西施 !Mini! Xi Shi! 84.2ml, in *Zhi Ma Duan芝麻段, by Craftsman Gu Xiao Ming 顾小明。
https://www.realzisha.com/pages/fully-handmade-zisha-art-and-craft-and-tea-pairings
《西施》Mini! Xi Shi! ~ by Craftsman Gu Xiao Ming!
Craftsman Gu Xiao Ming DELIGHTS US WITH MINI XISHI, this time in the highly textured, colourful and tactile *Zhi Ma Duan 芝麻段!
Craftsman Gu Xiao Ming delights us this time, crafting the all time evergreen classic, the Xi Shi! IN THE 85ml!FORM!
HERE SPECIALLY CATERED AND CRAFTED for all of us fans, with the delectable Zhi Ma Duan Ni 芝麻段泥! Zhi Ma Duan "Sesame Seed Duan Ni" is a lovely type of Duan Ni, incorporating much iron as its constituent, amidst the highly porous nature that is Duan Ni!
Zhi Ma 芝麻 Duan Ni 段泥 is thus affectionately named, because of the speckling of iron constituents in generous quantities resemble Sesame Seeds 芝麻 :-D!
Here in this Classic and Mini XISHI, Craftsman Gu still managed to WORK in the 手推内球孔 Hand-Pushed Spherical Filter to increase the number of filter holes! HERE for such a small work: 2+3+4+3+2 holes! for a solid and fast pour of tea out and with better catching of tea leaves at the bottom fast while allowing tea to flow out from the upper holes.
Craftsman Gu Xiao Ming carries on the traditional and diligent craftwork together with colleagues Chen Yu, Fan Xiao Zhi, by still executing the TRIPLE-LAYER BASE CONSTRUCTION:
A. The base is superbly constructed with TRIPLE-LAYER CONSTRUCTION, sculpted intensely and raised, so that tea stains don't form easily due to the static pot in touch with the tea liquids on the tea table.
B. Courtesy of Gu's diligent working at this base, it results in a heavy and VERY WELL-WEIGHTED BASE.
Diligent work, more steps, more tedious. Excellent form. Experience only gained through painstaking efforts through the years.
Shrinkage of Fully-Handmade ZiSha works:
Craftsman Gu is very touched to be able to continue his lifelong love of Fully-Handmade ZiSha work, and he is very touched by all of you friends' support in the past three years. He will continue crafting superb classics for all of us! Together in a team here in YiXing, he thanks you dearest friends for your grandest support to the honest and dedicated Craftsmen left to fend the Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art. Enjoy his diligence, excellent handwork with this Xi Shi in the very beautiful, layered and textured Zhi Ma Duan and let his work accompany you on your tea journey!
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Not resorting to moulds and half-handmaking. These dedicated Fully-Handmaking Craftsmen sacrifice their whole lives to commit to this Art and Craft. They will tell you, they will never negotiate. Fully-Handmaking ZiSha works is worth their sacrifice of their entire lifetime, they want to preserve our Chinese traditional art and craft. They want to preserve and enhance the unique character of Yixing ZiSha: the double-sized pores uniquely gifting ZiSha its character.
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Dearest Friends, we are savouring this top Ceramic material for tea, ZiSha, and these are all the Craftsmen’s and Artists’ hard worked, Fully-Handmade pieces, with lots of preparations, intense crafting, heart aches at the kiln, all fully respecting this totally natural, and high shrinkage unpredictable clay, sensitive to even a 0.5degree in ambient temperature, and even weather (temperature, moisture, the four seasons) outside of the kiln. The 铁熔点 ~ natural black iron melted spots that irregularly and spontaneously appear anywhere and everywhere ~ we call Tie Rong Dian :-D, the “跳子” Tiao Zi denote the observed “popped-off-spots” effect when the cute surface granulate popped off from the surface during the high shrinkage of more pasty clay around it, the “爆子” “Bao Zi” also dot the surface as those that did not pop off, hover out just enough to cling onto the surface, and the simple surface irregularities, are all due to this ceramic clay, although having the highest shrinkage, are still mercilessly and necessarily fired at 1150degC to 1250degC. These are all part of the natural ZiSha artefacts and what many modern day or Western pottery lovers affectionately call “wabi-sabi”. Our Chinese Craftsmen and Artists do not aim for wabi-sabi for the sake of wabi-sabi. Do forgive them for these natural irregularities. These is what we love about YiXing ZiSha, the best ZiSha source in the whole world, and with the double-sized pores innately inherent and imbuing the best taste for any type of tea. Savour Fully-Handmade ZiSha teapot Craft and Art!
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Here with us in our happy family of true ZiSha connoisseurs, you witness 90-120 photos taken of EACH Fully-Handmade ZiSha work here.
Compare this to elsewhere: factory bosses of jigger-machining non-zisha pots contribute downstream to their retailers: 5-10 stock photos for each non-zisha pot model, used to sell a stock of 10, 20, 30 jigger-machined non-zisha pots per model. I.e. 5-10 photos to sell hundreds of one model.
We at RealZiSha, take 90-120 photos, fresh, of EACH, ONE, Fully-Handmade ZiSha work. Together with our sacrificial and hardworking Craftsmen and Artists committed to honest true Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and Craft, we at RealZiSha go the eons' distance.
Explained, https://www.realzisha.com/blogs/news/actual-zisha-landscape-at-yixing , the Craftsman by selling his hard-worked ZiSha craft at $190-$240, $45-$65 goes to the cost of the craft, inclusive of the fees for the firing for the kiln operator (three times per pot), the packaging boxes, and between $32 to $52 for the clay (Zi Ni Di Cao Qing, Duan Ni and upwards) used per pot. Craftsman takes 3 days (fastest 2.5days) to craft a pot.
If he works 30 days a month without a single day of rest (no family time), he will craft 10-12 pots.
If he crafts for 25 days (five days of rest a month), his output will be 8-10 pots.
The success rate for Zi Ni (e.g. Di Cao Qing, Lao Zi Ni, Da Shui Tan etc) and Duan Ni (e.g. Jiang Po Ni, Qing Hui Duan, etc) is 70% on average. Some times the whole batch of 10 may fail. We have seen our Craftsmen suffer like this very often.
The success rate for Zhu Ni (e.g. Xiao Mei Yao Zhu Ni) pots is 60%, or 70% with most optimism and at the very, very best. Unfortunately.
All of us at RealZiSha of course, hope for one another, professional colleagues and all, that all the pots will survive firing at the kiln successfully.
[For ZiSha models/designs that are very challenging and more complicated to craft, the time taken to craft will be longer, and the failure rate will be higher as well. Zi Sha by its virtue, have the highest shrinkage rate of all ceramic clay. Zi Ni and Duan Ni thus have that 70% success rate, while Zhu Ni has even higher shrinkage rate and thus even lower success rate (the lowest of all ceramic clay.)]
Our Craftsmen are wholeheartedly committed to the cause of Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and their strictness with their craft and dedication earn our respect. We give a big Thank You all of these Craftsmen, for they are saving what is our common precious tea culture: Tea + Fully-Handmade ZiSha Art and Craft. Your support is vital to their livelihood and the existence of this craft for all of the tea fraternity.
Thank you Friends!
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BRING ONE HOME, USE IT and you will know all about Fully-Handmade ZiSha, the feel of real and quality YiXing ZiSha, the nurturing of Patina, how the true Patina feels and looks like, the Aura exuded from a Fully-Handmade Pot which others simply can't bring forth, and, Craftsman Fan Xiao Zhi's skills, savour the pour. You will know everything then! Use Fully-Handmade ZiSha works!
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