A Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) bowl. LIN QI/CHINA DAILY

"Ceramics have a quality of eternity — it doesn't rust, or decay," says Sun Yue, a ceramist who teaches at Tsinghua University's Academy of Arts and Design.

Sun also attended the Saturday forum, where she recalled studying at the University of the Arts Bremen in Germany and discovering the wider possibilities of ceramics as an artistic medium.

Inspired by Bremen's dandelions, Sun's graduation work paired a performance — passing flowers among visitors until their tufts dispersed — with a sculpture of ceramic stems. For Sun, the work reflects life's fleeting nature and what endures, much like ceramics that outlast their makers.