Why is fine jade called “fine”?

Since last year, the jewelry market has entered a major wave of operational adjustments. The general market analysis believes that the prices of mid- and low-end jadeite are most affected, while high-end fine jadeite remains stable. In such an environment, some people saw a way out of adjustment - taking the boutique route. So, what kind of jade is the best?

Objectively speaking, there are a lot of jades on the market, but very few can be called high-quality ones. The value of a fine product lies in the word "fine". The "fine" mentioned here has several meanings: namely, the careful selection of raw materials, the pursuit of excellence in creativity, and the meticulous craftsmanship of creation.

The essence of raw materials

To create a fine product, one must have fine material, which is the decisive foundation. If jade carving wants to pursue artistic beauty, it is necessary to understand the correct meaning of "the essence of mountains and rivers, the exquisiteness of humanities". That is, the color of the carved jade material should be beautiful, the texture should be smooth, good raw materials should be selected, and the carving themes should be designed to be suitable for various jade materials.

Color, water head and size are three very important factors. A piece of raw material that is considered to be of high-quality quality must have good color and transparency. It is even more rare if it is larger in size. Rough stones are gambling-related, and people who do the raw stone business are basically experts. The reason why they can pay a higher price for a piece of material is that they value the quality of the material. Only high-quality materials can provide a higher guarantee for producing high-quality works.

The carving masters generally select materials from three aspects:

First, choose materials with good water or color;

The second is to choose materials with rich colors. This kind of material may not be of good quality, but it has room for creativity. This is the type of raw material that excellent jade carvers want to get the most. This kind of jade material gives them the greatest room for creativity.

The third is to select the tailings. That is to use the worst raw materials to make the best products, which can better demonstrate extraordinary design creativity.

In addition, some finished jade products have “zero carving”, that is, there is no complex carving. The quality of these works is mainly evaluated based on the material. Such as bracelets, pendants, beads and so on.

The essence of carving

There are many types of jade carvings, mainly figures, flowers, landscapes, utensils, birds and beasts, etc. The quality identification and value assessment are different for different types of jade pieces.

The main factors to be considered are: Jade pieces must be creative, and the overall design must be based on the properties, shape, and color of the jade, with all impurities removed and the art used in accordance with the material. For some jadeite stones that cannot give people a sense of beauty, we should pay attention to breaking the natural shape.

The shape of jade pieces should be beautiful, natural and vivid. The overall composition should be reasonably laid out, the structure should be sparse and dense, the layers should be clear, and the theme should be prominent. The carving is delicate, the large surface is smooth, the small areas are neat, and the overlapping digging, hooking, rolling and bumping must meet certain depth requirements. The surface of jadeite should be bright, moist and flat, with uniform size, no distortion in shape, even waxing and no green powder on the surface.

The essence of creativity

Someone once criticized the jade carvings on the market: they are either Guanyin or Tathagata, and it’s all the same. In fact, this is a relationship between demand and supply. There is a great demand for Buddha and Guanyin, so naturally there are more products supplied. Of course, the jade carving market is far from being limited to Guanyin and Tathagata.

How to create an admirable work in the dazzling jade carving market, whether it is to break away from the mainstream of Guanyin, Buddha, etc. and forge a new path, or to create individuality within the mainstream. The materials and carving skills are available, and the finishing touch is creativity.

Creativity is the soul of jade carving. The level of a true jade carving master cannot be proved simply by his superb craftsmanship. What is truly convincing is the beautiful paintings he creates based on his mastery of the characteristics of raw materials, water, and color.

There is no fixed routine to follow for creativity, and it cannot be accomplished overnight. It is based on mastering the carving characteristics of various raw materials, accumulating a large amount of actual creations, and carefully savoring the style and charm of the jade carvings of predecessors and masters, so that one can have confidence before putting pen to paper.

With the ultimate pursuit of design, craftsmanship and art as the criterion, in order to perfectly present a work, they are willing to spend extraordinarily long time and extraordinary efforts, and often even challenge the limits of the talents of designers and craftsmen. In this way, the works created can stand the test of time and be passed down forever in the long river of time.

In short, a jade carving is a work of art. Its beauty may lie in its artistic conception, its form and color, or both. Jade carving first involves jade appreciation. Creative conception is the key. The shape of the finished jade product must be lifelike and realistic to produce a fine product.

Leaving aside the long text description, to put it simply, a piece of fine jade has its material "naturally beautiful"; its carving is "grand and meticulous"; and its creativity is amazing and captivating at first sight! It is so beautiful to have these three in one, it can be called a masterpiece!