Tong Xindi & Shen Ting

Chinese Ceramic Artist Duo

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The exploration of glaze colors, particularly Tang Sancai, forms the core of Tong Xindi and Shen Ting’s artistic practice. Tang Sancai’s unique appeal lies in the delicate balance between the natural flow and restraint of glaze, a dynamic that requires precise control to master. This blend of unpredictability and precision has profoundly shaped Tong Xindi and Shen Ting’s work, inspiring a redefinition of their creative approach. Within their partnership, Shen Ting serves as the “eye,” directing and observing, while Tong Xindi is the “hand,” executing their shared vision.

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In their quest for the ideal glaze, they undertook extensive experimentation and ultimately developed custom equipment, as no existing machinery could meet their specific needs. A significant part of their process involves the Turing reaction-diffusion model, a mathematical framework created by Alan Turing to explain natural patterns. This model, now recognized as a universal logic within nature, generates organic patterns that they translate into machine-readable code for precise execution. In their work, Turing patterns and the organic transformations of wood-firing and glaze reactions reveal an inherent mathematical order, capturing the interplay between intentional design and natural forces in unexpected harmony.