Chinese artist Dong Zi’s porcelain works tackle topics that range from the cultural to the personal, with a lot of playful pieces in between.

The Beijing-born artist, who now calls China’s porcelain capital Jingdezhen home, says she was attracted to Leo Gallery, with its exposed bricks and hardwood floors. Indeed, her works give the already cozy space an even homier atmosphere, filling its nooks and crannies with everything from plates to vases to wall plaques.

In the front windows, Dong Zi has crafted a series of porcelain arms stretching toward the heavens, each grasping a plump fish. The indigo blue pieces, called Fisherman’s Story, were inspired by the Chinese philosopher Zhuangzi and his parable exploring the happiness of fish. Zhuangzi questions how humans can understand fish and their pleasures since we are not fish. The story so resonated with Dong Zi that she used her own arm as the model for the pieces.

Another piece titled Who Flew Out? is even more whimsical. A tiny lavender porcelain bird is pinned to a brilliant, plush purple chair. Sitting on the chair are two white feet, etched with darkened tan lines. Dong Zi envisioned a story where a man flew to the sky and returned as a bird. In the story, the only remnants of the man’s former self were his sun-tanned feet.

The most visually stunning work in the exhibition, Blue of Happiness (pictured), takes up most of the upstairs room. A wooden plank is painted in blended wisps of rainbow color. On top, blue ceramic leaves and petals are arranged in a flower-like pattern with a cat on one side. The bed is surrounded by two dozen circular white ceramic lamps, on which are painted trees, birds and other natural designs.

“I wanted to create the feeling of happiness,” Dong Zi explains. It’s hard to take your eyes away from the colors, the lights, the images, which do indeed inspire a sense of euphoria. Kellie Schmitt