BEIJING, Oct. 25, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Cheng Linyao is an inheritor of the intangible heritage of Jingdezhen blue-and-white porcelain. In 2020, an iris in Istanbul inspired her and Haken, her Turkish husband. They brought the flower across the oceans to Jingdezhen and crafted Lovely Flower, a ceramic masterpiece that won the Ceramics Creative Design (Copyright) Competition at the fifth Arab Art Festival in 2022.
Haken, a ceramics enthusiast, arrived in China in 2013. He quickly recognized the potential of the ceramics market after General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed the Belt and Road Initiative. He met Cheng Linyao at the 115th session of the Canton Fair in 2014 and they fell in love. They later started a business exporting ceramics to countries along the Belt and Road.
With the development of transportation infrastructure, such as the CR Express, in the past decade, Jingdezhen ceramics on Haken’s orders have been delivered faster and farther. Over the years, Haken has shared the beauty of Jingdezhen ceramics with his foreign friends. He always tells them: “Don’t just take my word for it! Come and see Jingdezhen for yourself, and create your own porcelain works! Only then can you truly appreciate the craftsmanship and challenges involved in their creation.”
Haken learned more about the rich culture and fine art of Jingdezhen ceramics during the creation of Lovely Flowers. Cheng Linyao says that this work reflects the living beauty of flowers, and expresses her and Haken’s love and hope for the future generation.
She said that Jingdezhen ceramics can connect people from countries along the Belt and Road better than any other products made in China due to their historical roots. Cheng Linyao is passionate about sharing the culture of her hometown with the world and continuing the heritage of Jingdezhen blue-and-white porcelain. She has been working to establish the Blue and White Sycamore Culture Research Association to showcase and celebrate Jingdezhen’s ceramic art through the world-famous “Porcelain with blue and white sycamore pattern”. She hopes the Association will also help using ceramics to forge a lasting bond of friendship and culture between China and other countries along the Belt and Road.