Yixing teapot artist Tang Jie
written by siyutao art team
Tang Jie 汤杰 is a Jiangsu Provincial Ceramic Art Master (3rd batch, 2023), a Senior Professional Craft Artist, a Senior Professional Rural Revitalization Technician, an Outstanding Young Ceramic Artist of Yixing, and the director of the Yixing Taoyuange Purple Clay Research Institute.
Born in 1972 in Yixing, the pottery capital of China, Tang Jie began his journey into purple clay artistry in 1992, when he entered the Art Training Center of Yixing Jinda Ceramics Co., Ltd. As one of over a hundred apprentices, he systematically mastered every step of teapot making, beating clay slabs, rolling clay strips, shaping bodies, forming spouts and handles, and fashioning knobs. Over three years, he progressed from round vessels to ribbed and floral forms, building a solid foundation. His exceptional talent and diligence earned him the top score in the final apprenticeship examination, making him the only apprentice to be exceptionally admitted to the company’s advanced special training class. In 1995, he began advanced studies under his father-in-law, Master Gu Shaopei, and has continued that mentorship to this day. He also received professional training in form and decorative design under Professor Wu Shan of the Nanjing University of the Arts. In 2008, he graduated from the Arts and Crafts program at Jiangsu Vocational College of Economics and Technology, and in 2012 he completed the Advanced Seminar on Purple Clay Art at Tsinghua University’s Academy of Arts & Design, specializing in ceramic art design.
With a strong command of foundational skills, Tang Jie draws on the styles of renowned artists from past dynasties while pursuing artistic perfection and rigorous forms. He excels in ribbed vessels and square forms. His innovative works cover a wide range of themes, are clearly articulated, richly evocative, and resonate with the spirit of the times, attracting keen attention from both industry peers and collectors. His recent creations, such as the Square Jade Seal Teapot, Spring Surges Over the Earth, Brocade Cloud and Jade Pillar Pair, Riding the Wind and Breaking Waves, and the Mottled Bamboo Set, have won numerous national awards in major exhibitions at home and abroad. Many of his finest works have been collected by the National Museum of China. In 2010, he published a solo monograph, Tang Jie & Gu Ting Purple Clay Art Collection, through Heilongjiang Fine Arts Publishing House; in 2014, he published two more monographs: Delight in Clay, Original Purple Clay Works by Tang Jie and Gu Ting and Following the Path of Clay, The Art of Taoyuange Purple Clay.
In 2003, Tang Jie and his wife established the “Tang Jie & Gu Ting Studio” within the purple clay factory, steadily advancing their careers. However, life brought an unexpected trial in 2004, when a traffic accident left him with a comminuted fracture of his right leg, requiring four surgeries over four years. While bedridden, he watched a film in which the protagonist sailed headlong into towering waves and detonated a depth charge at the crest to avert a tsunami. That scene deeply moved him, planting the belief that “once you overcome the difficulties, you can stand up again.” He immediately began sketching ideas on paper, and soon after surgery, despite the pain, he hobbled on crutches into his workshop to handcraft the master mould for his Riding the Wind and Breaking Waves teapot. The pot features an irregular round body, with an S‑shaped curve like surging billows, a fin‑like knob, and a forward‑tilted short straight spout. Its blue‑glaze glaze evokes the color of the sea, a fusion of ribbed and round forms that embodies the spirit of “forging ahead with courage.” In 2015, a re‑created version of this work won the Gold Award at the China Zen Tea Expo during the Milan World Expo, not only a testament to his skill, but also a vivid metaphor for his own turnaround in the face of adversity.
Having overcome his personal ordeal, Tang Jie and his wife have devoted increasing energy to passing on the art of purple clay, with particular attention to friends with disabilities. “Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime,” he often says. From the very first apprentice, the couple has taught each student wholeheartedly, from basic steps to creative techniques, patiently guiding every detail. To ease their apprentices’ worries, they provided living allowances during the early learning period. To date, Tang Jie has nurtured more than thirty apprentices, many of whom have grown into senior craft artists; several disabled apprentices have stayed with him long‑term, regarding the studio as their home.
In 2021, Tang Jie launched the Douyin account “Gu Vein Studio,” where he and his apprentices share purple clay techniques in live broadcasts, explaining historical masterpieces and contemporary works. Through this platform, they have brought the beauty of purple clay to a wider audience and opened up broader horizons for their apprentices.
The yixing pot <Riding the Wind and Waves>made by artist Tang Jie
