Chapter 464: Painting Without Cobalt Material Is Impossible

Why is Doucai rare?

Because it is difficult to fire.

To put it simply: Doucai porcelain requires the Blue and White Porcelain to be fired first. The first time it enters the kiln, it needs a Reduction Flame of about 1,300 degrees Celsius for the Blue and White Porcelain to glaze. The second time it enters the kiln to fire the Overglaze, it requires an Oxidation Flame of about 800 degrees Celsius to glaze.

The temperature difference is 500 degrees, and the firing atmosphere is completely opposite, so after the second kiln entry, it is impossible to artificially control the expansion coefficient between the porcelain body and the two types of glaze; one can only rely on luck.

If one hundred pieces are fired in one kiln, at most ten or so will not have glaze cracking.

At the same time, if the kiln temperature is uneven during the second firing, it will cause the underglaze Blue and White Porcelain to bleed a second time, thereby contaminating the Overglaze pattern. Even the Blue and White Porcelain itself can undergo color changes due to uneven kiln temperature: the kiln temperature must be controlled at about 780 degrees; ten degrees higher and the Blue and White Porcelain turns black, ten degrees lower and it turns reddish. With ancient technology, this was even more impossible to control artificially, so the success rate was even lower: two to three percent.

Secondly, Doucai Glaze Material is difficult to mix.

Because so many materials are used, the pigments for the Blue and White Porcelain Overglaze are extremely unstable, and the mixing process can be called Hell Level: if the content of any element is a sliver too much or too little, it will cause a qualitative change.

Take the iron in the Cobalt Material: it must be precisely controlled at about 2.5 percent. One percentage point more, and Iron Rust Spots will form. One percentage point less, and it will not show Tin Luster (the unique luster of Blue and White Porcelain, caused by cobalt-iron crystallization).

And besides being difficult to mix, it is also difficult to paint: because Overglaze pigments easily bleed under high temperatures (spreading in all directions like ink), the line width must be controlled at the Silk Meter level (one-tenth of a millimeter).

Some people might think, wouldn't it be fine if one were just a bit more careful, had a steadier hand, and painted more accurately?

But it is far from that simple: the more colors the decorative pattern has, the more pigments are needed, and the more chemical variables need to be controlled.

When painting, you have to calculate: after entering the kiln, the Coquettish Yellow that bleeds first must connect to the Alum Red that bleeds later, and it must not contaminate the Gaudy Purple bleeding in the middle. So, how much blank space should be left between the lines of these three pigments?

Come on, want to try?

It is precisely because of this that the Doucai porcelain remaining today is so rare; a Chicken Cup smaller than an egg can be auctioned for over a hundred million.

The reason it is expensive is not only because of the artistic value it embodies, and even less because of the historical prestige bestowed upon it by emperors and other famous figures, but because of the epoch-making technical and scientific value it represents itself.

Therefore, when these professional master craftsmen learned that this young man actually wanted to paint Doucai, they were so surprised: to actually see someone painting Doucai on the street, and furthermore, someone so young?

To use an analogy: it is like seeing a child hand-crafting an Atomic Bomb on the street...

"No... does he really know how?"

"Don't worry about whether he knows how for a moment, just ask yourself if you know how?"

"Nonsense, if I knew how to do this, would I still be standing here?"

"Then you asked a pointless question: of everyone standing here now, not a single one knows how."

The oldest and most experienced Master Wang squinted his eyes: "But looking at his technique of double-outline blank-leaving, it shouldn't be his first time painting." Isn't that obvious?

They don't know how to paint Doucai, but at least they know how to paint porcelain: one look and they know this young man is using Iron Line Drawing (a traditional Chinese painting technique).

To put it bluntly, using Blue and White Porcelain material to outline the contours of all the patterns.

Just like the one in his hand: there is a horse under the crotch, a sword in the hand, a Poutou on the head, and a Five-Strand Beard under the forehead. There is no need to look at the clothing after filling in the colors, and even less need to look at the facial features after painting the face; one can tell at a glance that this is Guan Erye.

The key is, how long has it been?

In the time it took them to say a few words, this young man had already outlined the figure's contours and had already started painting the folds of the clothing. How fast must this speed be, and how steady must his hand be?

The key is, there isn't even a draft: how skilled and experienced must he be to dare to paint as soon as he puts pen to paper? And to paint so harmoniously and so standardly?

Never mind whether those Glaze Materials are mixed correctly or whether the finished picture can even be fired; just based on this technique of painting porcelain, he surpasses everyone present. The few master craftsmen looked at each other: is this person here to crash the party?

Huh, wait, that formula just now...

Someone gave a start and lowered their voice: "Master Gao, what was the ratio of Alum Red Paste he just mentioned?"

"I didn't remember the Alum Red, I only remembered the Light Green..."

"That works too, let's piece it together..."

But to be honest: even if they piece it together, it's useless. Because the base slurry was mixed by Lin Sicheng himself, and that is the key.

Seeing a group of Gold Tracing masters whispering and staring at Lin Sicheng with green-eyed greed, the siblings looked at each other in dismay.

