Chapter 3
达变
Adaptation
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English Translation

Gu Jingzhou, while researching this "Ci Le" handled teapot, specially compiled it into a volume as a permanent commemoration. Written at the beginning of the year by Jia Rui at Wanghai Lou Fei'ai Shi Studio. From the design drawings of the "Ci Le Handled Teapot No. 1," Han Meilin designed three curved finger grips on the inner side of the handle for ease of holding. However, when Gu Jingzhou crafted it, he removed these grip grooves, resulting in cleaner lines and more exaggerated proportions after forming. Han Meilin inscribed four characters "zi you le chu" (finding joy within oneself) in different styles of large seal script on the clay body of the "Ci Le Handled Teapot No. 1." The piece with calligraphy matching the design draft was collected by Mr. Lo Kwee-seong and is now treasured in the Hong Kong Museum of Tea Ware. Understanding the designer's intent, adding one's own insights, and recreating in combination with the characteristics of Yixing clay—this was the fundamental principle Gu Jingzhou followed. Therefore, Gu Jingzhou's success was absolutely not conjured from thin air, nor was it rigid copying, but rather relied on his contemplation and accumulation during creation. Through refined and adaptable artistic techniques, he formed his uniquely distinctive personal language. Gu Jingzhou upheld this creed throughout his life, thereby elevating his artistic achievement to an extraordinarily transcendent realm. This creed was inscribed by him in large seal script on the body of one of the "Ci Le Handled Teapots": "Not round yet round, not square yet square. Wisdom seeks roundness, action seeks squareness." Only works created through such a philosophy can withstand the test of time and the scrutiny of aesthetic principles, thereby gaining recognition and admiration from more collectors.