Kong Xiaoming
National-level Professor-level Senior Arts and Crafts Artist, Professor-level Senior Rural Revitalization Specialist, “Arts and Crafts Artisan” of Jiangsu Arts and Crafts, Honorary President of the Hong Kong Confucius Institute, Vice President of the Yixing Branch of Wuxi Vocational Institute of Arts and Technology, and a member of the Jiangsu Arts and Crafts Society. He is also a renowned contemporary Chinese Zisha master.
Born in 1962 into a potter’s family in Yixing, Jiangsu, Kong Xiaoming grew up beside the clay bench and showed an innate sensitivity to Zisha. From 1986 to 1989, he studied ceramic technology at Jiangsu Light Industry School, receiving systematic and rigorous professional training. In 1992, he joined the Research Institute of the Yixing Zisha Craft Factory to engage in creative design. He received guidance from Pan Chiping and was deeply influenced by Lü Yaochen’s clay-marbling art. Under his mentors’ instruction, he mastered the authentic techniques of square-ware making and developed a strong interest in clay marbling. In 1990, together with his elder brother Kong Chunhua, elder sister Kong Xinhua, and brother-in-law Gu Jianjun, he founded the “Kong Family Teapots” brand, forming a distinctive “Kong style.”
His greatest artistic achievement is the perfect union of two highly difficult techniques: square wares and clay marbling. In the Zisha world, square wares are considered extremely difficult, “better make ten round wares than one square ware”, because they easily deform and crack during making, drying, and firing. Clay marbling is equally demanding: different clays must be beaten separately into sheets, stacked and twisted together, cut crosswise, and re-beaten, requiring precise control of firing tolerance, shrinkage, and color. Kong Xiaoming uses clay marbling as the “clothing” of square wares, making rigid lines lively and plain teapot bodies colorful. His marbled patterns are regular and orderly, resembling wood grain or flowing clouds, with saturated and natural colors. He preserves the “bone strength” of square wares while adding the “spiritual charm” of clay marbling, creating a unique “Kong-style clay marbling.” His works are elegant, artistic, ornamental, and practical, with fine, upright workmanship and smooth, natural lines. Each piece embodies his heart and intention and gives off a rich Eastern artistic character. His works have been exhibited and evaluated many times in national ceramics exhibitions and have won awards.
Awards:
2015: “Flowing Rock Teapot” won the China Arts and Crafts Gold Award at the 17th China Arts and Crafts Masters Fine Works Expo.
2016: “Silver Box Teapot” was permanently collected by the Central Party School.
2016: “Boundless Prospect Teapot” won gold at the Jiangsu Arts and Crafts Fine Works Grand Prix “Yibo Cup.”
2017: “Silver Box Teapot” won gold at the 3rd China Zisha Patent Works Competition.
2019: “Octagonal Teapot” won gold at the “Fangyuan Cup” Zisha Innovation Works Competition.
2019: “Golden Leopard Charm” was permanently collected by the Hainan Provincial Museum.
2022: “Silver Box Teapot” received a nomination award in the first “My Favorite Top Ten Contemporary Yixing Zisha Teapot Shapes” selection.
2022: “Monet’s Water Lilies Teapot” won gold at the 13th Jiangsu Arts and Crafts Fine Works Grand Prix.
Representative works:
“Silver Box Teapot”: his signature gold-award work. It imitates an old silver box, simple and elegant, with a strong sense of history. The body uses clay marbling with clear textures and a silver-jade luster, as if marked by time. It won the 2007 China Zisha Decoration Gold Award, caused a sensation in Beijing, and was collected by the Tianjin Museum in 2011. It is the peak of his marbled square-ware art.
“Longevity Teapot”: highly recognized in the market. Its name is auspicious, its form dignified, and its marbled decoration matches the shape perfectly, symbolizing longevity and well-being. It sold for RMB 402,500 at the 2018 China Guardian Spring Auction, reflecting its artistic and collectible value.
“Cloud Pillar Teapot”: crisp lines and a concise form; the marbled patterns resemble wreathing clouds and flowing water, combining movement and stillness with strong visual impact. It was selected for the National Museum of China’s “Impression China · Yixing Zisha Exhibition” and permanently collected by the Wuxi Museum.
“Drill Lion Teapot” and “Golden Leopard Charm”: these works display his superb use of clay marbling. The majesty of the lion and the agility of the leopard are vividly expressed through color changes in the marbling, combining hardness and softness, spirit and form.
“Jade-Polished Teapot”: antique in form and smooth in line, as if polished from warm jade. It demonstrates his deep skill in plain wares and was also collected by the Wuxi Museum.
