Discover the story behind a handmade cigar ashtray from Jingdezhen, China.
Visit the kiln, explore the craftsmanship, and see where ceramic objects are shaped by fire and time.
alt text\caption Houshan Wood-Fired Kiln, Lotus Pond Outdoor Base
In Jingdezhen, ceramics are not made only inside factories or displayed behind glass.
They are made in workshops, studios and kilns scattered throughout the city and its surrounding countryside.
During one of my visits, I went to a kiln where a series of handmade ceramic cigar ashtrays are produced.
I brought my camera with me to document the place behind the objects the kiln, the workshop, the surroundings, and the details that are rarely seen once a finished piece reaches a customer.
"Nestled in a secluded mountain retreat, far from the hustle of the world."
A Kiln Is More Than a Place to Fire Ceramics
"They operate two kilns, enabling them to meet the demands of customers worldwide."
For a ceramic object, the kiln is one of the final stages of its journey.
Before the firing begins, there are many decisions: the shape of the object, the surface, the decoration, the glaze and the way the piece is prepared for the kiln.
Once the piece enters the kiln, however, part of the process is no longer completely under the maker's control.
Heat changes surfaces.
Glaze reacts.
Small variations become part of the finished object.
This is one of the reasons I find ceramic work so interesting. A finished object records not only the decisions made by the maker, but also what happened during firing.
A cigar ashtray may appear to be a simple functional object.
But when it is made by hand, its character comes from much more than its function.
The form needs to work.
The surface needs to hold the decoration.
The proportions need to feel right on a table.
And after all of this, the piece still has to survive the kiln.
The cigar ashtrays I encountered at this kiln combine practical use with a distinctly decorative character. They are designed to be used, but they also belong naturally in spaces where the object itself becomes part of the atmosphere.
Where Craft Meets Lifesyle
A cigar ashtray is not simply an object for holding ash.
In the right setting, it becomes part of a ritual — a table, a cigar, a drink, a conversation, and the atmosphere surrounding them.
That is what interested me about these pieces.
Their value is not only in the ceramic itself, but also in the environment they are made for.
Why We Document the Places Behind the Objects
At Fire and Clay, we do not want to show only the finished object.
We want to understand where it comes from.
Who made it?
Where was it made?
What does the workshop look like?
What kind of kiln transformed it?
And what happens before the object finally reaches a collector's home?
These questions are part of why we visit the kilns and studios ourselves.
Fire and Clay is not a factory. It is our way of discovering, selecting and telling the stories of ceramic makers and their work in Jingdezhen.
The Story Behind the Object
The finished cigar ashtray is only the final chapter.
Behind it are the place, the people, the materials, the hands and the fire.
This is what we hope to preserve when we document ceramic work in Jingdezhen.
Not simply what an object looks like.
But where it came from.
Discover the pieces from this kiln →
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