of the black pottery museum.
Xu Zhongyue is repairing the embryo. Photo by Huang Wenlong
From "one soil" to "a pot", it has to go through dredging, picking mud, rubbing mud, stuffy mud, drawing embryo, shaping, blanking, trimming, calendering, engraving, dry billet, firing Waiting for more than 20 sessions.
"To make a high-quality teapot, the only raw material-clay is very important." Xu Zhongyue said, black pottery seems inconspicuous, in fact, the raw materials are selected from the village pond, after separation, layer by layer filtration To get the mud.
Xu Zhongyue is pulling the embryo. Photo by Huang Wenlong
With the raw materials, then the blank. I saw Xu Zhongyue knead the mud and water like kneading the dough first, and then throw the mud ball in the center of the turntable on the wheeled car, and then flexed and stretched it to draw the rough body. In front of him, the clay pottery that had gradually formed on the center of the turntable was turning fast. Xu Zhongyue seemed to be effortless and effortless, gently and softly, but he could see his experience.
In addition to his love, Xu Zhongyue's insistence on making black pottery also stems from the inheritance of his father's skills. From 1985 to 1990, almost every household at that time had several pieces of black pottery. As a child, Xu Zhongyue's father Xu Guangtong made black pottery in a hut in the village, and often villagers came to watch it. The smoky, muddy fire scene is still an unforgettable memory of a generation in the village.
Firewood kiln for firing black pottery. Photo by Huang Wenlong
After school, Xu Zhongyue also often joined the children to jump into the mud pit to dig mud and pinch various shapes. At the beginning of his father's workbench, he couldn't handle the rapidly rotating mud, but his father always taught him patience. Under the influence of his ears, he gradually learned the craft of pottery. That year, he was 15 years old.
Xu Zhongyue told reporters that after the preform was finished, it had to wait for it to dry out naturally, and then put it into a wood kiln for firing. Large wood kilns generally burn traditional black pottery, and put two or three hundred at a time; while small wood kilns specialize in fine products, and can burn seventy or eighty at a time.
Thick and simple black pottery utensils. Photo by Huang Wenlong
The firing process is from a small fire to a large fire, tens of degrees to thousands of degrees of fire. After 24 hours, if you see it burning red, you can leave the kiln. Xu Zhongyue said that compared to his father's era, because of the popularity of black pottery and the needs of life, the importance of making black pottery is important.
Today, these black pottery crafts that permeate the rich atmosphere of oriental culture, like many national cultural treasures, are gradually extending from the living objects to the artistic level, and then evolved into a non-legacy culture.
"In this era of universal machine production, manual skills have become less and less, we are now making pottery, and the aesthetics are also retro." Xu Zhongyue said.
The black pottery is being fired. Photo by Huang Wenlong
Nowadays, the skill of making sand pot teapot has been included in the intangible cultural heritage project of Jinhua City, Xu Zhongyue began to look forward to more people to inherit. "The Black Pottery Museum is open all year round. Tourists and students from all over the world are welcome to visit and learn about the history and process of making black pottery." Xu Zhongyue said, hoping that the younger generation will incorporate new ideas into traditional skills and give the ancient skills new vitality.
Xu Zhongyue's 35 years of black pottery making has gone through twists and turns, but he has no complaints or regrets. Black pottery is life for him, the skills learned from his father at the age of 15, and then integrated this non-legacy culture into the blood and into life. And in the long course of history, ancient civilizations have been long-lasting and shining because of the ingenuity of these craftsmen. (Finish)