PAN YUSHU(1889 – 1936)
Pan Yushu, an outstanding ceramic master from Qinghe v i l l a g e , Na n h a i Co u n t y, Guangdong Province, flourished during the late Qing dynasty and the Republic of China period. At the age of 14, he began studying the works of Huang Bing and later learned under Chen Weiyan, becoming adept in the Shiwan tradition and making contributions to its development. Pan excelled at sculpting the female form, capturing feminine grace through subtle details of eyebrows and lips.
From 1920 to 1922, while working in the Guangdong Ceramics Industry Company, Pan received a commission f rom Macaobased Manuel da Silva Mendes, a Portuguese lawyer, sinologist, and Shiwan ceramics collector, to create numerous largescale ceramic f igures. Pan travelled to Macao to discuss the commission, and there he studied Renaissance sculpture, creating small-scale models incorporating a Western realistic approach. He subsequently brought these models back to Guangzhou for the production of larger-scale works. Part of this landmark series is now housed in the Macao Museum of Art.
With his mastery of traditional ceramic art, Pan quickly grasped the es sent i a l s of Weste rn scu l p ture, par t i c u larl y the portrayal of the human form and the details of clothing. Pan created a unique personal style by combi n i n g the Western sculptural approach with the emotion and form of Chinese historical characters, elevating the expressiveness of Shiwan ceramic ar t . His work , representing the developmental trajectory of Shiwan ceramic sculpture, established him as the leading pottery artist of the Republican period.