Fire and Earth: The legendary Nixi black pottery

A small Tibetan village on the outskirts of the city of Shangri-la in Southwest China's Yunnan Province. Nixi village is renowned for its centuries-old art, as well as its pottery. "Black pottery" produced in Nixi was put on China's National Intangible Cultural Heritage List in 2008. [Photo: China Plus/Shi Jie]

Tibetan "black pottery" artisan Guo Huajun. Skills are passed down genration-to-generation. Guo Huajun's father began passing along the skills to create "black pottery" to his son at the age of 7. [Photo: China Plus/Shi Jie]

"Black pottery" works including basins, jars, teapots, jugs and various household items. The distinct black coloring of the pottery is based on how it is fired in the kiln. Sawdust is used as a cooling agent in the "black pottery" technique. [Photo: China Plus/Shi Jie]

A hand-made Tibetan "black pottery" cup produced by Nixi Village artisan Guo Huajun.[Photo: China Plus/Shi Jie]

A Tibetan "black pottery" tea pot produced by Nixi Village artisan Guo Huajun. The clay used to create the tea pot is collected from a mountain near the village. [Photo: China Plus/Shi Jie]