Passing on skills and improving pottery techniques.
The Bau Truc Pottery Exhibition House has been bustling these past few days with the presence of 30 female trainees of all ages pursuing the craft of Bau Truc pottery. The trainees participate in the class hoping to improve their skills and craftsmanship to create pottery products with diverse designs, types, and rich patterns. Ms. Dang Thi Chieu (50 years old), a trainee in the class, said: "Here, we learn each stage of pottery making, from kneading the clay and selecting the grit to shaping, smoothing the surface, drawing lines, applying patterns, and drying in the sun... Through the hands of the potters, the clay becomes products with unique shapes and patterns. To create beautiful products, the clay must be sourced from the Quao River, and the sand from the Lu River. The clay is kneaded by hand until it is smooth and fine before being molded into products.”
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| Sculptor Doan Xuan Hung instructs students on how to paint patterns on ceramics. |
In the Bau Truc pottery technique, the main characteristic is the absence of a potter's wheel during the shaping process. Watching the women move in circles around the stand to create products of different sizes and shapes, one can truly appreciate their love for the craft. Participating in the class as both a student and an assistant to the instructor, artisan Dang Thi Tam (75 years old) said: “Since I was little, my mother taught me how to make pottery. To date, I have been involved in this craft for over 50 years. Previously, my family made simple products for daily life such as pots, water containers, and rice jars… Later, we added some art products such as vases, statues, and models of Cham towers… The pottery products are mainly created spontaneously by families and passed down through generations, so classes like this are very necessary to help potters improve their skills.”
According to Mr. Dang Chi Quyet, Secretary of the Bau Truc Village Party Branch, the Bau Truc pottery craft currently has over 500 participating households. Previously, the products were mainly for household use. Since 2000, the locality has developed additional lines of handcrafted art pottery. The product designs created by the people reflect the rich cultural colors of the Cham ethnic group, but they are still not very diverse. In order to preserve, conserve, promote, and develop the craft village, opening training classes to pass on skills and improve pottery-making techniques is essential. This will help artisans and potters acquire knowledge, innovate, and create diverse and rich patterns, motifs, and designs to better meet customer needs.
Contributing to the promotion of heritage values.
The Cham people's pottery art heritage is related to traditional handcrafted work using simple tools. Knowledge and skills in the craft are passed down within families, clans, and communities. Over time, the Bau Truc pottery craft has faced many difficulties in maintaining and developing, thus requiring innovation to ensure that products retain their traditional characteristics while becoming better and more beautiful, meeting the diverse needs of consumers. Organizing classes to teach pottery skills and techniques to those new to the craft, as well as improving the skills of experienced artisans, is essential. This is also a necessary solution to implement the National Action Program for the Protection and Promotion of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of "Cham Pottery Art." Furthermore, it contributes to preserving and developing the traditional pottery craft. This encourages creativity, harmoniously blends tradition and modernity, creates ceramic products with high practical value, diversifies tourism products and souvenirs, and serves the socio-economic development of the locality.
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| The trainees practice the techniques of making artistic pottery. |
Sculptor Doan Xuan Hung, the instructor of the class, said: "The Bau Truc pottery craft has created products of unique and distinctive value, not only in Vietnam but also in Southeast Asia. The potters are highly skilled. However, traditional Bau Truc pottery products still lack diversity in designs, styles, and patterns. Although the people have proactively created artistic pottery products, it is still largely spontaneous. Therefore, when invited to teach the students, I try to impart to the artisans and potters the knowledge and skills to improve the technical and artistic quality of each product, especially the mindset so that each person can unleash their creativity and create unique products that attract consumers.”
GIANG DINH
Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/van-hoa/202512/nang-gia-tri-gom-bau-truc-5bf04ec/
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