Take the aged clay out of a storehouse for wedging before throwing. The first step of kneading is tramping by feet as called “tramping on lotus mound” by the local people and then knead by hands. Potters in Jingdezhen call it “nuoni” (it means tramping clay). The main purpose is to press air bubbles out of clay by the way of hand kneading and make the moisture in the clay more well-balanced in order to prevent air bubbles, distortation or cracks from being produced in the course of firing. Two methods of kneading dough and the clay is in shape of vortex. The other is like the head of an sheep, called “crinkled head of sheep”, applied by most of the potters in Jingdezhen. Hand kneading is generally done on a long bench or a stone table (local potters call it “pier”). The front part of the bench is lower than the aft part and it is convenient for potters to put forth their strength while kneading. When kneading, a piece of white cloth covers the bench and potters ride on the bench, kneading the clay balls hard by hands in order to press air bubbles out of clay. When clay is kneaded into a long piece, set it up and press it shorter before starting the second round of kneading. Repeat the above processes for dozens of times.
Throwing is the first step of forming. Due to the softness of porcelain biscuit of Jingdezhen, the body for throwing is usually thicker than that of other clay. While throwing, not only the contract ratio, but also the shapes, should be paid much attention to. In accordance with the different shapes, it is necessary to have a good control of throwing in sections when throwing larger vessels. Speaking the truth, it is the touchstone of potters’ skills in throwing.
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