‘A strong desire to share’

From people figures to flowers, cakes and originally designed beads, Christine Liran Shan, a second-year MSc student in science communication, has made hundreds of clay art works during her first year in Delft. Yet these are no ordinary clay works of the potted variety, but rather extremely small and delicate  people figurines standing less than four-centimeters tall and painted in various colors, replete with fascinatingly expressive eyes and features, each unique and with its own story to tell.

“I call her Evangeline, the actuary,” Shan says, picking up a purple-haired female figure wearing a blue business suit and thick, black-brimmed glasses on her serious-looking face. “And this one’s Ethan, an agent of Indie Pop,” she laughs, holding a male figurine with rugged features and wearing sunglasses.
Shan draws her inspirations from daily life: “When I’m on the train, for instance, I’ll observe the patterns on ladies’ shirts and expressions on people’s faces. Then I’ll make small people figures based on my impressions.”
For Shan it all started in 2008 during her biology research training in Beijing, when a friend gave her some soft clays as a birthday present. A few months later Shan brought the clays with her to Delft. At first clay works was only a hobby for her, a way to kill time and relax. “But then it kind of scaled up,” she says, “I felt strong desires to share my work with other people, especially with Dutch people.”

Last year, on Queen’s Day, Shan took her first big step towards showing her works to a broader audience when she stood on the streets of Amsterdam all day, holding a pizza box full of her miniature clay works. This bold, self-promotional effort proved hugely success, as many passersby stopped to marvel and buy her works, earning her more than 100 euros in sales that day.
Several months later Shan arranged to have some of her small people figures and beads sold at the Tibet shop in Delft – but this following several disappointing encounters with other Delft accessory shops unwilling to display her wares. “I don’t want to leave my works where the shop owner only focuses on business and has no appreciation of beauty and creativity,” she says, defiantly. “In this sense, Guzang, the Tibet shop’s owner, and I have lots in common. Recently I’m more into creating accessories, like beads for bracelets, necklaces and earrings, and hope to attract more people with my new designs.”

Creation
Miniature clay works require lots of dedication. Shan spends hours coming up with fresh ideas for the patterns and designs of her sculpted clay flowers, before beginning the laborious process of using small tweezers to arrange the designs in patterns and attach the tiny, delicate petals to the tiny flower buds. Later she bakes her art in an oven, a process that takes several hours, including cooling and hardening.

Despite her success at the Tibet shop and her friends’ suggestions she make her art a business, Shan says her clay works will remain a hobby. “I don’t ever want to turn my hobby into an ‘over-burdened’ business, where I must start worrying about promotions or channels to import materials. I do clay works when I feel like it, and that’s it.”

Shan usually works in the corner of her living room, where she can sit by the window and gaze out into the canals while making her designs: “I also love to create things besides clay works. I’m into logo design, drawing cartoons and all sorts of handicrafts as well. When I put my hands on them I totally sink into the process of creation.” 

“My art is really a kind of communication,” she adds, gesturing toward the windowsill where her works are displayed. “It’s a way to communicate my love of this world, especially towards those who gave me a lot of support, like my professors and international friends I’ve met here in Delft.”
Nowadays many of Shan’s clay works take pride of place on her friends’ desks in Delft, and while miniature they surely express great love.    

hi.baidu.com/christineshan/blog
www.tibetshop.nl/contact.htm

Harbers stelde eind januari Kamervragen over de 25 miljoen euro  die minister Plasterk aan de TU schonk voor een nieuw Bouwkundepand. Aanleiding voor de vragen was het feit dat de TU Bouwkunde in het voormalige hoofdgebouw aan de Julianalaan wil laten blijven.

De Delftse afdeling van de VVD heeft daar geen moeite mee en nodigde Harbers uit het pand eens te komen bekijken. Decaan Wytze Patijn, collegevoorzitter Dirk Jan van den Berg en collegelid Paul Rullmann lieten hem vol trots de serres, het Ketelhuis, de espressobar en de bibliotheek zien. “We hebben er op gelet niet veel geld kwijt te zijn aan mooimakerij”, zei Patijn wijzend op de kale plafonds.

“Kijk, dit is toch heel eenvoudig”, zei Rullmann over kabelstekkers die via katrollen aan de plafonds bungelen. Van den Berg zei zeer enthousiast te zijn over het in korte tijd ‘oppimpen’ van een gebouw uit de jaren dertig tot iets wat ‘behoorlijk in de buurt komt van duurzaamheideisen’. “Het was een naargeestige spelonk.”

Harbers zei het pand ‘prachtig’ te vinden. “Het gaat echt leven. Ik merk hoe de TU die 25 miljoen euro nodig heeft. Voor mij een illustratie van hoezeer schraalhans keukenmeester is bij het hoger onderwijs.” Gretig droeg hij het VVD-standpunt uit: een miljard euro meer naar het hoger onderwijs.
Verder zei Harbers in afwachting te zijn van de antwoorden op zijn Kamervragen. “Leidend is dat de TU recht heeft op een goede accommodatie na de tragische brand. Alles wat meer nodig is moet uit het grote verhaal komen. Iedereen heeft plannen voor nieuwbouw en een campus.”
Of de TU het geld aan Plasterk moet teruggeven hangt wat Harbers betreft af van de rekensom van het ministerie. “Wat was er nodig? Wat kwam er uit de verzekering? Het mag niet zo zijn dat als de TU hier blijft en er geld overblijft, dit voor andere labs wordt gebruikt. De TU mag geen onterecht voordeel hebben.”