Found some more relevant videos on YouTube about learning Mandarin Chinese speaking and writing.
Learn Chinese Symbols for Furniture : Introduction to Chinese Symbols for Furniture
[[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZY5kKUUqbA]]
Found some more relevant videos on YouTube about learning Mandarin Chinese speaking and writing.
Learn Chinese Symbols for Furniture : Introduction to Chinese Symbols for Furniture
[[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZY5kKUUqbA]]
There is a great show on on BTV (Beijing TV) called “Collection” which I happened to stumble upon late one evening while flipping though the Chinese channels. Normally I avoid the Chinese channels like the plague since about 90% of the time they are eiter a) boring b) lame c) boring and d) lame and boring. But collection caught my eye as right at the minute my clicker landed on that particular channel, they were smashing up a ming dynasty porcelain vase!
“What? What? What? Huh? Why? How?”
Last week we went to an exhibition of new classic Chinese furniture. There were not only factories of furniture, but also those selling frightening robot-like CNC machines… It made me wonder if hand labor is even in threat of becoming abundant even here, even in this workmanship, even in art …
If you have never been to the Panjiayuan weekend market, you are really missing out. Genuine antiques? Not really (Well maybe one or two) But cool stuff? Definately!
It you are a wholesaler or professional in the industry, you know this is a horrible place to do business. On the spot cash payments and consolidation/transport issues can be a real headache and those inside the enthic furnishings industry know that the real business is conducted elsewhere during the weekdays when the market is closed. I think ACF probably knows most of the vendors there already anyways which means when the market is closed during the weekdays, its vendors are still open to ACF.
But what the weekend market is good for is to get a “one-stop-look” at all the variety available in handicrafts and other various smalls (which could be filling up those empty spaces in your container). And its a lot of fun, looking at all the different items from art to ceramics to carved bone.
This particular video was found on youtube by someone named wenwen888
This is yet another interesting youtube find, and this particular one deals with the making of Tang dynasty style tri-colored glazed pottery figurines. Its actually quite good – showing you the entire process from rolling out the initial clay to the sculpting of the figurine.
Here is a snippet from their youtube posting:
Tang Tri-color ware was produced at the height of the Tang dynasty’s strength and prosperity; the court was “pure and bright,” society stable, the economy flourishing.
Tang Tri-color ware is broadly divided into two categories: ornaments and utensils of daily use. The items especially designed as funerary ornaments include funerary honor guards of civil and military officials, animal headstones, statues of the Emperor of Heaven, models, male, female and animal attendants, most of which were unearthed from Tang dynasty tombs. The items are fired uncolored at temperatures between 1,000 and 1,100°C before being glazed, then placed in a kiln to be fired for a second time at between 800 and 900°C. Because the temperature of the post-glazing firing was lower than that of the pre-glazing firing, almost no changes in shape and the multi-coloring occurred during the post-glazing firing. The colors of each of the glazes mixed and blended with one another, creating that luscious, extravagant phenomenon that is the distinct decorative flavor of the exceptionally splendid Tang Tri-color pottery.
Another great youtube find… This one shows a vendor that clearly specializes in screens & panels . Not sure if this was shot during a buying trip or if the person was simply on holiday. Its still quite interesting though… Based on the surroundings, it looks like it was shot a few years ago as this area has changed quite a bit since then.
The specialists guide to Chinese antiques is Stephen Fry proof thanks to caching by WP Super Cache