瓷都景德鎮(zhèn)，青年藝匠的朝圣之地

JINGDEZHEN, China — For centuries, the most coveted china from China came out of Jingdezhen’s workshops — fashioned from clay made smooth by trained hands, fired in kilns and then transported across the world.

中國景德鎮(zhèn)——數(shù)百年來，中國最受青睞的瓷器來自景德鎮(zhèn)的作坊——經(jīng)嫻熟的雙手處理的光滑粘土被捏成形，在窯爐里燒制，然后運往世界各地。

The works graced the courts of the Persians, Mongols and French. Some craved blue-and-white vases. Others admired jade-green celadon bowls. This was China’s greatest export, the rival of silk.

這些工藝品曾給波斯、蒙古和法國的宮廷增光添彩。有些人渴望得到青花瓶。有些人則喜歡青瓷碗。它是中國最重要的出口商品，與絲綢旗鼓相當。

The fall of the Qing dynasty and war and revolutions in the 20th century broke the artisan culture, unless one counts Communist statues as an important stage in China’s hallowed porcelain tradition.

清朝的衰落以及20世紀的戰(zhàn)爭和革命破壞了這項手工藝文化，除非有人把共產(chǎn)主義雕像也算作神圣的中國瓷器傳統(tǒng)的重要階段。

Now that tradition is being revived at the roots. Young people are moving to study in Jingdezhen, a river town in the southern Chinese province of Jiangxi. Studios and workshops have popped up around town and in the surrounding valleys. Some of the new artisans hope to profit from their skills, since the country’s middle-class boom of recent decades has meant a greater demand for porcelain.

現(xiàn)在，這項傳統(tǒng)正從根源開始復(fù)興。年輕人正前往中國南方江西省的濱河城市景德鎮(zhèn)學習。城市各處和周圍的山谷里涌現(xiàn)出很多工作室和作坊。有些新手工藝人希望用自己的技藝獲利，因為近幾十年來，這個國家的中產(chǎn)階級的壯大意味著對瓷器的需求量在增大。

“I like the atmosphere here very much,” said Fang Xin, 27, a woman from the Guangxi region who showed me how she was sculpting a clay cup with her hands one morning in a former factory. “A lot of people with dreams come here. There is a variety of teachers, and they teach all kinds of skills and ideas.”

“我非常喜歡這里的氣氛，”27歲的廣西姑娘方欣(音)說。一天早上，她在一個工廠舊址向我展示如何手工做出一個杯胚。“很多懷有夢想的人來到這里。這里有很多老師，他們教授各種技巧和想法。”

There is even a term for young artists like Ms. Fang: jingpiao, or Jingdezhen drifters.

方欣這樣的年輕藝術(shù)家甚至有一個稱呼：景漂。

Ms. Fang was working in a space managed by the Pottery Workshop, an education center opened in 2005 by the sculptors Caroline Cheng and Takeshi Yasuda that has become a magnet for jingpiao. (The workshop’s mother branch opened in Hong Kong in 1985.) The center has been critical in rejuvenating the Jingdezhen ceramics scene.

方欣在樂天陶社經(jīng)營的一個空間里工作。這是雕塑家鄭祎和安田猛(Takeshi Yasuda)在2005年開設(shè)的一個教育中心，已經(jīng)成為一個對景漂很有吸引力的地方(該工作室的母公司1985年在香港創(chuàng)立)。該中心在振興景德鎮(zhèn)陶瓷業(yè)方面發(fā)揮了重要作用。

In 2008, Ms. Cheng opened a Saturday outdoor market in a courtyard space by the workshop and its cafe, so artists could try to make a living by selling their creations.

2008年，鄭祎在工作室的庭院和咖啡館里開設(shè)了周六戶外市集，藝術(shù)家們可以嘗試通過銷售自己的作品謀生。

The idea came when a recent workshop graduate asked Ms. Cheng if she could sell items outside the cafe. She wanted to set up on a blanket, but Ms. Cheng insisted on erecting a proper tent covering, said Po-Wen Liu, the workshop’s deputy director and a teacher there. These days, about 80 artists take part in the market. They place their wares on tables under white awnings.

