## Ren Qianting (right in photo) His works embody traditional style with broad subject matter, diverse forms, varied knife techniques, and exquisite composition. His carved landscapes on pottery are grand and magnificent, his flowers and birds vivid and elegant, and his calligraphy powerful and vigorous. He was the most comprehensive folk artisan of modern Yixing zisha pottery carving. After the founding of the People's Republic, Ren Qianting trained a large number of talents in the art of zisha pottery carving. Today's pottery carving masters Xu Xiutang, Tan Quanhai, Bao Zhiqiang, Mao Guoqiang and others were all his students. Gu Jingzhou's second creation of "Da Shi Biao Guo" in 1955 bears Ren Qianting's calligraphy, making it a rare masterpiece. ## Xu Xiutang Born in 1937 into a zisha pottery family in Shushan, Yixing, Jiangsu Province. Chinese Master of Arts and Crafts, Chinese Master of Ceramic Arts, member of the Chinese Artists Association, member of the Jiangsu Provincial Museum of Literature and History, Honorary President of the Ceramic Art Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial Ceramic Industry Association, Advisor to the Jiangsu Provincial Folk Literature and Art Association, and Honorary Director of the Ceramic Art Special Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial Arts and Crafts Association. In 1954, he apprenticed under the renowned zisha pottery carving master Ren Qianting to study zisha pottery carving. In January 1955, he followed his master into the Tangdu Pottery Production Cooperative Shushan Zisha Workshop (predecessor of the Zisha Craft Factory). In 1958, he participated in the "Chinese Folk Sculpture Research Class" organized by the Ministry of Light Industry and the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts. After graduation, he transferred to the "Clay Figure Zhang" (Zhang Jingshe) studio at the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts to study colored sculpture. In 1959, he returned to the Zisha Craft Factory to engage in pottery carving and ceramic art creation, specializing in zisha sculpture.