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  • New Year, New Clay

    by Patrick Gorman
    Anticipating the end of his supply of dicaoqing clay, Lin Hanpeng had purchased a large amount of raw dicaoqing ore mined from Mine No. 5 in Huanglongshan. The raw ore was processed into clay and then stored for ageing in late 2018.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Benshan Duanni or Benshan Lüni?

    by Patrick Gorman
    Within the category "duanni," there is also the clay called “Benshan Duanni” 本山段泥. Another well-known clay within the “duanni” category is Benshan Lüni 本山绿泥. Although both are yellow clays mined from the same mountain, they differ in origin, composition and character.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Some Notes on Yixing Clay Scarcity and Pricing

    by Patrick Gorman

    “If clay x is so rare, it should cost $1000s for a teapot made of this clay.”

    No, usually not. While you will not be able to buy an authentic zhuni teapot for $25, you also do not need to pay $1000 for one either. The price difference between more common and less common clays can usually vary between  $10-100 or so between teapots (all other things being equal). The rarity of clay is not the biggest influence on price in the zisha market, labour and the skill/reputation of the potter usually are. Fully handmade teapots are more expensive than half handmade teapots, and a fully handmade teapot by a master, even more so.

    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Lipini, the Pear Skin Clay

    by Patrick Gorman
    1 ½ tons of rock sat in the yard behind Lin Hanpeng’s studio in Yixing while men smashed it into pieces with hammers. This rock, after crushing, separating and processing, yielded mostly tianqingni, but also some lipini. While tianqingni is seen as one of the most precious varieties of zini (purple clay), lipini is rarer still, appearing only in thin layers between tianqingni deposits.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Tian Qing Ni

    by Patrick Gorman
    Tian qing ni 天青泥 has taken on a legendary status for many Yixing teapot enthusiasts. Said to be the finest variety of zini (Yixing purple clay),  most of the information available about tian qing ni can be found in sources that rely on ancient references to the clay as well as surviving examples of antique tian qing ni teapots and the raw ore (such as the examples found today in the Yixing Ceramics Museum).
    Posted in history, teaware, yixing teapots

  • Yixing Teapots: Most Popular Clays and Shapes, and the North-South Difference.

    by Patrick Gorman
    This is part 2 of our interview with Lin Hanpeng, the co-owner along with Chen Chunhong, of an Yixing Teapot Studio.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Inside an Yixing Teapot Studio

    by Patrick Gorman
    The first time we met Chen Chunhong and Lin Hanpeng was at the tea table of their shop in Guangzhou. Chen Chunhong chatted with us as she poured us each a cup of shu pu'er. Her husband Lin Hanpeng was discussing clay with some customers. At the time the two were very busy with a growing customer base - thanks largely to word of mouth among zisha (Yixing Clay) enthusiasts in the city. Their shop was known for the authenticity of its teapots - only using original ore zisha and focusing on functionality. They worked with a few reliable artists out of Yixing. They soon left their shop in Guangzhou to establish their own studio in Yixing.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Ball Filter Phobia

    by Patrick Gorman
    Teapots with ball filters have a somewhat dubious reputation in China. For many, having a ball filter is a sign that a teapot is cheap or low-quality. To understand where this reputation comes from and how fair it is, it helps to look at where this design came from and how it has been applied.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Yixing Clay: Qinghuini

    by Patrick Gorman
    This week we look at another kind of Yixing clay, and a subtype of zini (purple clay), called original ore Qinghuini 原矿青灰泥.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Jiangponi: New Kid on the Block

    by Patrick Gorman
    Unlike clays such as zini or hongni, the use of jiangponi for teapots does not have a long history stretching back hundreds of years. In fact, jiangponi is a very young addition to the family of clays used for Yixing teapots, only having been discovered several decades ago.
    Posted in history, teaware, yixing teapots

  • The 3 Kinds of Dahongpao Clay

    by Patrick Gorman
    Much has been said about the legendary "Dahongpao" clay from Yixing. Some say it's rare, others that it's extinct, others that it's still available, and others that dahongpao teapots are fake. There is some truth in each of these claims. 
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots

  • Why age Zhuni Clay?

    by Patrick Gorman
    A block of zhuni from Huang Long Mountain 黄龙山 sits ageing at the studio of Chen Chunhong and Lin Hanpeng. Curious to see whether or not the clay had aged long enough, Lin Hanpeng took a small amount to shape into a cup and fire this week.
    Posted in teaware, yixing teapots