Kiln it — porcelain hub pulls foreign artists

Cultural landmark

Today, that pull can be seen across the city, though perhaps nowhere more clearly than at Taoxichuan Ceramic Art Avenue, a district Read sees as one of the most vivid expressions of Jingdezhen's contemporary global presence.

Built out of the former Universe Porcelain Factory, Taoxichuan began renovations in 2013 and officially opened to the public in 2016.

Since then, it has grown into one of Jingdezhen's bestknown cultural landmarks, hosting short-term residencies for more than 800 artists from over 50 countries, incubating more than 3,000 startups and generating more than 110,000 jobs across related industries. The district welcomed 12.25 million visits in 2025 alone.

Yet, what gives Taoxichuan its character is not simply scale.

The old factory buildings are still there and so are the smokestacks. But inside and around them are galleries, studios, museums, cafes, markets and performance spaces.

On weekends, visitors wander through ceramics stalls and exhibitions while artists from different countries talk about glazing, firing and form. The place feels contemporary, but not uprooted.

Liu Zili, executive deputy director of the Jingdezhen National Ceramic Culture Inheritance and Innovation Pilot Zone, once framed the idea in simple terms: the old factory was part of the memory of the "porcelain capital", and the city wanted to keep that memory alive.

That choice matters. In many places, redevelopment wipes away industrial memory in the name of renewal. In Jingdezhen, the opposite seems to be at work: the city has tried to build the new out of what was already there.

The result is not just a cultural district that looks fashionable, but a place where the past remains visible in the shape of the present.

And the city's international pull does not end at its most visible urban landmark.

In Xianghu village, one of Jingdezhen's ceramic hubs, foreign artists have also found a different rhythm of life and work. Among them is Spanish artist Jaume Ribalta, who has settled there with his own studio and become immersed in the pace of the countryside.

For Ribalta, Jingdezhen was an obvious choice.

The city, he said, feels like an "art utopia" — a place with a deeply artistic atmosphere and a warm, free-spirited environment.

"Over the years, I've created a series of zodiac teacups, each featuring a different Chinese zodiac animal," he said."I've grown to love this traditional cultural element and have continued to incorporate it into my work."

"Engaging in conversations with young ceramists and students and exploring how to blend tradition with innovation is key to keeping my inspiration alive," he added.

What artists like Ribalta have found in Jingdezhen is not just a site of production, but a living ecosystem — one in which kilns, clay, students, craftspeople, villages and markets still exist in close reach of one another.

The city's international appeal, in that sense, is not built only on spectacle. It is also built on the possibility of staying, making and entering into a longer conversation with the place.