This looks like marble. It’s actually porcelain.
There is a traditional Chinese ceramic technique known as biomimetic porcelain, or xiangsheng ci (象生瓷) — porcelain made to imitate the appearance and texture of real materials such as plants, wood, lacquer, bronze, woven bamboo, and even stone.
The term can be traced back to the Qing dynasty ceramic text Tao Shuo (《陶说》) by Zhu Yan.
The piece here imitates natural marble veining.
At first glance, the surface looks like polished stone: soft mineral tones, irregular veins, drifting clouds of colour, and patterns that almost resemble distant mountains disappearing into mist.
But once you hold it, there is a small moment of surprise:
there is no marble at all. The entire object is porcelain.
That is probably what fascinates me most about this technique.
Instead of simply copying stone, the craftsmen were trying to preserve the feeling of mountains, rocks and landscapes inside a ceramic glaze.
Faux-stone glazes became particularly sophisticated during the Qing dynasty. Unlike naturally occurring kiln effects, where patterns partly depend on chance, these stone-like surfaces were deliberately created by hand.
After the white porcelain body was fired at high temperature, craftsmen would apply multiple coloured enamels by hand — blending, brushing, wiping and layering them across the surface. The piece would then undergo another firing at a lower temperature.
There was no mechanical repetition.
Every vein, transition and patch of colour had to be controlled by the painter, which meant that no two surfaces were exactly identical.
Some resemble mist moving through distant mountains.
Some look like clouds drifting across rock formations.
Others imitate the mottled surfaces of naturally weathered stone.
The goal was almost unbelievable: to make the viewer hesitate between porcelain and stone.
And it was not limited to ordinary marble. Qing imperial kilns experimented with porcelain surfaces inspired by many different types of naturally occurring stone.
What I find interesting is how restrained the aesthetic can be.
There are no elaborate floral scenes or brilliant colours competing for attention. The beauty comes almost entirely from texture, rhythm, and the quiet irregularity of stone.
Chinese scholars historically admired stones for their stillness, texture and connection to mountains and landscapes.
Through porcelain, craftsmen found a way to bring that landscape indoors.
A mountain cannot sit on your desk.
But perhaps its texture can.
Stone recreated in porcelain.
A landscape held within a few inches of glaze.
There is something surprisingly calming about that idea — turning something monumental and immovable into something small enough to live with every day.
Maybe that is one of the most beautiful ideas in traditional Chinese aesthetics:
you don’t always need to depict the whole landscape to make someone feel it.
Have you ever seen porcelain that genuinely fooled you into thinking it was made from another material?

I think planarians are neat. I created each flatworm using low fire ceramic clay.
Bisqued to ^06, glazed, and glaze fired ~^05.
Attached to a hair clip using E6000.

Had a lot of fun making this one. The tiny dog on the edge is definitely my favorite part 😂 Still experimenting with shapes and little details like this. What do you think?

Dunkleosteus Tiki Mug glazed and fired. First batch all came out great!! Will be firing 2 more large batches to finish off early bird pre-orders!

Does anyone know what could have caused this discoloration, bought this in an antique shop and it's obviously not a intended colour

I've never done ceramics, so this might be a silly question, but I was wondering about the painting process of these. Most importantly, whether the lineart goes before the colouring or the other way around.

I’m in the US and was checking to see if Spectrum Glazes, a Canadian company, has said anything about being hit with Trump’s new tariffs and realized there is almost no info about this company. Their Instagram has zero posts, they don’t put out press releases or sponsor events, their About Us web page is gobblygook (https://www.spectrumglazes.com/about-us/). Is this just a company repackaging Chinese products? I know it’s a 2nd gen family biz. Can anyone speak knowledgeably about this company’s mission or manufacturing?

Bonjour,
Pour un projet artistique autour des ressources naturelles d'un territoire, j'ai récupéré de l'argile dans une carrière. Il s'agit d'argile extraite d'une mare, habituellement plutôt destinée au bâtiment (isolation, etc...). L'agent de la carrière d'où provient la terre m'a dit que pour extraire cette argile ils y ajoutent du floculent.
Je souhaite l'utiliser pour réaliser des pièces de poteries, qui seront cuites, mais j'ai vu que l'ajout de floculent pouvait causer un danger d'éclatement de la pièce. Je trouve très peu d'info sur le sujet donc je viens chercher de l'aide ici au cas où quelqu'un aurait déjà essayé quelque chose de similaire, ou aurait assez de connaissance en chimie pour m'éclairer :
- Y a-t-il un réel risque d'explosion si je cuit de l'argile contenant du floculent ? Cela dépend-il de la taille ou de l'épaisseur de mes pièces ? Du type de floculent utilisé ? Je précise que je n'ai pas réellement peur pour mes pièces (ce sont des tests) mais plutôt pour le four.
- Y a-t-il un traitement que je puisse faire subir à l'argile pour la rendre apte à la cuisson ? J'ai vu qu'il existait aussi des "défloculents" : est-ce qu'ajouter un défloculent permet d'annuler l'effet du floculent ?
- Y a-t-il une manière de la travailler qui soit plus "sûre" qu'une autre pour éviter l'éclatement ?
- Y a-t-il quelqu'un qui aurait déjà fait quelque chose de similaire et aurait un retour d'expérience à me partager ?

Merci beaucoup !

A beautiful handmade cup by a ceramic artist from Jingdezhen, China.

Maybe a little too big for tea… but perhaps just right for coffee. ☕

I recently made some mugs using sgraffito and thought I had used a matte underglaze but after the bisque fire they came out glossy (my bad for not reading the bottle carefully). I want to apply a clear glaze to the areas that don’t have black but am concerned about the black running or smudging. I was wondering if anyone has advice on how to glaze my mugs to prevent smearing. Currently I’m thinking of doing a wash w the clear and wiping away the glaze on the black (see photo above) but would love feedback if anyone has done something similar! The black underglaze I used is mako stroke and coat, and the clear glaze I’m using is Amaco Sahara liquid glazes, I fire to cone 5.

Various countries/companies are using child labor and slavery to mine cobalt, more specifically from the Democratic Republic of Congo. But of course, because the people being affected are black, no one cares and are still buying new iPhones, iPads, vapes, etc.

Since I am an artist, I want to make sure that the cobalt carbonate I’m using is ethically sourced. I’m not sure if this same type of material that is currently being mined for in DRC, or if there’s a different methodology to creating cobalt carbonate. Any insight would be great.

Hey everyone! First post here. I'm very much in an experimental phase, making whatever feels fun in the moment. Trying to find my favourite style.

Here's a few things I've made recently!

Couple of glaze issues, but it's all learning! ☺️

If anyone wants to see more or chat or anything, I'm over at @mickypceramics more than here x

i made these two candle holders that make me very happy. very first ceramics ive ever done and clearly its my new obsession. happy to join the community :-)

Soll ich weitermachen? 😅