I have many things to talk about on the web site to officially get caught up but we are seeing so much. It is hard to keep up. I will update some more later.

His work is really good. We are all having a great time with him and he brought us supplies from the states via Rick and Donna's intervention. Thank you Rick and Donna

Ron won't be with us long but he will be going to Xian with us this weekend. I will learn more about him and tell all of you more.

Detail of his frog handle.

He is in he studio cranking out the pots in his wonderful style and creating quite a buzz amongst interested Chinese artists.

Ron Meyers also just got here and he is great. His wife Hester arrived with him. In this shot he is talking with some Chinese folks about pots he saw in Shanghai.

Here is a closer picture of him. The kiln he used was great. It is an all fiber kiln. The drafting is a down draft kiln and it is fired with propane. I don't know how long the firing was but it was pretty short. Notice the kiln shelves are very thin and modern as well. These are expensive shelves back in the states. Later I will show you some pictures of some of our finished works.

Here is the Sifu who was responsible for the firing. Sifu is Chinese for master. This guy really did a good job stacking the wares in the kiln and also did a good job in the firing.

Here is Gus doing some late night glazing as well.

This is a picture of our glaze booth. This is katie glazing some of her pots.

Here are some more pictures of the facility at night. This is great time to work. We spent most of the night glazing for our first kiln firing.

An exciting thing happend the other night at Sanboa. We got lights in the studio and we can work at night.

Currently I am updating the website that is alway in the back of my mind. I'm compiling more video and still images to archive for future education of ceramic artists. The art, techniques, and images in China are amazing The education gained by this exchange provides an incredible foundation for any ceramic artist. The time is right to learn about a culture that is an authority in ceramic art. The experience gained through this program will create a platform for an artist to springboard from. The artists will learn technical skills that few in western society have seen. Using this blend of western freedom and eastern tradition can lead to more possibilities for the contemporary ceramic artist. The next entries will come soon and I will talk more about the Taichien potters and trip to Yixing. My email address is hardboater@hotmail.com feel free to contact me or any of the other students about your questions or comments. We all look forward to any emails we receive.

The flange of the lid is a hollow box so fingers can be put inside the finger holes to opperate the lid. The spout is interesting and I can't wait to see how it performs. We have all really enjoyed making the Yixing teapots and all have gathered some wonderful tools which I will comment on at a later time.

This is another teapot I made. I designed it to fit into a bamboo box that I bought in Yixing. The dimensions are all off .5 cm's but I am hoping I will get the final dimensions out of the 10% shrinkage that will come from the firing. The lid on this pot is really wonderful and Jason and I brainstormed on the lid design.

Here is my traditional Yixing teapot and you can see I need to spend more time burnishing it. I have really enjoyed learning about the Yixing style and I can't wait to post more information on our education about Yixing and the technical abilities of the potters. The handle and the spout relate well to eachother and the lid fits perfect. I can't wait to make my first batch of tea out of this pot.

Here is a traditional scene of a boatman that I enjoy painting. I enjoy painting boat scenes of China because it reminds me of being a raft guide in West Virginia. I feel there are many connections from the landscape of Jingdezhen and the landscape of West Virginia. Mountains and rivers play a big role in my life and I want them to be a theme that runs through my work in the time to come.

At first I was having difficulty in throwing with the clay but now I feel more comfortable in creating the shapes I want. This is a bowl that I threw, split the rim and decorated with caligraphy. I used some of the slip and trailer to make the inside decoration. I have found out that the split rim is very hard to handle and have broken a few tying to glaze. By the way, all the pots here are glazed in the greenware stage and oncefired, so this makes it tough. They never bisque. I think that all of the students have broken pots during the glaze process. The only time they twice fire is to do a painting technique called overglaze and I will talk about that later.

Trying to develop images with gestural limited brushstrokes are challenging. This is my attempt at minimalist strokes to manifest an image. I'm really trying to pay attention to the subtle tones that can be achieved from light to dark with the Chinghua as well as letting the white space have a voice.

Understanding the elements of depth that can be produced through Chinghua painting is very appealing to me. Here I painted some sunflowers that a master demonstrated and found out, like everything else, it is not as easy as it looks.

My name is Steve and I just graduated with my undergraduate degree in ceramics from WVU. My influences in ceramics are based on tradition and form. I like the functional aspect of clay along with the process it takes to manifest the art. I'm from West Virginia and have been inspired to no end from my trips to China. Wvu has a great program and has really enlighted and educated many of the students who have participated in the study abroad program. My work as a potter has immensely grown because of China. I feel the things I have learned here will really last the rest of my life and the technical abilities gathered from the many masters will only make my work more layered.

Katie has been working well here discovering many things about ceramics and herself. If you would like to contact here she can be reached at taylorm3@winthrop.edu Currently she is currently hanging out with Lisa and Nicole talking about girl stuff and modeling the new silk robe that she just had hand made. It looks good.