新近從工作室畢業(yè)的一名畢業(yè)生問鄭祎是否可以在咖啡館外賣瓷器，由此產(chǎn)生了設(shè)立這項活動的想法。工作室的總監(jiān)、教師劉博文說，那名畢業(yè)生想在毯子上售賣，但鄭祎堅決主張布置合適的遮篷。如今，約有80名藝術(shù)家加入了這個市集。他們把自己的作品放在白色遮篷下的桌子上。

Mr. Liu is from Taiwan and studied ceramics art there and in the United States before teaching at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He joined the Pottery Workshop in December 2015 after answering an ad for a teaching position. His wife, son and daughter continue to live in Greensboro.

劉博文來自臺灣，曾在臺灣和美國學習陶藝，后在北卡羅來納大學格林斯伯勒分校(University of North Carolina at Greensboro)教書。2015年12月，他去樂天陶社應(yīng)聘教師，成為其中一員。他的妻子、兒子和女兒繼續(xù)在格林斯伯勒生活。

“Since I was a student, I wanted to come to Jingdezhen,” he said. “It’s the mecca.”

“因為我是學這個的，我想來景德鎮(zhèn)，”他說。“這里是麥加圣地。”

Mr. Liu teaches classes of about 15 students for one week or more. These take place in a building at the rear gate of the compound, which is on the grounds of a state-run sculpture factory. Two brick chimneys from an unused kiln rise near the education center. Many students are recent graduates of the Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute, the most prominent academy in town.

劉博文的班上約有15名學生，授課時間是一周或更長。教學活動在這個綜合建筑物后門邊上的一座樓里進行，整個建筑群坐落在一個國營雕塑廠的場地內(nèi)，教育中心附近的廢棄窯爐有兩個磚制煙囪。很多學生剛從景德鎮(zhèn)陶瓷學院畢業(yè)，那是這座城市最著名的學院。

“I would say their craftsmanship is amazing and their technical level is very high,” Mr. Liu said. “But their conceptual skills need improvement. There’s too much historical burden. They need to break out of the boundaries.”

“我得說他們的技藝很高，教育水平很高，”劉博文說，“但他們的概念技巧需要提升。他們的歷史負擔太重。他們需要打破界線。”

“For example, if I ask them to make a cup, they will make something very uniform,” he added. “They might have an idea of what a Chinese cup looked like 1,000 years ago. They will stick with this. I personally like more creativity. I tell them to have the work reflect the handmade quality, not something made by machine.”

“比如，如果我讓他們做一個杯子，他們做出來的東西都很像，”他補充說。“他們可能知道1000年前中國的杯子是什么樣的。他們將遵循這個傳統(tǒng)。我個人喜歡更多創(chuàng)造性。我讓他們從自己的作品中反映出手工制品的品質(zhì)，展現(xiàn)與機器制品的區(qū)別。”

Though most students are Chinese, the workshop has an international flavor. The manager is Siumei Ngan, a trained arts administrator who moved here from Hong Kong in November 2015. At any given time, the workshop has about eight artists in residence, most of them from outside China. They stay up to six months.

盡管大部分學生是中國人，但工作坊卻有一種國際氛圍。經(jīng)理是藝術(shù)管理科班出身的顏小美，2015年11月從香港來到這里。工作坊在任何時候都有約八名藝術(shù)家駐場，他們大多來自中國以外的地方，最多會待上半年。

There are also foreign study groups. In the cafe, I met Brandon Schnur, 29, the co-leader of a group of 13 students from the West Virginia University Ceramics Program visiting for the summer.

也有一些國外的學習小組。我在咖啡館遇見了29歲的布蘭登·施努爾(Brandon Schnur)，他是西弗吉尼亞大學(West Virginia University)陶瓷課程的13名學生的帶隊人之一，這個夏天他們來這里訪學。

The workshop has a pottery kiln that resident artists can use. They work in individual studios on the upper floor of one building. Sunlight streams in from large glass windows.