Even if they didn't understand, they could see: Lin Sicheng might have unleashed some ultimate move.

But the problem is, he has only just started painting; he is still a long way from finishing, right?

Ye Anlan poked Ye Anning: "What's the situation with these people?"

"Hmm... it's probably that the pigments Lin Sicheng is using now are very difficult to mix, and this painting method of his is also very rare. The key is, the kiln exit rate is extremely low." Ye Anlan was bewildered: "Does that mean Lin Sicheng's pigments are a secret recipe, and his painting method is an ultimate technique?"

Ye Anning nodded: "That's about it!"

"Then why doesn't he use something simpler?"

"For him, it's actually all the same."

Painting Canton Porcelain requires mixing materials, and painting Doucai also requires mixing materials; either way, they have to be remixed. Painting Canton Porcelain is painting porcelain, and painting Doucai is still painting porcelain; the only difference is which painting method is used.

For Lin Sicheng, the difficulty of painting Doucai is not much greater than that of Canton Porcelain. Since it is meant as a gift, it must be painted more exquisitely and more uniquely.

Ye Anlan was a bit worried: "Since the kiln exit rate is extremely low, will it fail to fire?"

Ye Anning shook her head: "Not likely!"

The low finished-product rate she spoke of was from the perspective of those Gold Tracing masters.

Ye Anlan was half-believing: "What if?"

What if is what if, why are you worrying so much?

Ye Anning gave her a strange look: "It doesn't matter if it's ruined, it's only five hundred yuan!"

Ye Anlan was choked up.

Immediately, she rolled her eyes: "Anning, if Lin Sicheng were to paint Canton Porcelain, would the success rate be higher?"

Ye Anning nodded: "Yes!"

For Lin Sicheng, it is almost one hundred percent.

To put it simply: the Thirteen Hongs came first, then the Canton Porcelain; this type of porcelain was created to meet the demand: it was only for export.

To cater to the aesthetic concepts of Europeans, both the painting method and the patterns borrowed a large number of Western elements.

Especially the Glaze Material, which is basically all mixed with chemical pigments, has one major advantage: extremely high stability.

What's more, most of the synthetic materials used on the stall are modern, ultra-low temperature, and easy to set; they can glaze at three or four hundred degrees, so it would be hard for Lin Sicheng to ruin it even if he wanted to. There is another point: the characteristic of Canton Porcelain is the accumulation of gold and jade, with a gold ground full of colors. To put it bluntly, it's just one word: full, with very little blank space left, so there is no need to consider the issue of line width.

Secondly: although it is an Overglaze, Canton Porcelain is painted with glaze a second time on White Porcelain, so there will be no phenomena like color pressing, line pressing, or surface glaze contaminating the base glaze, and there is no need to worry about the expansion coefficient causing the underglaze to crack.

Therefore, not only is it easy to paint, but there is also no need to consider changes in kiln temperature. Never mind a difference of ten degrees; even a difference of two or three hundred degrees would not cause color deviation, let alone any bleeding.

Ye Anlan nodded: "That's good!"

Ye Anning stared at her, a strange look appearing on her face: It couldn't be that you're afraid of not receiving a gift, could it?

Don't regret it when the time comes...

Just as she was about to offer a reminder, movement came from the front: Lin Sicheng had finished sketching the base design for the first porcelain plate.

No suspense, it was Guan Gong: holding a blade and sitting on a horse, with a magnificent spirit.

But it was only an outline; the colors had not been filled in, and the face had not been painted yet.

He handed the plate to the master craftsman: "Please dry this!"

The master craftsman received it cautiously: "Boss, this is Cobalt Material; it can't be fired here!"

"I know, so dry it first!" Lin Sicheng instructed, "Zero to two hundred (degrees) for three minutes, two hundred to three hundred degrees for two minutes, then hold at three hundred degrees for five minutes..."

The master craftsman was stunned: What kind of firing method is this?

Cobalt Material requires at least thirteen hundred degrees or more to glaze, and must be fired for at least twenty-four hours. Three hundred degrees for ten minutes is just enough to dry out the moisture.

Seeing him not moving, Lin Sicheng smiled slightly: "Master, dry it first!"

There was only a drying oven here, not even counting as a kiln, so naturally, he had to find another place to fire it.

"Okay!"

The master craftsman took the plate and personally put it into the oven.

Lin Sicheng picked up the second one and was just about to take a brush when Ye Anlan leaned in: "Junior Brother Lin, what are you painting on this one?"

"West Chamber!"

"Then that one is for me. Thank you, Junior Brother Lin, but can I have it in Guangcai?" Ye Anlan blinked her eyes, "That style has more colors and is vibrant, with little empty space; it's quite festive, and it fires quickly too!"

Lin Sicheng paused: She wants it vibrant and festive?

But let's be clear, what I'm painting for you are characters from the West Chamber... What kind of aesthetic is this?

Understood: You have no confidence in my craftsmanship.

