JINGDEZHEN, China — For more than 1,000 years, this city in Jiangxi province has turned clay, fire and cobalt into porcelain prized around the world, and in October 2026 it staged its biggest showcase yet of that living craft. The 2026 China Jingdezhen International Ceramic Expo, held alongside the Jingdezhen Forum, drew more than 2,500 guests from over 90 countries and regions, according to a China News Service report on the event, with 450 domestic and foreign companies and more than 40 international brands taking part. The expo was the city's first major international gathering since the Jingdezhen Handicraft Porcelain Industry Sites were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on 25 July 2026 as China's 61st World Heritage property, a milestone that has given fresh momentum to a craft that never really stopped evolving.
Illustration: Artisans shape blue-and-white porcelain in a traditional Jingdezhen kiln workshop.
What Happened
The expo brought together the full porcelain world in one place: makers, buyers, designers and traders, with nearly 100 overseas buyers and more than 150 domestic suppliers taking part in trade talks, the China News Service report said. Exhibitors ranged from long-established kilns to young designers who are remaking the tradition for new audiences, fusing plush-toy elements with blue-and-white porcelain to create cuddly collectible dolls. Artificial intelligence also had a visible role: exhibitors showcased ceramic 3D printers that turn a typed prompt or an uploaded image into a model, print a ceramic blank and then fire it in a kiln into a finished piece.
The timing mattered. A separate Xinhua report on the expo, published on 19 October 2026, said the five-day event opened on Sunday 18 October, attracted more than 1,000 professional buyers from home and abroad, and filled 140,000 square metres with exhibitors from over 19 countries, including Spain, Germany and Japan. Themed zones covered creative design, smart ceramic manufacturing, international brands and ceramic-producing cities, and the opening ceremony unveiled the 2026 standards for the "Jingdezhen Made" regional brand alongside the city's digital culture and tourism platform.
For a city whose name is virtually synonymous with Chinese ceramics, the expo was both a trade fair and a statement: Jingdezhen is not a museum of a dead craft but a working production centre. Xinhua reported that the city's ceramic industry chain employs more than 100,000 people today, and that the detailed division of labour that once underpinned its historic success continues to thrive.
Background
Jingdezhen's claim to the title of porcelain capital rests on an unusually complete record. The UNESCO-inscribed property preserves a handicraft porcelain production system that developed from the 10th to the 19th century, covering the urban production centre, the Hutian Ancient Kiln Site, the Gaoling porcelain clay mining site, the Changling porcelain stone mining site and the Jiaotan kiln fuel production area. Together, they present one of the world's most complete manual porcelain production systems, documenting how Chinese ceramic technology, artistic innovation and industrial organisation evolved and influenced ceramics worldwide.
Blue-and-white porcelain, combining Chinese techniques with Persian cobalt blue pigment, became a defining influence on the chinoiserie style that flourished in European decorative arts in the 17th and 18th centuries. The craft's reach was never one-way, the China News Service report noted: the story of Chinese porcelain, its evolution and its journey to the wider world, was shaped by exchange in both directions.
Illustration: Visitors admire porcelain displays at the Jingdezhen International Ceramic Expo.
The road to inscription was long. Weng Yanjun, director of the Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Museum, told Xinhua that he had participated in the nomination work since 2015, and that the final proposal presented the whole industrial chain rather than a single site in isolation. "You cannot look at only one site in isolation, or only at the imperial kilns or civilian kilns," he said. "You have to examine it from the perspective of the entire industrial chain and from an overall perspective." The inscription at the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Busan, South Korea, filled what Xinhua described as a long-standing gap in the World Heritage List for porcelain heritage.
The city has already begun turning the listing into a development asset. Taoxichuan, a former state-owned porcelain factory transformed into a cultural and creative district, preserved and repurposed 22 historic factory buildings and industrial facilities, received 12.59 million visits in 2025 and generated revenue of 1.31 billion yuan (about 193 million US dollars), according to figures cited at an August 2026 symposium on the listing's aftermath.
Why It Matters
Jingdezhen's story matters beyond ceramics because it tests a question facing heritage cities everywhere: can a centuries-old craft survive as a living industry rather than a preserved relic? The expo suggests it can, but only by changing. The same halls that displayed imperial-style blue-and-white ware also showed AI-assisted design, 3D printing and playful products aimed at younger buyers. Tradition supplied the skill and the brand; technology supplied new routes to market.
It also matters for how China presents its heritage abroad. The expo's international guest list, with buyers and exhibitors from dozens of countries, and the UNESCO listing itself, position Jingdezhen as a cultural calling card: a place where visitors can watch a production system that is still running, not just admire finished objects behind glass. For the more than 100,000 people working in the city's ceramic chain, that visibility translates into orders, jobs and a reason for young artisans to stay in the trade.
There is a caution in the story too. Heritage status brings tourists and investment, but also pressure on workshops, housing and the authenticity of the craft itself. Officials at the August symposium stressed that post-inscription work must integrate conservation, utilisation and industrial development, and that local residents should benefit from, and take an active role in, safeguarding the heritage rather than being pushed aside by it.
Illustration: A blue-and-white porcelain vase with floral patterns, in the style Jingdezhen made famous.
What Happens Next
The expo's trade talks are expected to feed into orders and partnerships through the rest of 2026, and the city is likely to use the UNESCO listing in its cultural and tourism promotion for years to come. Watch for three things: whether the "Jingdezhen Made" brand standards unveiled at the expo gain traction with international buyers; whether AI-assisted ceramic printing moves from expo novelty to regular workshop tool; and whether the city's push for broader public participation in heritage protection delivers concrete roles, and income, for local residents. The next test of the model will be whether Jingdezhen can keep its kilns firing, its young designers experimenting and its historic sites intact at the same time.
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FAQ
When was Jingdezhen's porcelain heritage listed by UNESCO?
On 25 July 2026, at the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Busan, South Korea, the Jingdezhen Handicraft Porcelain Industry Sites became China's 61st World Heritage property.
What did the 2026 Jingdezhen Ceramic Expo involve?
According to the China News Service report, the expo and the Jingdezhen Forum drew more than 2,500 guests from over 90 countries and regions, 450 companies and more than 40 international brands, with trade talks involving nearly 100 overseas buyers and more than 150 domestic suppliers.
How old is Jingdezhen's porcelain tradition?
The inscribed property documents a production system that developed from the 10th to the 19th century, and the city has been synonymous with Chinese ceramics for more than 1,000 years.
What is new at the expo besides traditional porcelain?
Young designers fused plush-toy elements with blue-and-white porcelain, and exhibitors showed ceramic 3D printers that turn prompts or images into printable models that are then kiln-fired into finished pieces.
How many people work in Jingdezhen's ceramic industry today?
Xinhua reported that the city's ceramic industry chain employs more than 100,000 people, with a detailed division of labour that continues from its historic production system.
Sources
- China News Service, via Cantech Letter, "CNS Issues Report on Jingdezhen Ceramic Expo, UNESCO Heritage Listing," 26 October 2026.
- Xinhua, via the State Council Information Office, "Chinese, international buyers gather at ceramic expo in China's 'porcelain capital'," 19 October 2026.
- Xinhua, via People's Daily Online, "Innovation, interactions propel Jingdezhen to World Heritage status," 5 August 2026.
- Xinhua, via People's Daily Online, "After UNESCO listing, Jingdezhen seeks lasting momentum for its living heritage," 26 August 2026.
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