About
Our Dynasty smalti history start from Ms.Zeng Fang
Zeng Fang of Beijing is one determined woman who, against the odds, is working to bring mosaic art to China. With no history or well-known artists in the field, China is not even on the mosaic map. Until now! Dynasty Smalti produces the oldest supplies known to the art, but they are very new.
Zeng studied engineering at university with a concentration in the ceramic and glass industry, and she worked in the laboratory of the China National Building Material Academy for 11 years, beginning in 1986. In the late 1990s, she began working for an Italian company in Sassuolo Modena, and she saw the beautiful mosaics in Rome Vaticano and many other churches all over Europe.
Day by day, she found that she liked mosaic more and more, so she set up a factory 10 years ago. She produced glass tiles and mosaics for homes to supply the local market and for export to Europe and North America. Business is good, but still far from art. Fashion trends dictate production, and builders change tile colors and styles frequently.
In September 2007, Zeng went to Dubai as a tourist and visited a friend who works for the biggest mosque in the world. He was frustrated because his work had come to a halt while he waited for a large order of smalti to arrive from Italy. He knew Zeng worked with glass, so he asked, "Can you produce this glass?" It was first time she had seen smalti as material, and she loved it! She was so moved that she changed her schedule and flew from Dubai to Venice to see how it was made.
Upon returning to Beijing, she went directly to the lab to try making smalti in her own way. She had little time and no teacher, so after some testing she had to put it aside. But she couldn’t get the little pieces of glass out of her mind. So when her Italian friend told her about a mosaic school in Ravenna, she decided to go at her earliest opportunity.
She was soon working under the tutelage of Luciana in Ravenna, working alongside students from different countries. During the course, Zeng learned how to create mosaic art. She also learned that suppliers are now making smalti with brighter colors, and how hard it is to find smalti in softer tones.
Zeng continued her study, testing, and making smalti in the lab. Her first 100 colors of smalti were those in pastel or muted colors. She followed by producing the bright colors that are in high demand. She showed them to her teacher, who offered suggestions, including a membership in the Society of American Mosaic Artists.
Many factories in China make mosaic with ceramic or glass or wood, to fulfill orders for designs for foreign customers. But this is not art, says Zeng. And although many countries have mosaic studios and mosaic art schools—even many universities have mosaic courses for art students—China, with 1.3 billion people, has no mosaic artists! Zeng googled mosaic artists and found listings for 519, but not even one is Chinese. She is sorrowful about this, and that is the main reason she went to Ravenna. “My teacher told me I am the first Chinese student since she set up her mosaic school more than 30 years ago,” she said. Zeng plans to introduce mosaic art in China by setting up the first mosaic studio and school in Beijing.
Zeng feels she is destined to be the agent of change. She got a special sign from God when she took part in a fair for building material. She exhibited a design of the Madonna using her smalti, and God sent one person who was building a church to pass by her booth. “I am sure He gave me this chance; I tried my best to catch it,” she said. The result? She won a project in September 2010, for the first church in China to have a large Byzantine mosaic mural (4.5 X 12.5m) at its most significant location. This was also a first-time process for Zeng, who had never applied smalti to a wall. “Everybody in the church will see this mosaic, and I am sure this mural will stay there longer than my life. This is just what I saw in a dream,” said Zeng.
“I am an engineer for glass and ceramic, I like my work,” she said. “Now I will try my best to become a mosaic artist. If I can do something for God with what I love to do, you can imagine how much happiness I can have.”
Zeng Fang does not hope to compete with Orsoni and Perdomo, “the best in the world.” She just wants to use her knowledge to produce something new and different at a lower cost. Her desire is to provide smalti to people who are on tight budgets, but also to continuously improve her process and product.
“This is what I can do in the world, and God will agree with me,” said Zeng.
Above was record about how Zeng Fang started her smalti mosaic career since 2008.
Now is Jan 2020. There were many stories about smalti mosaic for Zeng Fang. Many artists contact with her and also some big studios become good customers of her smalti mosaic. To meet new requirement, she research many new colors and different size.
