Pan Yushu

CHINA, Guangdong, Foshan; Qing dynasty

Pan Yushu, originally named Pan Ling, was a ceramicist from Nanhai district in Foshan. He began learning the skill from his father at a young age and later studied under the sculptor Chen Weiyan. After becoming famous for his statue of Lord Guan, Pan contributed greatly to the foundation and development of figure sculptures in Shiwan.
He studied sculpture of the human form in France and learned to create his own style by merging Western skills with those of traditional Chinese clay sculpture. Pan was skillful in expressing the inner emotions of the character, particularly in his depictions of Bodhidharma, which earned him the title Bodhidharma Pan. His sculptures of women are vivid in facial features and posture, with well-defined cloth folds in their dresses.
His works Liu Hai Playing with Toad and Searching for Plum Blossoms in the Snow are kept at the Foshan New Shiwan Artistic Ceramic Company in Guangdong, and Drunken Beauty Yang Guifei is kept in the Guangdong Hall of Handicrafts in Guangzhou.