Crystalline glazed porcelain...

The first examples of crystalline glaze experimentation date back to the Tang Dynasty in China (618-907) when pottery with very small crystalline oil spots were created. Some pottery created during the Chosun Dynasty in Korea (1392-1910) using black glazes and emulsion techniques can also be considered presursors to modern day crystalline glaze. However, the true magic and beauty of crystalline glaze was first discovered in China during the Myung Dynasty (1368-1644) by accident. That piece with black crystalline glaze which was considered a fluke at the time is considered the best example of ancient crystalline glaze today and many artists around the world have tried to recreate it.

Although the beauty of the glazes were undeniable, creating pottery using them was so difficult and unpredictable that the practice had lain dormant until the mid 1800's. It wasn't until then the invention of modern kilns, temperature gages, fuels and glaze additives made the practice feasible.  Several national and royal pottery research institutes at the time were able to create large colorful crystals through concentrated research and deveolpment.
The pottery created using crystalline glazes are all one of a kind and can't be reproduced. The beauty of the crystals the uniqueness of each piece has made crystalline pottery a favorite of many collectors.

The process of creating crystalline glaze pottery is not much different from other types of pottery. The same materials are used, but the trick is finding the right mixture that will promote the creation and growth of the crystals.  The glazing process for crystalline glaze is similar to other types of glazes.  However, some study is required to find the right glaze thickness and to create a glaze that accents the shape of the piece.  The firing process for crystalline glaze pottery is also similar to other types of pottery, but for crystalline glaze, the temperature needs to beadjusted to promote the creation and growth of the crystals.  Of course, it's these subtle defferences in the process that make huge defferences in the final results and create the beautiful and astonishing crystals.

Jesus said during a sermon, "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow ; they toil not, neither do they spin. And yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."

Man-made beauty cannot rival natural beauty.  Crystalline glaze pottery is of outstanding natural beauty, because its colors and crystals are naturally made during the firing process.  A ceramist may have to fire a hundred pieces of pottery just to get one piece with the desired colors and crystals that he or she wants.
So when I find that I have created such a piece of pottery, I feel really happy.

I believe that God has hidden gems in fire and clay.  As a potter, I feel a sense of duty to search for them.  So I don't mind the hours of hard work and sleepless nights that it takes to make pottery.  some people sya that the finest pottery is mde by pure chance.  However, that's just not true.  Ceramists working with crystalline glaze work hard to discover the secrets of guiding nature to create beautiful crystalline glaze pottery.  Only through trial and error, can they make extremely high-quality crystalline glaze pottery.
A ceramists skill biscuit firing, glaze application and glaze firing does not guaranteed beautiful pottery. The conditions within the kiln determine how beautiful a piece of pottery is.
I work with five colors (white, black, yellow, red and blue) when making crystalline glaze pottery -- but it's almost impossible to predict the exactoutcome before the pieces are fired.  I can choose the basic colors of my works, but it is the kiln that gives them the dilicate shades and depth that I want.  If a potter gets the very colors that he or she had aspired to express on the surface of a piece of pottery, it is truly a gift from God.

However, as I said earlier, this is not to say that remarkable pieces of pottery are made by luck.  Pottery of high quality is created by a challenging spirit and tireless efforts, as other works of art are.

Only such a pottery that embodies the spirit of the ceramist can give the viewers a deep sense of emotion and beauty and a subtle sense of strength.