Panda bear still bank c. 1930

This panda bear still bank, whose maker is unknown, is a small ceramic object. Look at the way the anonymous maker uses color here, letting the shiny glaze run and pool, obscuring the brown and white markings of the panda. There’s a looseness to the execution that suggests the artist was happy to relinquish control, leaning into the fluidity of the materials. You can imagine the piece being held in the hand and turned, the warmth of the kiln, the bubbling glaze. If you look closely you can see how the paint runs around the panda's eyes, giving it a melancholy expression. The dark pools of color around the bear's feet feel almost gothic. I'm reminded of the work of Lucie Rie, a potter who, similarly, used glazing techniques to produce pieces that celebrated the beauty of imperfection. Both artists show us how, sometimes, the most beautiful things are those that embrace chance and ambiguity.