Scholars' participation in Yixing Wares

The beginning of the 19th century saw the revival of Yixing pottery. It was brought about by one man whose name was Chen Hongshou or Chen Mansheng (陈曼生) . Chen was born in 1768 during the reign of Qianlong emperor of the Qing dynasty. He was a scholar, a man of great culture. He studied classics, practiced calligraphy and painting and achieved high proficiency in both. He also practised seal carving and was later admitted as one of the eight members of the exclusive society of seal carvers of Yixing. He was appointed magistrate of Yixing, a post which he held for only three years before he was transferred to Haifang where he died in 1822.

Soon after he took office at Yixing, Mansheng set about the task of reviving the interest in the flagging pottery industry. He is said to have come up with eighteen new designs (曼生十八式) of teapots and went on to engage a number of top ranking potters to make them for him. Among those he recruited were Yang Pengnian, his younger brother Ponian and sister Fengnian, Shao Erquan, Shen Xi and Wu Yueting. Then he asked a group of literati friends to assist him in decorating the pots with painting and calligraphy which were then carved into the body of the teapots. They were great scholars in their right and only came out to assist him solely out of their interest. These men had distinguished themselves in either painting, calligraphy or seal carving. Many of their surviving works are still much sought after by collectors up to the present day.

At Chen Mansheng's instigation, the making of a teapot requires the work of three persons. First, the potter makes a pot, and when it is leather hard, another person decorates it with either painting or calligraphy. Then yet another person is asked to carve it out before the teapot is finally sent for firing. Thus, very often a finished pot has four seals, that of a potter, a painter, a carver and the person who commissioned it. The collaboration between scholars and potters was at its height during the first half of the 19th century. Their concerted efforts help to produce some of the most charming piece of art out of a simple teapot. The scheme was o successful that within a short period of three years of Chen's term in Yixing, Yixing's pottery had not only regained but even surpassed its former prosperity. It has been recorded that the calligraphy and painting on the teapots were of such superior quality that people were willing to pay three times the price for a well decorated teapot than a plain one.


A popular Mansheng pot

 Perhaps never in the history of Chinese ceramics, has any quarter exerted more influence on the final product than the class of literati on the Yixing teapots. Some of the pieces that are housed in various museums of the world are testimonies of their artistic achievements and everlasting tribute to the man who first initiated it - Chen Mansheng.

Some of Mansheng teapots made by recent potters are shown here.


Overhead handle pot


  陈曼生创作的十八种款式紫砂壶。传世“曼生壶”，无论是诗，是文，或是金石、砖瓦文字，都是写刻在壶的腹部或肩部，而且满肩、满腹，占据空间较大，非常显眼，再加上署款“曼生”、“曼生铭”、“阿曼陀室”，或“曼生为七芗题”等等，都是刻在壶身最为引人注目的位置，格外突出。尤其值得特别指出的是陈曼生一反宜兴紫砂工艺的传统作法，竟将壶底中央钤盖陶人印记的部位盖上自己的大印“阿曼陀室”，而把制陶人的印章移在壶盖里或壶把下腹部。


Mansheng Pot by Yang Pengnian

 

Mansheng Pot by Yangpengnian