Carola Zee on working in Jingdezhen

This week on the Tales of a Red Clay Rambler Podcast I have an interview with Dutch ceramic designer Carola Zee. Her previous life as a graphic designer informs both her minimalist aesthetic and her use of computers in the design process. Her functional domestic wares start as CAD drawings before they are turned into plaster models and later slip cast with tinted porcelain. During the past eight years she has built Carola Zee Design Studio into a flourishing business with facilities in Rotterdam, Netherlands and Jingdezhen, China.

In the interview we discuss the Dutch artist grant system that helped found her business, the development of her China studio, and the challenges that come with making work in a foreign country. For more information on her work you can visit www.carolazee.com. Carola has written a book documenting the production of a vase from start to finish using the craftsman in Jingdezhen. You can check it out by searching Made in China on www.blurb.com.

I had the opportunity to visit Carola's studio a few months ago on a visit to Jingdezhen. She was in mid-swing working towards a deadline and had a studio full of work. Check out the amazing pictures she took of her work before and after firing the last big kiln load. I love seeing the change in color and size that happens as a result of the firing.