Bring Me a Glaze Like the Sky After Rain: Imperial ceramics of the Northern and Southern Song dynasties
The National Palace Museum in Taipei is a treasure-trove of traditional Chinese culture, of which the delicate, almost minimalist wares of the Song dynasty are an undisputed highlight. To introduce the Museum’s superlative collection of these works of art to the British public, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of China and the Taipei Representative Office in the UK are in partnership with Asia House in London to host the lecture “Bring Me a Glaze Like the Sky After Rain: Imperial ceramics of the Northern and Southern Song dynasties” on 19 March at Asia House.
The Song emperor reportedly commanded his workshops to produce a vessel "the colour of the sky after rain". The result was Ru ware— subtle masterpieces of both form and colour. This talk discusses the technological and artistic innovations that allowed the potters of Song China to meet such seemingly impossible requests, alongside the reasons why these masterpieces have continued to be so highly prized throughout the following centuries, fetching prices of over £17million in Sotheby's Hong Kong in 2012.
The speaker Dr Stacey Pierson is the former curator of the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art. A specialist in Chinese ceramics, she is currently a senior lecturer on the subject at the School of Oriental and African Studies. The Q&A host will be Ms Beth McKillop, who is currently the Deputy Director of the Victoria and Albert Museum, and formerly the Keeper of the Asian department.
For further details, please contact:
Asia House
63 New Cavendish Street
London W1G 7LP
www.asiahouse.org
+44(0)20 7307 5454
enquiries@asiahouse.co.uk
Photo courtesy:National Palace Museum
