![[Update 2 Li Silk Road 1.jpg]] ___ In order to tell the story of Jingdezhen, one of the obvious starting points are the artists and craftspeople working across the city in workshops and studios. To that end, I am building a collection of fascinating portraits of people at work. What strikes me though, is the real diversity of creativity encountered. In China, Jingdezhen's reputation often centres around its workshops, and the distinctive nature of labour and production that was established over time. Today you encounter a seemingly endless range of tasks being conducted by those crouched on a stool, or hunched over a table, often surrounded by an elaborate bank of well-used tools. In fact as I move between the different steps and forms of porcelain making, it's fascinating to pay attention to the ways in which tools are kept close at hand. Invariably, one brush or blade is not enough, and as tools accumulate over time, desks and benches become home to piles, bundles, and stacks. ![[Update 2 Li painting.jpg]] ![[Update 2 tool n brushes Li.jpg]] ![[Update 2 mixing.jpg]] ___ Of course, the studio and workshop is the cocoon of organised mess that is so pivotal in the labour of creative expression. It's particularly interesting to be invited into someone's house to observe such environments. It was thus a real privilege to visit the home of Li Wenyue, and capture both he and his wife working, and to discuss brushes and blades and their long careers over tea and fruits. ![[Update 2 Li paints.jpg]] ![[Update 2 Li painting-2.jpg]] ___ As for a number of artists in Jingdezhen, Li Wenyue's work takes inspiration from the city's workshops and long history of production characterised by a sequencing of tasks, such that pieces would pass through many hands on their way to completion. ![[workshops pot Li.jpg]] ![[Update 2 close up.jpg]] ___ Given my own research on Silk Road histories and the newfound currency they find in the era of the Belt and Road Initiative, it was interesting to see the landscape motifs and scenes he chooses to depict and gradually rework. ![[Update 2 Li Silk Road 2.jpg]] Tim Singapore | 11-02 --- [[Update 1]] | [[Update 3]]