On this bowl you can see some chattering left by the trimming tool. This is a common problem we are all having and it is because the trimming tool is not sharp enough. This is challenging becuase you have to have a real understanding of the tool to sharpen it. Not to mention be really good and patient with the file. Keep it up Katie and it will happen.

Another one of her bowls.

Here are some of her bowls. They are decorated with Chinghuwa and look good. The bowls are thrown and trimmed well. I think these are going to look great once it is fired.

Here is her Yixing teapot and she has put some long hours in on this. The handle and spout look great and she is discovering the dedication it takes to make a good Yixing teapot.

Katie is from South Carolina where she is currently working on her undergraduate in ceramics.

Kei is currently working at the studio and is also really enjoying his time here in Jingdezhen. We are also finding out that he is a master at card playing and he and Gus have are having some great card games. Kei can be contacted at keisato@hotmail.com

Here are some examples of his Chinghua. It looks like he enjoys calligraphy.

His handles are looking good and he has told me that working at the WVU production department has really improved his ability to make a good handle.

He has produced a lot of cups and many of them are looking great and have a good weight.

He works hard at throwing pots and is having success.

Kei is a Japanese exchange student that is attending WVu for his undergraduate degree in ceramics. He brings a multicultural element to the program that has been great at WVU and has also come in handy here in China. He is able to read Chinese but cannot speak it. This has been a real help in ordering food and other challenges that the group has been faced with. I don't know if he was Cut in the 60's but the guy has some great T-shirts.

Scott is currently working at the studio on making some slab work. He has a natural ability with the clay and is really enjoying his time here in Jingdezhen. He can be contacted at cornscott@yahoo.com for any comments on his work.

This is Scott's Yixing teapot. I know that he broke the handle off a couple of times while burnishing it with an ox horn. It is really hard and takes some patience, but Scott has the right attitude and this piece will turn out well.

I really enjoy how well the handle and the spout work together on this piece. This pot has some great continutiy in all aspects of design. We are all really looking forward to Scott doing some great things in ceramics.

His forms are great and the Chinese people have all been really interested in them. You can see some of his teapots as well.

Here is a picture of some of the cups that he is making.

More pouring vessels and some bottle forms. He has made a lot of pots and hasn't even been fazed by the challenging work ability of the clay.

Scott is a graduate student from WVU who comes to us from Pennsylvania. He is very prolific in ceramics and is really creating some wonderful work here at Sanboa. His style is very gestural and loose but has a refinement that is wonderful. I really enjoy his work and have loved firing wood kilns with him during my undergrad. He graduated from Edinboro University in Pennsylvania and is about ready to graduate from WVU with his masters. He knows a lot about glazes and techniques and will surely do well in the future. These are some of his pouring vessels.

He also jams well on the guitar and has been entertaining us at night with great American songs. He can be contacted at marleyman13@hotmail.com for any comments or questions on his work.

Alex has been really enjoying China and the ideas that have come from it. He feels he is going back to WVU as a new potter with a well of ideas and is ready to get back in the studio.

This is a Yixing teapot created by Alex and looks burnished well. The lid fits perfectly and the pot has a light weight. He is really excited to add it to his large collection of teapots.

Working on some Chinghua has been great for all of us. Here Alex is creating original fish that are swimming through the canvas. These will be nice when they are fired. Fish on pots are very Chinese and can be seen throughout historic porcelain art. The subject matter is timeless easily transcending from the past to present as a popular design on ceramic wares.

Here are some more pieces from Alex.

He has been finding out that the Jingdezhen porcelain is challenging to work with but he is one of those people who never say die. Here are some of his pieces. On some of his thrown work he likes to sculpt into the body to create a stone like surface. The interface with the celedon glazes will produce the effect he desires, and Alex should get some nice work out of the kiln.

Alex is another student from WVu and he is getting ready to graduate with his undergraduate degree. He has been working hard in the studio throwing pots. Alex is from Virginia. He is one of my snowboarding partners and we talk about coming back to the states and hitting the slopes often. An aspect about Alex that I find interesting is his eye for art. He has really good taste in art and has collected some great pieces here in China. He says that he has many new ideas since he has been here and he feels like he is going to go back for his last semester like a new ceramic artist. Look out he is going to be coming in hot.

Here he is working once again on throwing. Currently he is glazing for the loading and firing tomorrow. He can be reached at bradleyb_23@hotmail.com

His Yixing teapot is looking good as well. Utilizing a traditional form he is understanding how much time it takes to make and then burnish the pot.

Here is a platter that is going to be great once it is taken through to end. I really enjoy the movement in his pots and here is great example of a piece that wants to float. The rim design is gestural and shows off the flexibility of the clay, way to go B. I'm sure he will try to spray some sort of rice huse ash glaze on this.

More teapots from Brad.