Hebei Special: Black pottery art shines in Guantao

Life is full of twists and turns and it is easy to lose direction, but it also has moments we look back on as "destiny". For Yin Junting such a moment was in 1987, when he dropped by a training course in black pottery at Guantao county, Hebei province.

"I really liked painting when I was a kid, even though my works were very naive," said Yin, 54. "I kept painting and wanted to have some expert advice. I was lucky to attend free classes offered by two masters in a small county when I was 17 years old."

One of the two masters was Wang Yiyang, professor of Chinese National Academy of Arts. Wang came to Guantao again in 1987 to develop the ancient art of black pottery and start a training course.