Ge Haoxiang was born in December 1977 in Dingshu Town, Yixing, Jiangsu, into a family of ceramic artists. He is a descendant of the famous "Ge Kiln" from the Qing Dynasty. In 2000, he set up his own studio, Geji Taozhuang (Ge's Ceramic Workshop).
Today, he is a national-level senior craft artist and a Jiangsu Provincial Ceramic Art Master (third batch, 2023). He is also a representative inheritor of Wuxi's intangible cultural heritage. He has been named a Jiangsu rural talent leader, received a nomination for the Provincial Youth May Fourth Medal, and won the Wuxi May Day Labor Medal. He is among Yixing's Top Ten Young Ceramic Artists and an academic and technical leader in Yixing. He also serves as a visiting professor at the National Cultural Quality Education Base for College Students at Harbin Engineering University.
Ge studied under masters Qiu Yulin and Gu Shaopei, gaining deep knowledge of clay, glaze, and firing. He later studied under Yin Jishan, a well-known expert in gardening and tea culture. These experiences gave him both strong basic skills and the freedom to think creatively.
He has tried to combine Yixing purple clay with kiln transformation effects, using crushed gemstones in his glazes. He has experimented with aquamarine, agate, turquoise, and black jade, grinding them into fine powder. Agate gives a soft, rich shine; aquamarine and agate change the glaze texture; turquoise and black jade add color. With different clays, the results are endless. He has visited many famous kilns across China and done many experiments. For him, each kiln opening is full of hope, failures and surprises come together, and clay turns into beautiful art. He calls this "the romance of fire" and "the free dance of ceramics."
His works have been chosen as state gifts. On March 2, 2015, his "Yijun-glazed Three-Ram Vase" was presented to Prince William of the UK. On August 17, 2015, his "Yijun-glazed Melon-shaped Long-necked Flared Vase" was presented to King Juan Carlos of Spain.
In 2014, he won the Silver Award in Ceramic Design at Jiangsu Cultural and Creative Design Competition, the Tang Heqian Outstanding Cultural and Creative Talent Medal in Wuxi, and the Love and Dedication Award for the 20th anniversary of the Hope Project in Wuxi. His work has been reported on CCTV-10 and CCTV-2 programs such as "Civilization Code," "China Financial Report," and "One Hammer Decides." In 2017, CCTV-2 featured him in a story about "Three Innovators of Purple Clay."
Jun-glazed Three-Ram Auspicious Vase made by Ge Haoxiang
