To evaluate the connotation of a purple clay teapot, three main factors must be present: beautiful structure, exquisite production skills and excellent use functions. The so-called image structure refers to the spout, lever, lid, buttons, and feet of the pot, which should be in harmony with the overall proportion of the pot body. Exquisite craftsmanship is the criterion for judging the quality of pot art. Excellent practical functions refer to the appropriate volume and weight, the handle of the pot that is easy to hold, the circumference and seams of the pot, and the smooth flow of water from the spout. At the same time, we should consider the refined harmony of color, ground and pattern?
If we talk about the aesthetics of purple clay teapot art in an abstract way, it can be summarized into the four elements of shape, spirit, energy and state. Shape, that is, the beauty of the form, refers to the outer contour of the work, that is, the concrete appearance; Shen means charm, a charm that allows people to experience spiritual beauty; Qi means temperament, the essential beauty contained in pot art; Stance, that is, form, the various postures of the work: high, low, fat, thin, rigid, soft, square, or round. Only by integrating these aspects can it be a truly perfect work. But here we have to distinguish between two aspects: reason and interest. If pot art enthusiasts are more rational, they should pay attention to the volume of the pot, which should be large or small, the spout should be curved or straight, the lid should be long or flat, whether the body is tall or short, and focus on the aspects of making famous tea drinks. As a starting point, it is only rational but boring. Appreciation of an art should be both rational and interesting. No matter whether a piece of work is big or small, whether the spout is curved or straight, whether the lid is high or flat, whether the shape is tall or short, all of them are interesting. Interesting can generate emotions, nourish the soul, and never tire of playing with it. Therefore, when appreciating a new style, one should understand the essence of beauty before commenting on it. Only by starting from this aesthetic attitude can we win the praise of those who love sand art. Of course, as a practical arts and crafts, its applicability is also very important. The comfort in use can delight the body and mind and arouse harmonious interest. Therefore, based on tea drinking habits and customs, we selectively consider the capacity of the pot body, the smooth flow of water from the spout, the effortless and comfortable handling of the pot handle, etc. These must be considered within specific scopes.
Today, the standards for identifying the quality of Yixing purple clay teapots can be summarized in five words: "clay, shape, workmanship, style, and merit." The first four characters are artistic standards, and the last character is functional standards, which are described as follows: The name of the purple clay teapot is inseparable from its production, but the fundamental reason is the superiority of the raw material purple clay for its production. When many modern ceramic monographs analyze the raw material of purple sand, they all mention that it contains iron oxide. In fact, there are countless muds containing iron oxide in various parts of the country, but purple sand cannot be produced elsewhere, only purple mud. This explains the problem. The key lies not in the iron oxide content, but in the "sand" of the purple sand. According to modern scientific analysis, the molecular structure of purple clay is indeed different from other clays. Even the same purple clay has slightly different structures. In this way, due to different raw materials, the functional effects and sensory feelings are also different.
If the function and effect are good, the quality will be high, otherwise, the quality will be poor; if the sensory experience is good, the quality will be high, and if the sensory experience is good, the quality will be poor. Therefore, to evaluate the quality of a purple clay teapot, the first thing to consider is the quality of the clay. The change in mud color only brings a different visual perception to people, but does not contribute to the function or feel. The purple clay teapot is a work of art with strong practical functions. Especially due to the habit of using it, the purple clay teapot needs to be constantly explored to make it feel comfortable and achieve the purpose of psychological pleasure. Therefore, the feeling of purple sand table is more important than mud color. Compared with other clays, one notable feature of purple clay is its different feel. A person who is familiar with purple sand can distinguish between purple sand and non-purple sand with his eyes closed. This means that touching non-purple sand objects is like glassware - sticky, while touching purple sand objects is like touching red bean paste - fine but not greasy. , very comfortable. Therefore, when evaluating a purple clay teapot, the feel of the teapot is very important. The sand-paved pots that have become popular in recent years are products that emphasize this quality and feel. The shape of the purple clay teapot is the richest among all types of utensils in existence, and it is known as "the square shape is not the same, and the round shape is not the same". How to evaluate these shapes is also a matter of "benevolence and wisdom", because the social function of art is to meet people's psychological needs. Since there are various psychological needs; the generous loves the generous, the delicate loves the delicate, the clumsy. Those who love are old-fashioned and those who like to play are fun. Everyone has their own love and cannot force it. From the author's point of view, I believe that simplicity is the best, generosity is the next best, elegance is the third, and fun is the third.
What's the point? Because the purple clay teapot is an integral part of the entire tea culture, the artistic conception it pursues should be the artistic conception pursued by the tea ceremony: "indifferent and peaceful, transcendent and refined", and ancient Zhuo is the most harmonious with this atmosphere, so Ancient Zhuo is the best . Many pot-making craftsmen understand this truth and imitate ancient craftsmanship. The result is that they "imitate others" and lose their own cuteness. You must know that works of art are the expression of the author's state of mind and the result of self-cultivation, which cannot be replaced by anything else. Therefore, there is no need to imitate.