工作坊有個窯，可以供駐場藝術(shù)家使用。他們在一座建筑上層的單獨工作室內(nèi)工作。陽光透過大玻璃窗照射進來。

A Canadian woman, Denise White, 29, sat at a table painting a small porcelain outdoor scene with snow-covered trees and a polar bear. She said her goal for the two-and-a-half-week residency was to design molds of Canadian scenes that she could bring home to make sculptures for sale.

29歲的丹尼絲·懷特(Denise White)來自加拿大，她坐在桌邊，給一個小型瓷器作品繪制野外風景，有銀裝素裹的樹木和一只北極熊。她說她要在這里駐場兩周半，目標是設(shè)計加拿大風景模具，可以帶回去制作雕塑出售。

“I got 13 small molds made here,” Ms. White said. “The master mold-makers here can pretty much do anything.”

“我在這里做了13個小模具，”懷特說，“這里的模具制造師傅幾乎什么都能做。”

Jingdezhen has been producing ceramics since the early Chinese dynasties. But it was during the Tang dynasty, from 618 to 907, that word of the town’s arts spread.

景德鎮(zhèn)從中國的封建王朝早期就開始生產(chǎn)瓷器。不過到了618年至907年的唐代，它的藝術(shù)名聲才傳播開來。

In that era, Jingdezhen was called Changnan because it sits on the south bank of the Chang River, and some historians say the word “china” — and thus the Western name of the country — came from a bad transliteration of the town’s name. Some scholars date China’s earliest fine porcelain to the Five Dynasties and 10 Kingdoms period, a time of upheaval in the 10th century.

在那個時代，景德鎮(zhèn)被稱為昌南，因為它位于昌江南岸。有些史學家認為，瓷器的英文單詞“china”——以及西方對中國的稱呼“China”——源自對這個名字的糟糕音譯。有些學者認為，中國最早的精致瓷器制作可以追溯到五代十國時期，那是10世紀的一個混亂時代。

Dynasties rose and fell, but each new emperor ordered porcelain to be brought from Jingdezhen to their courts. Imperial officials were posted in Jingdezhen to oversee the production. Pieces from here carried a stamp of authenticity and gained prominence worldwide.

王朝興起衰落，但每個新皇帝都命令景德鎮(zhèn)向?qū)m廷進貢瓷器?；始夜賳T駐守在景德鎮(zhèn)督促生產(chǎn)。這里生產(chǎn)的瓷器會有用于防偽的款識，在世界各地享有盛譽。

Today, the values of those works are among the highest in the Chinese art world. At a 2014 Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong, the Shanghai businessman Liu Yiqian offered a record-setting $36.3 million for a delicate Ming dynasty porcelain cup, called a “chicken cup,” that was fired in Jingdezhen’s imperial kilns.

在今天，這些瓷器是中國藝術(shù)中價值最高的作品。在2014年香港的蘇富比(Sotheby’s)拍賣會上，上海商人劉益謙以破記錄的3630萬美元買下一個精致的明代“雞缸杯”，是在景德鎮(zhèn)的官窯中燒制的。

After paying for the cup with a credit card, he took a celebratory sip of tea from it.

在用信用卡支付買下該杯之后，他用它喝了一口茶，以示慶祝。

After the Communists took over in 1949, Jingdezhen became known for the production of propaganda statues. By 1958, that work was consolidated into 10 main factories or studios.

1949年共產(chǎn)黨上臺后，景德鎮(zhèn)以生產(chǎn)政治宣傳雕塑聞名。1958年，那項工作被統(tǒng)一交給10個主要的工廠或作坊完成。

In recent years, the local government has begun its own efforts to rejuvenate the porcelain industry. But people in the industry say it is the small, privately run workshops that are revitalizing the traditions while injecting them with new ideas.

