Bamboo-shoot brush-washer

The yixing artisan, Chen Mingyuan, won high accolades for his work, including the claims that "his specialized talents are the most outstanding in the world" and "even master Shi Debin cannot surpass him" (Liang 1990: 23). The exotic realm of lush foliage engaged his artistic energies, as attested to by tiny wares in the forms of fruits, melons, bamboo, plums, walnuts, etc. He cleverly used different-colored clays to match the various forms, giving them an element of realism (Liang 1990: 76-7; Urban Council 1981: 94). In this case, Chen, negotiating the most difficult passages with impressive astuteness, mastered even the worm-eaten holes found on the skin of the bamboo shoot. The stamped seal on the brushwasher's bottom reads "Chen Mingyuan."