Charles Hecht
WRITINGS EXHIBITIONS

China Diary #8
April 17, 2008 - May 3, 2008


Day 3


It was cold and rainy. At breakfast, Professor Wang was concerned about various potential technical problems, because this was a very traditional glassblowing factory which did not have sophisticated modern equipment. However, they were superb craftsmen, which is why I think he recommended this factory for my project. The glass they used was very soft. Since I was unfamiliar with the facility and the type of glass utilized, I decided to see what they had and take our chances. If it didn’t work, it would still be a worthwhile experience. The driver sent by the company drove from Bashon to the factory. It was all uphill. The reason glass and ceramic factories are located in this area is because of special clays and silicates.

It was truly an old-style glassblowing facility. There was no electricity. As we entered a large concrete building, there was a cooling room on the left where the glass was cooled at the proper temperatures for the proper periods of time. In Urban Glass and other facilities in the United States there are computerized annealing kilns. Here, the glass is cooled as it has been for thousands of years. The glass is first put in the hottest part of this very large space, and then covered with sand. The operator of this facility then moves each piece to other locations in this large heated space, so that everything cools at the proper rate. I would only know how well it works when my sculptures are delivered the following week.

Further in there is a gas fed circular structure, with approximately 12 glory holes. It is surrounded by individual workstations. As you continue on, there is a large central gathering furnace with approximately 15 holes. Each hole has a different colored glass and certain of the holes are closed off until sufficient raw materials are melted to the proper temperature. Each afternoon this furnace is off limits, so that it can be refueled for the next day’s work. There is a seven day work week that begins at 7:30 a.m. and ends at 2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.. The place has its own rhythm. Once you get used to it, you see the hierarchy very clearly. The most skilled glassblowers have their own section and pretty much keep to themselves. They work on the most complex pieces. There are various specialty stations interspersed throughout the facility. There are no overhead lights and the roof leaks. To get to the bathroom you have to walk down three wooden planks which are separated at a steep angle to another building. It is very daunting and I wasn’t about to try out my tight rope walking skills.

Rather than creating a plastic skirt, we decided to use a special high temperature resistant clay to build a base so that the molten glass would not go under the mold. They did some experimental work first and discovered a problem lifting the glass off of the steel. I then showed them how to use the graphite spray to solve this problem. At first they were very skeptical about the spray, but then realized that this was needed to separate the glass after the hot work so it could be put in the cooling oven. Fortunately, I also brought some clamps from the United States with me and we used those to hold the mold down, so that the glass could be taken off it. They also had difficulty understanding how I wanted to have Alice Cooper eyes, when simple perfectly formed circular eyes were easier to do. Initially, we did a sculpture with a clear base and black Alice Cooper eyes, but I then decided that the piece would be more interesting with a partially colored body. It would give the sculpture much more movement.

I then went to lunch with Mr. Sun, the owner of the glass factory, Professor Wang and two master glassblowers assigned to this project. We decided to change to an essentially yellow base for the first group of 9 sculptures. I also decided to reduce the size of the eyes and make sure that the “crying” effect was more interesting. It was still cold and raining. The restaurant they took us to was located in a little valley even higher up in the mountains, surrounded by other mountains. In the summer this is an extremely popular restaurant, with seating for over 250 people around a man-made eel pond, another 75 people in four enclosed rooms and 60 people in a restaurant located on the street level. We were seated in one of the four rooms, and I was treated to a number of local delicacies including their famous soup, which is essentially beef stock, with shredded dough, spinach and a little beef. It was quite tasty. They also served a type stuffed cabbage. Mr. Sun and Professor Wang did most of the talking. There were a number of jokes, but my Chinese was not really good enough to understand them.

After lunch, we returned to the factory and the bright yellow glass was ready to use for the body of the sculpture. There was also a bright red glass that could be used for the body. We worked until approximately 2:30, refining the design of both the body and the Alice Cooper eyes. We returned to the hotel in time for a quick shower and then we went to see Li Ziyuan, an artist friend of Professor Wang. Mr. Li lives in a compound. We met him and a senior assistant in his office, which was immense but very sparsely furnished. After tea we saw his private museum. I am amazed at the types of art I have never seen before. Mr. Li specializes in etching porcelain. Initially, he did his etching on uniformly colored porcelain and won an award in Munich Germany in the 1980s. Subsequently, he created realistic oil paintings on porcelain and then etched certain parts of the design, such as a suit jacket. It was kind of weird, but pleasing to look at. The work is extremely detailed as there are innumerable small etched lines. It is a very difficult and tedious technique, but lacked originality. Mr. Li told me that the technique of using tiny steel chisels was first developed during the early Qing Dynasty. Professor Wang then told me that the gallery in his new studio was actually going to be a museum showing off Mr. Li’s works. In New York the Noguchi Museum is quite unique, but this does not appear to be the case in China.

We then left the art building/museum and walked in the rain to Mr. Li’s private residence, where we were served a luxurious dinner. Mr. Li explained that, because of his reputation, the state subsidized him by giving him this compound and some money to enable him to enjoy the rewards of his past work and the recognition that it brought to China. We drank a fiery clear liquor which made everyone extremely happy. Fortunately our driver, Mr. Sun’s son, excused himself during the meal so we could get home safely. That night I spoke with Leslie, but in the middle of a call we were cut off because there was no more money in my cell phone. It was 8:30 on a Sunday evening in Bashon and I was advised by the hotel that I would be unable to replenish my telephone until the following morning.

Day 4

Since we were being picked up at 8:00 a.m., I went out early to locate a China Mobile office that could replenish my telephone. The first one only sold telephones. They referred me to another office, but it was difficult to communicate there. Fortunately, Professor Wang knew where to look for me and helped me out. Being without a cell phone in China, in a strange city where I knew no one, made me feel powerless and unsure of myself. We returned to the glass factory. They had used the special clay on the smaller maquette. We decided to create a total of 32 glass casting-slumping and blowing sculptures; nine with a red accented body, nine with a yellow accented body, nine with a dark brown body with yellow highlights, all having black Alice Cooper eyes. In addition, we were going to do 5 similar sculptures in various colors using the smaller maquette as a base. Only one of the sculptures would have a black body with white Alice Cooper eyes, while all the others would have black eyes. At the beginning of the session I changed the design of the eyes again, but when the sculptures were delivered, I found out that only one sculpture incorporated the new design for the eyes.

A government driver drove us for an hour to have a private lunch with Li Shumin, the Party Group Secretary and director of the Zibo Development and Reform Commission, and some of his supporting staff. One of those persons, Mr. Sun, was also a good friend of Professor Wang. There was a lot of drinking at lunch, and I was told that after lunch all of the government officials were going home for a rest. This was in sharp contrast with the simple lunch of the glass blowers, which consisted of a Chinese roll, a few pieces of cured vegetables and tea.

When we returned from lunch, I asked to see the showroom because I wanted to buy one piece to remember the wonderful time that I had working with Mr. Sun, his glassblowers and staff. Professor Wang believed that the situation was under control at the factory and since his mother had just been taken to the hospital in Beijing, we decided to return to Beijing the next day. I could see he was very concerned. The sculptures were to be delivered to my studio by Day 10. Because Professor Wang was upset, the two of us decided to have a quiet dinner alone. However, Mr. Sun, and two master glass blowers who were to complete this project, decided to join us for dinner. I asked about Mr. Feng, since I had not seen him after the first full day, and was advised that he had an eye infection and had been sent home.

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Copyright 2008
Charles Hecht