Recognized as a National Crafts Master of China, GAN Erke 甘而可 (b.1955) has established a new standard for lacquer craftsmanship as well as reinvigorating this traditional art with new technical innovations. Preeminent among Gan’s varied lacquer styles is the marbled technique known as “rhinoceros hide” (xipi), a kind of millefiori effect achieved through the application of multiple layers of coloured lacquer. Gan not only picked up this traditional craft, but also added new innovations, most notably his bold color combinations.   He has comprehended and inherited the Chinese lacquerware tradition and developed his way onto a profound level with the embodiment of beauty-appreciation of the Song and Yuan Dynasties.  Gan’s works reflects his aesthetic attitude whose aim is to sustain or revive the highest levels of traditional craftsmanship, by producing distinctive utilitarian objects of great subtlety and beauty. 

Gan lives and works in Anhui, China. Collectors of his lacquer art include National Museum of China, National Palace Museum of China, the British Museum in the UK,The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York in the US, and private collections in China, Hong Kong and abroad.   In 2011, Gan was invited to participate in the "International Symposium on Ancient Chinese Lacquerware" hosted by the Art Museum of The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He was invited to join the China - Germany International Art Exchange Exhibition held in Germany in 2012.  A collection of Gan’s works in collaboration with Shang Xia were presented at Christie’s auction in 2015 and 2017.

​

Read more:

"Chinese Reading Room " 《中國書房》