Mai Ngọc Nhi is the owner of the Pottery Studio in Bien Hoa city (Photo: Duy Phuong)

300-year-old Bien Hoa pottery village on the Dong Nai River is known for two major pottery styles – one produced in Tan Van, Buu Hoa, and Hoa An ward, and the other at the Bien Hoa Practical Fine Arts school.

The family of Mai Ngọc Nhi, the owner of the Phong Son pottery kiln in Bien Hoa city, has been making pottery for five generations. Her workshop, open every day, welcomes groups of visitors who come to observe and discuss Bien Hoa pottery.

Ms. Nhi told VOV, “Bien Hoa pottery is hand-painted, making it popular with customers because each piece has its own beauty. This craft village is important to me. I prefer handmade pottery to industrial one.”

The Bien Hoa Indochina Vocational Training School was founded here in 1903. Many of its products, a blend of Vietnamese, Chinese, and French pottery styles, have been displayed at exhibitions in France and Japan.

The motifs painted on Bien Hoa pottery include Chinese representations of the four seasons and four sacred animals and poems written in Chinese characters, as well as images of the three Indian primary gods Shiva, Vishnu, and Brahma, who are worshiped by Vietnam’s Cham ethnic minority.

Dr. Nguyen Thi Nguyet, Vice President of the Literature and Arts Association of Dong Nai province, said, “Ancient Bien Hoa pottery is unique in its glaze color, patterns, and especially its decorative techniques. Later Bien Hoa pottery is no longer the same, because if the artisans focused on the art, the high production costs would make the pottery less profitable.”

Bien Hoa pottery varies from one artisan to the next. Many factors create aesthetic differences – for instance, the glaze formulation and techniques used by each potter.

Bien Hoa pottery products (Photo: Duy Phuong)

Bien Hoa pottery is internationally famous for its "blue-speckled copper glaze with blooming patterns". The glaze formula used is a closely guarded secret within each family. Adhering the glaze is considered the most important step. It requires experience because, when they are fired, pieces can easily become deformed, said artisan Nguyen Minh Hung.

According to Hung, “The glaze is engraved in recesses so that the dotted glaze does not spread or blur from one stroke to another. The embossed patterns are beautiful. Small, deep patterns are characteristic of Bien Hoa pottery.”

Nowadays, due to environmental issues and Bien Hoa pottery’s tending more toward art than practical use, the village’s pottery kilns are being forced to change their firing techniques.

Nguyen Viet Son, Director of the Dong Nai provincial Museum, says that every year, the museum organizes special pottery exhibitions and publishes books on pottery, adding, “Dong Nai plans to establish a pottery museum displaying various types of ceramics, but Bien Hoa ceramics will stand out.”

Bien Hoa pottery village is developing, encouraged by Government policies that promote innovation and handicraft village development. Bien Hoa pottery products are exported to Southeast Asia and Europe. Bien Hoa is now combining pottery production and cultural tourism.