Many traditional shapes of purple sand pots have been left over from history, such as stone peach, well railing, monk's hat, ball, eggplant segment, solitary caltrop, plum chun, antique, etc., which have been washed away by the times. , the only remaining outstanding works are still shining from today's perspective. Nowadays, many artists are copying, and each one is different. For example, according to incomplete statistics, there are more than 100 kinds of stone peach teapots. The reason is that artists of ancient and modern times have integrated their own aesthetic taste into their works. Speaking of "shape", people often mention it together with the schools of purple clay teapot art. They think that the purple clay teapot schools are divided into "jinbu", "flower goods", "guang goods", etc. In fact, this is a very unanalytic approach. . The reason is very simple, just like the genre classification of a dramatic performer, it cannot be determined by what kind of drama he performs, but by his pursuit of fun in dramatic performances. In their artistic career, once the artist's art matures, he will inevitably form his personal style. Several similar personal styles come together to form a school. Art is about feeling. The quality of a purple clay teapot's shape depends entirely on personal feelings. Pot makers' emphasis on "equal shapes" and "equal potentials" is the "balance" taught in modeling science. If you talk about a lot of advanced theories, it is very likely that the explanation will become more unclear the more you talk about it. Isn't there a saying: "It can only be understood, not expressed in words"? The feeling of art depends entirely on the sound of the heart and the understanding of the soul, which is the so-called "heart-to-heart communication". Chinese art has many similarities. For example, the dance movements of Peking Opera and the freehand brushwork of Chinese painting are both bold and bold; the arias of Peking Opera and the fine brushwork of traditional Chinese painting are rigorous; and the molding techniques of purple clay pots are similar to those of Peking Opera arias and traditional Chinese painting. Gongbi techniques have the same effect but different approaches, and are also very rigorous.
Points, lines, and surfaces are the basic elements that make up the shape of a purple clay pot. During the forming process of a purple clay pot, they must be explained clearly, just like gongbi painting. It must be explained clearly. The face must be light, and it must be hairy; the line must be straight, and it must be curved; the point must be square, and it must be round, and there must be no ambiguity. Otherwise, it cannot be considered a good pot. According to the special requirements of the purple clay pot molding process, the spout and handle must be absolutely in line and the weight must be balanced; the spout and lid must be tightly coupled. This is also a requirement of "work". The style is the identity of the pot. There are two meanings in appreciating the style of a purple clay pot: one is to identify the author of the pot, or the author of the poem and inscription. Another meaning is to appreciate the content of the inscription, the engraved calligraphy and painting, and the seal (inscriptions on gold and stone). The decorative art of purple clay pots is a part of traditional Chinese art. It has the remarkable characteristics of the four-in-one Chinese traditional art of "poetry, calligraphy, painting and sealing". Therefore, in addition to the clay color, shape, and craftsmanship, a purple clay teapot also has many aspects to look at, including literature, calligraphy, painting, epigraphy, and many other aspects, which can bring more beautiful enjoyment to pot appreciators.
Historically, purple clay teapots have been priced per person, and famous teapots are worth a hundred times as much. It is especially prominent in the commodity society. In this way, it is easy for many imitations of famous pots to appear on the market, and counterfeit products are common. You need to be especially careful when purchasing famous pots. The so-called gong refers to the functional beauty of the pot. In recent years, new products of purple clay teapots have emerged one after another, and they are as bright as stars. Pot makers pay attention to the formal beauty of the shape, but often ignore the functional beauty. This phenomenon can be seen everywhere. In particular, some pot makers do not drink tea themselves, so they know little about tea-drinking habits. This also directly affects the function of the purple clay pot, and some pots may even become unusable.
In fact, the biggest difference between a purple clay teapot and other works of art is that it is a highly practical work of art. Its "art" all lies in "use" and "quality". If the " The meaning of "use" and "art" no longer exist. Therefore, you must not ignore the functional beauty of the pot.
The functional beauty of the purple clay teapot is mainly reflected in:
(1) Moderate capacity;
(2) Appropriate height;
( 3) The lid is tight;
(4) The water comes out smoothly; according to the current tea drinking habits of people in southern my country (including Hong Kong and Taiwan), usually two to five people will drink, and the maximum capacity of 350 ml should be used. good. Its capacity is just about four cups, and it only takes one hand to carry it, so it is called a "one-hand pot". The height of the purple clay teapot has its own uses. A tall pot is small, suitable for brewing black tea; a short pot is large, suitable for brewing green tea, but it must be moderate. If it is too high, the tea will lose its flavor; if it is too short, the tea will easily overflow from the lid, which will ruin the scenery. Another factor that hinders the scenery is the poor water flow from the spout. A few small beads of pearl tea turn into large leaves when they get into the pot, which is easy to block the spout. Nowadays, pot makers have renamed the spout as a single tea according to the habits of tea drinkers. , making the water flow significantly smoother than before. The lid of the pot is required to be tight so that the water that is brewed can fall into the sea of ??tea and not fall into the pot. It seems that it has little to do with functional beauty. In fact, it is because of hygiene and must be mentioned. All these are functional standards.