Mr. Cai Xiaofang, 1938, Shimizu, Taichung County. Most of his brothers are engaged in art and design, but their parents encouraged him to choose the electrical engineering department of Taipei Institute of Technology for his future career. Shortly after graduation, in order to learn more about the kiln industry and further learn the knowledge of furnaces for electronic and motor materials, he attended the first training course of 1962 for kiln engineers organized by China Productivity Center and Trade Center. During this period, his performance was affirmed. The following year, he was recommended by Japanese professor Tanaka to be the technical director of a ceramic tile kiln factory in Beitou. After passing the examination in the second year, he went to the Ceramics Department of Nagoya Institute of Technology, Ministry of International Trade and Industry of Japan for further study, and studied under Kato Yuesan, King Kong Fanfan and others. After returning to China, I continued to work in the original ceramic tile factory, and with the experience I learned, on the one hand, I engaged in glaze research, on the other hand, I served as production technical director, and solved all the problems from glaze making to firing, and during this period, I created the first glazed tile in Taiwan Province Province. At the same time, at the invitation of Mr. Yan Shuilong, he worked as a ceramic teacher in the Art Engineering Department of The Practitioner, and the spring breeze turned rain into rain for nearly three years.
Driven by his strong interest in ceramics, he continued to do experiments at home after work. Moreover, local materials are often used to develop glaze powder with materials such as egg shell, wood ash, coarse chaff and oyster shell, and then samples are made and placed in different kilns including tunnel kiln, coal kiln and American gas kiln, so as to understand the differences and uniqueness of sintering conditions in each kiln. 1974 rented a house at 2 13, Shizhong Road, Shilin, with only one corner (the corner of the stairwell on the second floor). Based on his experience, theory and even imagination, he personally built the first kiln and fired the first porcelain work for experiment. After completion, he tentatively took the first finished product-ruby glazed cup to Antique Street for expert appreciation. Unexpectedly, he was greatly appreciated by many antique dealers and asked him for his works. This incident strengthened his motivation and confidence to continue his creation. Since then, in order to have more time to create, he gradually left the work of ceramic tiles and devoted himself to ceramic creation.
1974 after completing the brick and tile work, he was hired as the technical consultant and director of Ying Ge tunnel kiln, responsible for the glaze mixing, start-up and operation. However, due to some factors, I often change jobs. Then, at the invitation of friends, we made porcelain in partnership, specializing in glaze matching and kiln firing, including various high-temperature red glazes, Jun kilns, Tianmu glazes, iron glazes and so on. After less than a year, the partner had to agree to leave when he asked for capital increase and lacked funds. In order to continue his creation, he rented a small studio of about 6 or 7 square meters in Ying Ge, which contained a broken machine and some second-hand glaze matching machines, making it difficult to continue his work. Unable to pay for the kiln, he rented a kiln nearby to temporarily solve the problem of kiln burning. Soon, some colleagues found that he could always burn a different glaze color from others, so they all put their own samples into his kiln and used it as a standard kiln. Not long after, the studio was repeatedly invaded by unidentified people to read the glaze matching records of the kiln, and many things were stolen, so I had to find a new workshop.
After I left Ying Ge, in order to build my own kiln, I found a residence with a courtyard in Xinglin 3rd Road 1975, Beitou, where I could concentrate on my creation without external interference. Although raw materials are extremely scarce and difficult to obtain, the couple overcame all kinds of difficulties and produced many good products. At the beginning, almost all the works were small utensils made by themselves, and gradually they were ordered by antique dealers in Taiwan Province Province and Hongkong, from Tianmu, Jun kiln, red glaze, folk kiln peach blossom red, blue and white, Yue kiln celadon and so on. At this time, talents other than Master Lan were hired to engage in painting and sculpture, so that the creative tentacles extended to deeper and wider places.
During this period, I often went to the Forbidden City to learn and appreciate the ceramics of the past dynasties, and I was too involved to attract the attention of the porcelain group leader at that time. During the conversation, Mr. Cai made it clear that he was interested in research. Because of his sincere attitude, he was able to report the situation to his superiors through the team leader. Under the guard of staff and guards, he made an exception and opened the showcase, allowing him to study and appreciate the red glazed Guanyin bottle, the treasure of the town hall of the Forbidden City, in the most direct way. A few years later, it is also an opportunity to imitate historical relics for the Forbidden City and go abroad for exhibitions.
1977, the storm in Taiwan Province caused flooding in Beitou area, and sludge was everywhere in the studio yard on the first floor. Years of hard work were almost destroyed, so I had to find another new home. After many inquiries, I learned that there are some rented houses on the hillside of Zion Lane, but they have always been rented to foreigners. However, after the couple's sincere visit, they won the trust of the owners and agreed to rent the house. In the next few decades, in order to make more diverse works, and with the increase of personnel, kiln furniture and raw materials, the surrounding houses were slowly rented out. It was not until recent years that the studio moved to Bali, and one of the houses was transformed into a display area to show the creative track of Xiaofang Kiln for many years. Today, this place is still the memory of Xiaofang Kiln and his family.
In the past 30 years, Mr. Cai Xiaofang's works have reached tens of thousands, including warm Song porcelain, blue-and-white porcelain with different styles in Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, gorgeous pastels and fighting colors in Qing Dynasty, and countless single-color glazed porcelain such as Kongque Blue, burnt yellow, celadon, Tianmu and various red glazes, which has been praised by many people as "the master of contemporary official kilns". When someone thinks that the small square kiln has such a variety of glaze colors is incredible, he often expresses his formula with a childlike smile from a dream, which sounds quite supernatural, as if part of his achievements came from "God-sent". However, it is nothing more than that I almost forget to eat and sleep because of my daily research. I occasionally take a nap, but my mind is still full of formula skills. No wonder some "secret recipes" are still in my mind when I wake up.
From the moment the ruby red glaze cup came out of the kiln, ceramics became the most important and almost the only ambition in my father's life. With an extraordinary persistence, hard work and sense of mission, he kept trying the clay, glaze color and temperature of ceramics all day long and waited patiently for the kiln he designed. However, every time he waits day and night, he is not only honing the utensils in the kiln, but also honing his own utensils. Although he just started the work with pure enthusiasm and interest, what he collected from this tiny source is an achievement beyond the times. Under the whole-hearted leadership of the couple, Xiaofang Kiln can not only make the famous kiln elites reappear across time and space for thousands of years, but also let the viewers really feel the sincere temperature and pulse conveyed by the kiln fire after contact.