The bigger project in Ethiopia(East Africa) used about 10 tons of smalti mosaic( more than 600sqm), other big project in East Europe is also going on.
Zeng Fang also gave support to artist in Kenya for several churches near Nairobi with more than 60% donation. After that, we continue donated to some monasteries and church.
There was another story about stained glass for Zeng Fang. The first time Ms.Zeng Fang saw stained glass workshop was with Mr.Sung Chin from Canada. He met Zeng Fang at an exhibition in Shanghai for building material on April 2007. At that time, Mr.Chin saw a lot of glass mosaic with new process in Zeng Fang’s booth. Then he went inside to discuss with Zeng about glass process and other technical points. To his surprise, she can explain all key points in glass technology and test in Lab.
He thought she was the person he had looking forward for long time. After exhibition Mr. Sung Chin came to Beijing to visit her glass mosaic factory.Zeng Fang found Sung Chin was very professional for stained glass art design and production process. This was God sent to me! She told herself. Because after her successful in byzantine mosaic (smalti mosaic), there are several churches asked not only smalti mosaic, but also stained glass window to complete their church project. At that time, Zeng Fang didn’t know how to make it. Now Sung Chin solve all problem and left all his books relative with stained glass. This was starting of her stained glass career.
After first church in Beijing, Zeng Fang and her colleagues, finished several churches in China, Day by day their skill became better and better. Zeng Fang made a wish to make 5 big churches then she will retire. But during the time she nearly reach her targets, there was a church from USA contacted with her, that was her never thought. Looks like God was prepared everything for leading her as the way God showed to her. At the time Zeng Fang was not confident about her knowledge for religion and theology, icon, she got one email from one of the most famous Icon artist Ashraf Gerges, very soon, Ashraf came to visit her in Beijing. Zeng Fang’s stained glass studio and not the biggest and only one, but after he knew Zeng Fang in better way, he decided to give her one great chance to work with Ashraf for a new big church in Melbourne .
Since that time, Zeng Fang start to work with Ashraf together to make stained glass windows for several churches in the world.
Be sure this partnership will continue until they retired. Until now you can see their stained glass windows in USA, Austrilia, New Zealand, very soon, will be in other countries, too.
On June 2019, Zeng Fang finished one of her most important wish: make stained glass window for one church in her hometown. It was a long story since 5 years ago. Zeng Fang finished one big church in a city of north China with happiness. At same time one idea came in her mind: I need to do something for my hometown, one small city in southwest of China. Since that time, Zeng Fang started to pay attention about any information for the church in that area, but several years she did not find right church(even without formal church). After 4 years, she had almost given up. On 2019 Chinese new year’s eve, after dinner, she told herself: “let me try to search on line one more time, if no, I will forget this topic.” But this one old and fine church came out on her computer, exactly in her mother hometown, a church built by France 100 years ago, exactly at same period as the church in north city Tianjin also built by France. But maybe as location was too far(more than 2000km) from port, some expensive and scarcity building material not arrived, so this church now without stained glass on window just normal clear glass. Why almost nobody know about this church? After Zeng Fang met Father Chen, he told her: this church was used as office and warehouse during Culture Revolution, no conversus(church member) were there since 20 years and that was why few persons know about it. Father Chen is new here, just start, because a lot of place need to repair with shortage of capital, he never thought can have stained glass here, because it is too much expensive for his church now.
After Father Chen knew Zeng Fang would like to make full donation for all 20 windows, he was so happy and thanks God.
After several months preparation, Zeng Fang has lucky because five Masters for culture relic repair in Tsinghua University, and professor Guan for glass art joined this project. They went to site setup everything by themselves, Also Father Chen works with them to finish all project. You can see the photos on our website, the result is wonderful, church member from other area nearby were touched by the colorful light from sky inside church. Bishop came to make first Mass at same time celebration for this great promotion in this old church.
Zeng Fang and her team were proud to have this chance. She will go on to make stained glass also popular for normal house and let colorful light from sun be showed at more homes.
God is with us!
Thanks everyone who give support and trust during Zeng Fang’s mosaic career.