Book Information: Pierson, Stacey. From Object to Concept: Global Consumption and the Transformation of Ming Porcelain. Hong Kong: Hong Kong UP, 2013. Print.

Trade has been a very important part in class readings and discussions, so I wanted to look for a book that reflected that. In addition, our last reading involved East Asian empires and how they were involved in an interconnected world. Interestingly, I found this book while searching under the keywords “Qing” and “trade.” Because this book is about Ming porcelain and global consumption, it reminded me of the Kakiemon Elephants from Japan. However, another reason why I chose this book was that it looked like it might tie in how Ming porcelain was treated in the modern world, and how that has changed from its conception (or as the book title properly labels it- the transformation from object to concept). Pierson begins with the conception of Ming porcelain between the 14^th and 17^th century. She writes about how porcelain is manufactured and its’ function. She goes on to describe how Ming porcelain went on to be distributed globally, and the different reactions people had depending on where they came from (Europe, Africa, west and south Asia. Pierson also talks about what Ming porcelain meant to Europe as a linguistic invention. Finally, Pierson discusses Ming porcelain as it relates to the Art world since the 19^th century. This book essentially covers the time line of Ming Porcelain in a way that best highlights the importance of Porcelain in a specific time period, as well as why it was (and is) important.

Interesting titles near From Object to Concept: There were a lot of books on Chinese porcelain and consumption, which leads me to believe that these books not only cover Ming porcelain and trade, but other dynasties as well.