Yixing Aesthetics: Traditional Vs. Modern?

[hopeofdawn]

Possibly I am going to get myself in hot water by asking this, but ...

From what I can tell, just by watching this board and associated tea blogs, yixing aficionados really seem to like the classical shapes--shui ping, fang gu, etc--and don't seem to collect the more decorated or unusual pot designs out there as much.

Why is this? Are more decorated or unusual pots usually inferior in clay or workmanship? Is it a matter of following tradition? The way they brew? What makes a yixing collector love a collection of functionally-identical shui ping pots rather than exploring all the other designs out there?

Or have I gotten a skewed idea of people's collections, and there actually *is* a lot of interest in non-traditional yixing designs?

[heliospace]

I prefer straight spouts to curved spouts. I have one curved spout teapot that I use with liu bao, but aside from that, I buy what I find or is available. Master pots that I find happen to also have straight spouts. It just so happens when pot hunting, shui pings seem to be the easiest pots to find in the USA. Although straight spouts have become my preference, it didn't happen on purpose. Of my 14 pots that make up my core collection, 9 are shui ping shaped.

[BW85]

For me personally, the more traditional shapes are more elegant looking in their simplicity. When it comes to more decorative or unique shapes, most of them look silly... IMO. That being said, I have seen some more decorative pots that are absolutely beautiful. I imagine it says a lot about the skill and artistic eye of the potter.

In general though, I think I will always gravitate to minimalist traditional shapes for aesthetics and functionality.

[steanze]

Pots with decorated designs that are finely made and of good clay tend to be expensive. IMO there's nothing uglier than a pot that has a complex design but is not finely made - a "fancy pot wannabe".
There are a couple I've been eyeing but they're both over $600-700 - the price is good for what they are but I am not quite willing to go for it.

[CWarren]

Edited

[thirst]

I’m not an Yixing aficionado but regardless of the increased costs that would no doubt arise from extravagant styling I wouldn’t buy such a pot because I generally don’t like decoration on objects

[jayinhk]

I was told early on that fancy decorations = worse brews.

[CWarren]

Edited

[jayinhk]

Apparently an uneven body (due to decoration or shape) causes odd heat spots--hotter in some places and colder in others. I've never tested this empirically, but it does seem to make sense.

Your new pot does look fairly tame as far as shape goes, even if it is wildly colorful!

[JBaymore]

Pots with decorated designs that are finely made and of good clay tend to be expensive. IMO there's nothing uglier than a pot that has a complex design but is not finely made - a "fancy pot wannabe".
There are a couple I've been eyeing but they're both over $600-700 - the price is good for what they are but I am not quite willing to go for it.

This is the typical "entry point price" for this kind of pot in any kind of quality. It is outside the more typical purchasing habits of most on TeaChat, for any kind of teawares as far as I can see.

best,

..................john

[JBaymore]

I was told early on that fancy decorations = worse brews.

I'd love to see a structured test of blind tasting that actually proved this point.

best,

...................john

[steanze]

I heard this too but I am a bit skeptical. I mean, there are going to be temperature differences, but I don't think it would matter for the brew. The water inside is contiguous and conduces heat. Water is not a great conductor but it also starts all at the same temperature. I would be surprised if there is more than a 2-3 celsius difference between the warmest and coolest water in there at any time unless it is a really long steep (but it would be interesting to experiment). It would also get all mixed when it is poured in a fairness cup or in the cups. My intuition says it would be hard to tell the effect of shape asymmetry in blind tasting.

One thing to consider though is that very decorated pots tend to be larger, and larger pots can be more difficult to manage (they take longer to cool down in between steepings, it's harder to reach a good tea to water ratio unless you are brewing for the entire neighborhood)... They can also be thicker on average, and then they would take even longer to cool down in between steepings.

[steanze]

I was told early on that fancy decorations = worse brews.

I'd love to see a structured test of blind tasting that actually proved this point.

best,

...................john

+1 I saw your message after I started writing mine

[CWarren]

Edited

[Bok]

For me those bamboo and vegetal etc pots are the equivalent to the European porcelain with flowers and gold rim on them… just kitch and bad taste

I can admire the great likeliness to a bamboo, but what is the point of pretending to be made of something it is not?
The craftsmanship is very good in some instances, but that does not make it a good design.

Also, how many people do you actually see using those fancy pots? Anytime I see someone with a big collection, they still seem to return to the trusty simple pots when brewing tea…

On the other hand I for myself get very bored by the standard Shuiping shape that is everywhere (especially in Taiwan). But it is a shape and design that works very well for tea. Sometimes the motto is “if you can’t improve it, don’t change it!”