Camy Tam
A seminar entitled “Reuniting Porcelain: An Extended Experience of Macau’s Canton porcelain” and conducted by Lei Iat Po, a local expert on the history and production of Canton porcelain in Macau, was held on Saturday at the Cardinal Newman Performing Arts and Cultural Centre (CCCN) in Calçada da Vitória on Saturday.
The seminar was co-organised by the Macau Diocesan Association of Performance Arts and Culture (ADAPCM) and CCCN to support the protection of Canton porcelain in Macau.
According to a statement by the association, Cantonese porcelain, also known as “Coloured Ceramics of Canton” originated in the Qing Dynasty during the reign of the Emperor Kangxi. Because of commercial restrictions that existed at that time, the city of Canton (nowadays known as Guangzhou) was the only port that was open to foreign traders whose purchase orders customised the shape, style and pattern of the porcelain. This contributed to the manufacturing and development of hand-painted decorative porcelain, making Cantonese porcelain one of the main products for export produced in China at that time.
Due to a period of social unrest after the 1930s, many Cantonese porcelain factories relocated to Hong Kong and Macau, where they settled and flourished. Macau’s Canton porcelain was particularly popular between the 60s and 80s. However, the trend declined by the end of the 20th century.
However, Canton porcelain’s exquisite “overglazing” skill has been protected as it has been listed as intangible cultural heritage in Macau since last year. Its East-meets-West characteristics constitute a “significant reference” for the development of local arts and crafts, the statement said.
According to the Macau Cultural Heritage website, “intangible cultural heritage refers to the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge and skills, as well as the instruments, objects, artefacts and cultural spaces associated therewith, which communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognise as part of their cultural heritage.”
In conjunction with the co-organisers, following Saturday’s seminar Lei will hold four classes on Macau’s Canton porcelain this and next month. The classes are among a raft of activities about Macau’s intangible cultural heritage approved by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC).
The statement said that Lei, also known as Geng Qiao, was born in Macau in 1954. He became familiar with Canton porcelain due to his family business and has been engaged in the manufacturing of Macau Canton Enamel (also known as the Canton export porcelain) for more than 40 years.
Lei is the Vice President of Macau Arts and Crafts Association, the first Macau Arts and Crafts Master (Canton Enamel), an expert in hand-painted Macau Canton Enamel, and a member of Guangzhou Canton Enamel Development Institute.
Lei told The Macau Post Daily during an interview after Saturday’s seminar that since his childhood he has liked painting and helped out in his father’s factory, Kong Ngai Decoration Porcelain Factory, where he learnt the arts and crafts of Macau Canton Enamel under the guidance of his father. After primary school, he started to deepen his knowledge of Macau Canton Enamel through self-learning, he said, adding that when growing up he continued to study various production and painting techniques.
Lei introduced the about a dozen participants in the seminar to the origins, development and the manufacturing of Macau Canton porcelain.
The organisers are offering the classes on four Sundays, April 18 and 25, and May 9 and 16 from 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., at a fee of 1,880 patacas. The classes will be conducted in Cantonese.
For enquiries, call Eva Chan on 2870-3076.
Lei Iat Po poses after Saturday’s Macau’s Canton porcelain seminar at the Cardinal Newman Performing Arts and Cultural Centre (CCCN) in Calçada da Vitória. Photos: Camy Tam
