I'd like to begin by giving you a little background information on my publication, the Chinese Potters Newsletter (CPN), which may help in understanding our response to the panel subjects.

(A) An Introduction to Chinese Potters Newsletter

Chinese Potters Newsletter (CPN) is a quarterly journal, first published in the fall of 1998 in Beijing by HAP Pottery Studio. The first issue had 32 pages and only 8 pages in color. We printed 1000 copies. It was well received and out of print immediately. We have a saying on the back cover. It says: "Footing on traditions; Facing to the modernism and Marching toward the world". Now we have entered into the 4th year, 14 issues have published. From the 13th issue, we change the format to square size (200x200 mm). The 14th issue has 48pages and all in color and we are printing 1500copies and distribute about 900 copies, in which about 300 goes to foreign countries. The printing cost is doubled comparing with the first issue. From the first issue, we set our goal as following and have not change since:

1) CPN concentrates on information, try to avoid theoretical articles;

2) CPN serves as a communication center for all Chinese ceramic readers as well as foreign ceramic artists who is interested in Chinese ceramics;

3) CPN has enough pages to introduce Chinese ceramic traditions particularly when they related to the current events with modern approach. CPN also introduce modern ceramic world to Chinese, so, international exchange is one of our goal as we stated in our slogan;

4) It is free to all readers since 5th issue, I asked all readers to pay postage and certain distribution handling cost.

(B) Responses to Panel's Discussion Subjects
There are six subjects suggested by the panel to discuss. I will respond them one by one as following.

(1) Subject: To what degree does an international discourse on contemporary ceramics exist? Is this a global discourse, or does it favor some regions over others? Has this discourse developed primarily in English? If so, has this affected the kinds of issues that are perceived as central to the discourse?

Response: Contemporary ceramics are discoursed internationally but not as much as any other contemporary arts. It is a global discourse but favors western world primarily and in English. This has historical reasons because contemporary ceramics are branched out from mid-20th Century's abstract expression art movement. It is naturally centered in English and in the western world.

(2) Subjects: What role have journals played in the development of an international discourse on contemporary ceramics? What policies do journals follow regarding international as opposed to national coverage of work, ideas and events? Do journals actively seek an international readership? What are some of the difficulties with developing an international subscription base?

Response: CPN is primarily an information oriented Chinese language journal but we are dedicated to discourse internationally. For this particular reason, we try to increase our English translation. Tthe first step we do is to add English title then try to translate some crucial article into English or have English summaries. In order to avoid bias, I subscribed more than 10 ceramic journals worldwide and half of them are not in English language. I hope to share the international discourses to Chinese readers.
CPN tries to increase the English translation but with difficulties, first a good English translator is expensive and with ceramic background is even hard to find. If I do bilingual for all key articles, the volume will be increased one third and cost will be doubled when adding the translator's fee. So, it is our goal but may take time.
We do international discourse purely for culture exchange. Chinese artists needs to know the outside ceramic world and foreign ceramic artists also interested to know the development of the contemporary Chinese ceramics. Our slogan says clearly. We are not seeking subscription. Our readers are ceramic artists or friends. We have a 900 subscription with 300 foreign circulation. It is increasing steadily.

(3) Subject: To what degree do journals attempt to foster international exchange of ideas outside the context of the journal itself (are journals typically involved in international exhibitions, symposia, etc.)?

Response: I do think this is important. All journals should pay attention to international exchange and support other ceramic events other than journal itself. Journals can help such exchange effectively. However, one very important aspect is not to lose your own identity. I hate to see the ceramic art become uniform or alike worldwide.
Let me give you an example. Starting from 1999, HAP Pottery Studio established the "HAP Pottery Gallery ". One of the important show series is the "New Traditions", HAP pottery picked 5 subjects from famous Chinese traditional kiln types, namely, 1) the Jun porcelain, 2) the celadon porcelain, 3) the blue/white porcelain, 4) the Yixing purple-sand clay pottery, and 5) the black/white ceramics which including the famous Ding ware, Zizhou kiln wares, the Longshan black pottery, and the Jizhou ware. HAP Pottery encourages the contemporary ceramic artist revisited Chinese tradition and make apiece bears traditional identities yet with contemporary thinking, appearance and even techniques. So far it was successful and for each show, CPN publishes a special volume. It serves as a catalog and it is also inserted in the regular CPN issue. Such domestic operation also discourse the subject internationally.