最近幾年，當?shù)卣约阂查_始努力復(fù)興陶瓷行業(yè)。但業(yè)內(nèi)人認為，是私營小工作坊在復(fù)興這些傳統(tǒng)，同時也給它們注入新的觀念。

One such workshop lies in the Sanbao Village area across a river. Here, artists and businesspeople have opened workshops and studios throughout a lush valley.

其中一個工作坊位于河對岸的三寶村。在這里，藝術(shù)家和商人開設(shè)的作坊和工作室遍布整個蔥翠的山谷。

Perhaps the most striking one is Zhenrutang, whose sprawling showroom consists of four connected traditional homes moved here from the white-walled village area of Huizhou, in neighboring Anhui Province. Bowls, plates and vases sit on tables and are bathed in the soft glow of overhead lights. Buddhist figurines are also on display.

其中最引人注目的可能是真如堂，它龐大的展廳由四座相連的傳統(tǒng)宅院組成，它們是從毗鄰的安徽省徽州區(qū)那片白墻村落群搬過來的。桌上的碗、盤、瓶沐浴在頭頂射下的柔和燈光里。同時展出的還有佛像。

The porcelain works are designed by Jiang Bo, 35, a native of Xi’an who came to Jingdezhen in 2001 to study at the ceramics institute. Eight years later, he opened his own studio. More than 40 people work for it on the grounds here.

這些瓷器作品是35歲的江波設(shè)計的，他是西安人，2001年來景德鎮(zhèn)的陶瓷學院學習。八年后，他開設(shè)了自己的工作室。有40多人在這里工作。

A signature piece is a small teapot with a pair of cups, all in a creamy powder blue. Each cup has a tiny rough nub on the smooth bottom, like a rock protruding from an ocean’s surface. Called “Mountain and Water,” the set sells for $150.

真如堂的一件代表作品是配有兩個杯子的茶壺，全是光滑細膩的粉藍色。每個杯子光滑的底部都有一個粗糙的小突起，像是海平面上冒出的巖石。整套茶具被稱為“山水如意”，全套售價150美元。

“If you want to develop a career around ceramics, Jingdezhen is the best place,” said Mr. Jiang, who is now vice general manager of the company.

“如果你想在陶瓷方面開創(chuàng)事業(yè)，景德鎮(zhèn)是最佳地點，”現(xiàn)為這家公司副總經(jīng)理的江波說。

Like the Pottery Workshop, Zhenrutang also has a residency program for foreign artists.

和樂天陶社一樣，真如堂也有提供給外國藝術(shù)家的駐留計劃。

“More and more young people decide to stay here,” Mr. Jiang said. “Some of them come from big cities. Here, it’s easier to start ceramics workshops.”

“越來越多的年輕人決定留在這里，”江波說。“他們當中有些人來自大城市。在這兒辦陶藝工作室更容易。

But like the town’s pottery, some Jingdezhen drifters are now moving to other corners of China. Ms. Cheng, co-founder of the Pottery Workshop, said artists were getting married, having children and asking themselves what were more suitable environments for them. She lives in Dali, a rural town in Yunnan Province that has attracted an extraordinary number of Chinese fleeing the cities.

但是，和鎮(zhèn)上的陶藝一樣，一些景漂正在搬往中國的其他角落。樂天陶社的創(chuàng)始人鄭祎說，藝術(shù)家們開始結(jié)婚生孩子，并考慮什么樣的環(huán)境最適合他們。目前她住在大理，那是云南省的一個鄉(xiāng)間城鎮(zhèn)，吸引了大量逃離城市的中國人。

“I have now met a lot of people who have gone home,” Ms. Cheng said. “I really don’t encourage people to stay in Jingdezhen forever. It’s good that they go home. They can teach others what they’ve learned here.”

“我現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)遇到過很多回家的人，”鄭祎說。“我真的不鼓勵人們永遠留在景德鎮(zhèn)。他們回家很好。他們可以把在這里學到的東西教給別人。”