The Teapot That Got Away

[hopeofdawn]

So once upon a time, I fell in love with a lovely pot offered by Chinesepottery. This one, to be precise: http://www.etsy.com/listing/70764114/li ... sha-teapot. Unfortunately, I dithered too long, and Chinesepottery is no longer in Yixing or selling Yixing wares.

The thing is, I really, REALLY like this teapot, almost moreso than any other yixing pot I've seen. I'm not sure what keeps me coming back to it--but I love the balance in it, the unique round shape on the three legs that just seems to radiate ... fullness? Contentment? It's hard to describe, but in the, I've never seen another pot in exactly that style.

I know it's extremely unlikely that this particular pot is still available. But I was wondering if any of the more Chinese-literate members of Teachat had ever run across this artist's name before--XuJianQing (徐建青制)--or if there might be any way of searching for him on Taobao or other Chinese venues for someone better versed in Chinese? I would be open to any suggestions on how to find/contact him, whether to look at other work or to commission a similar pot.

Or should I accept that I'm just tilting at windmills, and this teapot shall forever be the one that got away?

[Poohblah]

Hi hopeofdawn,

I did a few quick searches on Taobao. I got the best results by searching "Xu Jianqing Little Black Dragon Zisha Heini", but unfortunately I couldn't find your pot.

I know Chinesepottery ceased activity a while ago due to a family emergency or something like that... Maybe I am making up stories or just thinking of IPT, but hopefully we will hear from both Chinesepottery and IPT again soon.

[Chip]

Yes, that is IPT you are thinking of.

The owners of chinesepottery moved out of China for work reasons.

[ethan]

So, what is wanted is the same shape, size, decoration, & color. Would you allow for different clay?

[Drax]

Hope -- have you been able to contact Nico (Chinesepottery) and ask if he can coordinate the sale for you? If I remember correctly, the potter was his wife's uncle (and Nico and his wife are currently in Germany).

If you haven't, we could try emailing... I'm sure I've got his contact info around here somewhere. PM me if haven't tried before and are interested in giving it a go.

[hopeofdawn]

So, what is wanted is the same shape, size, decoration, & color. Would you allow for different clay?

Different clay would definitely be acceptable, I think--I don't own enough yixing pots to have really developed a preference on clay types. I guess in order of importance, #1 would be shape, #2 would be size (and I wouldn't mind smaller), #3 color and #4 decoration. I do like the little dragon on top, but honestly wouldn't be heartbroken if it weren't there, you know?

[hopeofdawn]

Hope -- have you been able to contact Nico (Chinesepottery) and ask if he can coordinate the sale for you? If I remember correctly, the potter was his wife's uncle (and Nico and his wife are currently in Germany).

If you haven't, we could try emailing... I'm sure I've got his contact info around here somewhere. PM me if haven't tried before and are interested in giving it a go.

I did try to PM Nico. Early this year, I believe it was. Unfortunately he said that since he wasn't in Yixing any longer, he really didn't have any way to reliably communicate with his father-in-law (the artist) and see if that pot or any similar ones were still to be had. He did mention he would check if they went back to Yixing for a visit--but given I haven't heard from him since, I'm assuming that either the trip didn't happen or my request dropped off his radar. Which is more than understandable--I definitely don't want to pester him about international transactions when he has a new job and new baby to contend with!

[ImmortaliTEA]

I'm sorry if this is random or has little to do with finding another of those teapots, but, is it just me or does that "dragon" look more like a Pixiu?