It's no wonder Lin Sicheng felt it was strange. While both are character plates, a Guangcai plate with fewer color varieties, more white space, and relatively elegant colors looks like this: whereas a Doucai plate with more color varieties, approaching the "full ground, full border" style of Guangcai, with less white space—which is exactly what Ye Anlan requested as "little empty space, many vibrant colors"—looks like this:

If it were up to Lin Sicheng, he would prefer the second one. Of course, to each their own...

"Alright, I'll paint it in Guangcai!" Lin Sicheng smiled, "Cousin Ye, does it have to be especially colorful, especially thick, especially vibrant, and especially festive?"

Fearing she might regret it, before Ye Anlan could nod, Ye Anning reminded her first: "Like those New Year pictures!"

No... wouldn't that be too tacky?

Ye Anlan squeezed out a smile: "Junior Brother Lin, that... that is too vibrant."

"Fine, then I'll try to keep it a bit more elegant."

"Thank you, Junior Brother Lin!"

"You're welcome!"

Lin Sicheng replied and picked up the plate. Taking advantage of the gap, Ye Anlan gave Ye Anning a look, meaning: Is he not very skilled at Guangcai?

Ye Anning curled her lips: What are you talking about?

He is afraid of ruining his reputation: the colors must be numerous, thick, vibrant, and festive?

If he were painting something else, like flowers and birds, or even a Western style, it would certainly complement it well.

But the problem is, Ye Anlan wants characters from "The Story of the West Chamber": if he really painted a plate like that, he would be laughed at by his peers. Ye Anning didn't know how to explain it, so she simply glared at her.

Ye Anlan didn't care and watched Lin Sicheng paint the plate with focused attention: He first changed his brush and asked the master craftsman for a ready-made box of Guangcai pigments. Just as before, he began to paint the moment he picked up the brush, first dipping into the Titanium White Paste, sweeping horizontally, then painting back over it; the white material covered the glaze's luster at the bottom of the plate.

The siblings only knew how to watch the excitement, but the group of master craftsmen knew how to watch the technique: the method was correct; to paint Guangcai, one must first apply the base.

But the problem was, not only did he not sketch a draft, but he didn't even divide the sections; he just started painting immediately?

It was as if the scenery he intended to paint was already deeply familiar to him, and he knew exactly where the people and the scenery should be, having designed it with perfect precision. To be honest, having painted Guangcai for half a lifetime, they had never seen such a way of starting a painting: this wasn't paper, where you could trim a bit if it was too small or leave a bit if it was too big. This was a porcelain plate, with such a limited space; even if you don't sketch a draft, shouldn't you use the brush handle to measure, calibrate, and plan the layout in advance? Just as they were feeling suspicious and uncertain, someone let out an "Eh?": "What kind of painting method is this?"

Several master craftsmen looked closely, their eyelids twitching: After applying the base, Lin Sicheng changed his brush, again using a goat-hair brush, and dipped it into Water Red: with a sweep and a stroke, then another sweep and stroke, two cylindrical color bars were left on the plate.

Not large, one finger wide and one finger joint long.

No... what is this?

After applying the base, shouldn't one paint a transfer draft? To put it bluntly: a charcoal Sketch.

But Lin Sicheng went straight to the colors?

Master Wang narrowed his eyes: "This looks like... the gold-stacking bone of gold-weaving?"

The group was stunned: What the heck is that?

The so-called gold-weaving is a technique in Guangcai where milk-gold is used as the base color, then the outlines are traced, and the gold thread is "woven" onto the porcelain like a jacquard fabric, creating a "gold-woven ground" effect.

The so-called Gold Tracing refers to this. But it has always been used to paint patterns; they had never heard of anyone using it to paint "people"? "There is! During the Qianlong era, the Guangcai character porcelain offered to the palace used this technique. But it is time-consuming and material-intensive, the cost is extremely high, and the yield rate is extremely low. It was cut from palace use during the Jiaqing era and has never been fired since."

After a slight pause, Master Wang sighed, "The technique hasn't been lost; it is recorded in the materials of the Provincial Museum, the Municipal Museum, and the Thirteen Hongs Museum. But I have never seen anyone who knows how to do it..."

Several master craftsmen leaned back sharply, staring straight at Lin Sicheng: Then why does he know how?

"It just looks like it; it might not be!" Master Wang shook his head, "Let's wait until he finishes painting to see!"

That's true.

The group of master craftsmen steadied themselves and watched Lin Sicheng paint. But as they watched, all the masters' eyes popped out in unison: Aren't you painting Guangcai? What are you using?

Bright Red, Western Red, Water Green, Double Yellow, Big Green... he had roughly applied five or six types, and Lin Sicheng changed to a goat-hair brush and plunged it into the pigment box next to him.

And he plunged it precisely into the Cobalt Material compartment, dipped the brush, and then made a stroke, repeating it three times.

A full three strokes, one more than the Water Red from before.

There was Gem Blue right there, yet you don't use it and use Cobalt Material instead?

Could it be that he dipped the wrong one?

Impossible: The two pigment plates were so far apart; when dipping the Cobalt Material, Lin Sicheng had specifically taken a step, which was clearly intentional.

Why is that?

It can't be that if you don't use Cobalt Material, this porcelain cannot be painted, right?