1949
Fall, State Factories, and the Jingdrifters
From planned-economy porcelain mills to today’s river of young artists — how Jingdezhen became, again, a place people drift toward.
The Qing court fell, imperial kilns closed, and war scattered the trades. In the 1950s the state reorganized everything into numbered porcelain factories — quality stayed formidable, export contracts kept kilns hot, but the seventy-two trades were consolidated into assembly lines.
When the factories privatized in the 1990s, the town looked finished. Instead, something unexpected: young graduates arrived, renting cheap studios by the river. They are the “Jingdrifters” — 景漂 — now tens of thousands strong, throwing, painting, failing, and occasionally inventing the next chapter.
Today
Sculptors, enamel painters, teapot throwers, and performance artists share supply chains with makers of dentist-grade kaolin. The ecosystem that once served emperors now serves anyone with an idea and a kiln slot — including the artists in this gallery.