On the evening of November 3, "Shanglin Inspirations" — Yue Kiln Celadon Art Master Lecture was held successfully in the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC). As the first event of the "Ningbo Intangible Cultural Heritage" series, this lecture was hosted by Ningbo Municipal Foreign Affairs Office and Ningbo Municipal Information Office.
This onsite lecture was also broadcast live online. The lecturer Ms. SHI Zhen is a master of arts and crafts in Zhejiang and also a provincial representative inheritor of the national representative intangible cultural heritage project named "Firing Skills of Yue Kiln Celadon". She introduced Yue kiln celadon to online and offline audience in three parts, including its history and culture, firing skills, and art innovation. The audience appreciated the beauty of fine and rare ancient celadon artworks and learned about the modern innovation of the Yue kiln celadon with a history of thousands of years. During the lecture, Ms. SHI Zhen showed a variety of celadon artworks featuring her personal style, including Purple Lotus, Shanglin Inspirations — Suite of Red, Yellow and Blue, Four Seasons — Bamboo-Hat-Shaped Tea Cup Set, Ocean Waves — Coffee Ware. The audience had a glimpse of the artist's colorful inner world by appreciating her celadon artworks of bold innovation.
"Ms. SHI Zhen adds modern simple celadon pattern designs and abstract and flowing color painting techniques to her artworks based on the usage of traditional Yue kiln celadon techniques. By combining modern art and classical aesthetics, she has given a brand new aesthetic effect to the Yue kiln celadon," said Prof. Gary Rawnsley, Dean of Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of UNNC. He said that UNNC upheld liberal arts education, and he was very glad that UNNC could host such international cultural exchange event.
The invited online audience were teachers and students from the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University in the UK, heads of the international departments and cultural institutions of Ningbo's other sister-cities, and friends of international friendship associations. Mr.Vincent Lemarchand, Chairman of the Ruen-Ningbo Friendship Committee, watched the full online event and said, "This Ningbo artist is brilliant! There is a porcelain museum in Rouen, and we want to invite her to hold an exhibition of her celadon artworks in Rouen and conduct more exchanges."
Ms. BAO Xianping, Director-General of Ningbo Municipal Foreign Affairs Office, and Mr. JIAO Shuanglin, Deputy Director-General of Ningbo Municipal Foreign Affairs Office, attended the onsite event in person.
