Fencai Overglaze Enamel

Whilst having admired the grander examples of Fencai in museums, it was only when I encountered the technique on some small humble pots that I found in the local market in Jingdezhen, that I began to take notice. These were everyday dishes, plates and serving platters, simple in form with lively, almost naive paintings depicting domestic scenes, vases of flowers, bowls of fruit and objects reminiscent of a scholar’s life.

'4 Seasons' Porcelain Handpainted Fencai enamel, 2017.

Fencai is an over-glaze enamel technique that dates back to the 18th century used to decorate with colour and pattern, porcelain pots made at the Imperial Kilns of Jingdezhen but painted at the Palace workshops in Beijing.

Fencai, corresponding to the 'famille rose' palette, means ‘soft colours’. These pastel shades were achieved by mixing the ground frit colour with an iron powder and a substance called poli bai (meaning ‘glass white’, tin white). At the time these new opaque colours enabled painters to blend tints to create a greater range of colour and tone than was previously possible and the new palette included pinks for the first time. It allowed the depiction of more complex images, including flowers, figures and insects.

Fencai remained popular throughout the 18th and the 19th centuries and a large quantities were exported to Europe. It continued to be made in the 20th century, but the quality the quality of wares produced declined after the Qianlong period (after 1795).