HAP Pottery also conduct international workshop or inviting resident artists to stay and work. Whole CPN 13th issue was dedicated to the 2001 FuLe International Ceramic Workshop in which 5 foreign artists together with 9 Chinese artists work together for 4 weeks in HAP Pottery Beijing and Fuping Pottery Village in Xian.
We believe it is a good combination to have ceramic studio, gallery and journal together.

(4) Subject: How much authority does a journal have in defining an international discourse on contemporary ceramics? Does evidence support the suggestion that journals have helped to convey ideas about ceramic practice from one nation to another? If so, to what degree has this created a uniform conception of the issues important to the discipline?

Response: A good journal has such authority. It can have good influence and can guide the development of contemporary ceramic arts. So, the first thing a journal should do is to improve the quality and reputation of the journal. But it is equally important not to abuse such power and the authority, Another example is CPN sponsors and organizes a major contemporary Chinese Ceramic Art Exhibition at Ariana Museum in Geneva this fall and it will travel to other museums in Europe and in America. The subtitle of the show is "Identity and Contemporary", to emphasize identity is important in encouraging international exchange, It is the idea CPN try to convey.

(5) Subject: What kind of ethical issues affect the journal in an international context? What policies govern the coverage of internationally sensitive issues such as cultural heritage laws, racial and cultural stereotypes, religious differences, political conflicts between nations, etc.? At what point must a journal refrain from publishing ideas that are perceived as internationally sensitive?

Response: In China except political reasons, no one will limit you do anything. It is all on your own. You have to be well informed. However, I do not see such problems in ceramic field. A good ceramic art requires more factors than other types of art, so relatively, the sensitive issue becomes less important in ceramics. After so much up and down, Chinese become insensitive to the issue. They learned how to refine themselves and pay less attention to the others. So, readers may not like a journals pay too much attention to the sensitive issue rather than ceramics itself.

(6) Subject: What is the future of journals within an international discourse on ceramics? Has the rapid development of the Internet affected traditional journals and their dissemination of information?

Response: A good journal has to be internationally concern. Ceramic art is very much universal. The clay and glaze are in general the same or similar, the body forming and the firing are also close enough. So, exchange is important and in the past journals are the only medium to do so. Now the electronic publishing become so common, we cannot avoid it. Eventually a journal's website will be more important than the journal itself. It greatly increases the volume of the information, the communication between the journal and readers. It also improves the efficiency of collecting information, handling information and even proof reading. It will completely change the ways of publishing, market managing and reading habits. It will be the only way to promote ceramic arts in the future and be survived.

Thank you.

Attachment: The origin of Chinese Potters Newsletter

I was always interested in modern art and was involved very much in the 70s in the U.S by representing Taiwan artists and in the 80s by promoting and collecting Chinese modern paintings in Mainland China. However, when I am getting old in the 90s, I like to pick one type of art, which I can personally get involved, and also benefit to Chinese culture. It was then, I found that China had a glorious ceramic history but as far as modern ceramics concern, it was just beginning. No one outside China knows Chinese modern ceramic work. But From my observation, there were younger generation interested in that but they did not know that much because of lacking communication. So, I decided to devote myself into this field, to be a bridge between China and the world in the modern ceramic art field.
I was born in China and had my elementary education in China. After 1949, my family moved to Taiwan and I had my middle school and college education in Taiwan. I obtained my BS degree in Geology from National Taiwan University. Then under US/Taiwan government program I went to the US and obtained my MS in Earth Science and later under NSF grant, I finished my PhD in Geophysics, all at Washington University in St. Louis. I worked 10 years in oil finding in an American company. In 1979, when China just opened up, I was assigned to China by an American oil company to look for oil in China offshore and onshore. I did this for almost all the years in the 80s. Now, China can find their own oil and I am moving into communication field in China. I set up a factory in China for an American company to making a patented gel to fill in the fiber optical cables. But I devoted all my leisure time to promote culture exchange. I have to say that I need a good job to support my leisure interest.
So, by 1997 in Beijing, I found enough space with deserted buildings in the factory where I was making my compound and I was granted to use them inexpensively. So, I set up the "HAP Pottery Studio" The goal for setting up HAP Pottery is to establish a window to promote Chinese modern ceramic art inside China as well as internationally. One of the original ideas was to publish a journal to serve such purpose. It was published a year later and named Chinese Potters Newsletter (CPN).