From the Oldest to the Most Expensive: 5 Interesting Things About Ceramic Art

We use ceramics to make anything and everything: from the most ordinary everyday objects to history’s most expensive vases. Ceramics allow us to create lovely, practical objects and virtually every civilization creates and uses them. So why is pottery so popular? How many ceramics techniques have we invented? And what on earth are ceramics without any ceramic? Watch the video to find out:

1. Where were ceramics born?

The oldest ceramic ever discovered is the Venus of Dolní Věstonice, which was found in perfect condition in the Czech Republic and has been dated as being some 30,000 years old. Humanity had already arrived on the American continent at least three thousand years earlier than that, and we made it a place where ceramics became part of the traditions of a range of civilizations.

Scientists conclude that ceramics weren’t invented at a single location and then spread, they believe this technique was spontaneously and simultaneously created by various human societies all over the world.

2. Hundreds of techniques, three different categories

Although there are hundreds of techniques and ways to produce ceramics, these are all divided into three major categories: earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The criteria used to sort work into each category relate to the proportions of minerals and clay used and the temperature at which they are fired.

Earthenware and stoneware are fired at 600 - 1300ºC, which makes them more porous, while porcelain is fired at over 1400ºC in a process that vitrifies the material, making it totally waterproof.

3. Made in China

Porcelain is perhaps the material most traditionally associated with China (alongside silk and ink), and it entails the most complex method of ceramic production. Porcelain is often white because it contains large amounts of kaolin, a very pure kind of clay. Ming dynasty vases (created between 1368 and 1644) are universally considered the pinnacle of porcelain design, because they immortalize sophisticated and stunningly beautiful patterns and designs.

4. For every budget

Ceramics are often bought as souvenirs from every corner of the planet. They have become synonymous with affordable craftsmanship. But ceramics are also a very noble art. In 2018, a richly decorated 18th century vase covered with rural motifs designed for Chinese emperor Qianlong, sold for €16 million. And a small Chinese vessel designed to allow 12th century calligraphers to clean their brushes during the Song dynasty, is the most expensive item of ceramic art ever sold. It went for €31 million at auction.

5. Ceramic-less ceramics

Recently, new ways of making objects that look ceramic but skip the need for complicated mineral mixtures or industrial ovens have become popular.

Polymer clay is based on PVC and can be fired in a home oven. Paper clay actually contains paper and produces results that are very similar to traditional ceramics, using much less clay. Epoxy resins are now also commonly used to create ceramic designs, and they don’t have to be fired at all!

Love this video? Did you know these interesting facts? If you want to learn all the secrets of ceramic art, don’t miss the Domestika courses available in this category here.

English version by @studiogaunt

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