| In the past,folkways were plain.In the time when thrift was a virtue,ifceramic wares were carelessly broken or cracked,they would be repaired bymenders.Ceramic wares restored with this technique are called mended ceramics,nicknamed as“bu-hui-a”(mended porcelains)or“bu-ding”(patchery)in Taiwan.In the present,however,life is affluent.Mass-produced ceramics are cheep andcheerful so broken objects are no longer mended and“patched”ceramic crockeryis no longer available.After1960s,the porcelain mending fell into obsolescence.In2006,National Museum of History held an exhibition and a symposium onmended porcelains.By sharing collections of mended porcelains,it not onlydisplayed menders'awe-inspiring techniques but also highlighted virtue offrugality and expressed affection to what people owned.To have more peoplerecollect porcelain mending culture, the author, by interviewingporcelain-mending experts across the strait,passes down the porcelain mendingtechniques and recreates a mender repairing scene to leave a precious record ofthis lost technique and propose to integrate mended porcelains into aesthetic life.Fragmentary materials used in artwork creation of mended porcelains not onlyreduce cost but also are green craft.It is a brand-new concept to combinesustainable design concepts with traditional craft.The idea of“New mendedporcelains”not only preserve this dying technique but also integrate Japanesemending techniques Kinzukuroi(golden seam)and Kintsugi(golden joinery)intoart of mended porcelains.Available materials of cultural memory are reused in“new mended porcelains”and buried memory segments are recombined into newcraft creation based on history and ancestral craft aesthetics.Sustainable designconcepts discovered in“new mended porcelains”are from ancestors'wisdom.They provide designers new inspiration for innovation in future design and areexpected to put a new value on traditional craft. |
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