A leaf, held in a bowl.
Leaf-pattern decoration is associated with Jizhou black-glazed ceramics. A leaf works with the glaze and the firing process to leave its shape and veins on the surface.
Look at the veins, then the form.
The dark glaze gives the leaf pattern a quiet background. Follow the veins and edges, then look at how the decoration sits within the bowl.
A Nanyao bodhi leaf bowl.
This piece pairs a bodhi leaf pattern on the front with a carved lotus on the reverse. The leaf shape and glaze surface vary from piece to piece.
Further reading: Ningxia Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology . Product photographs are from Nanyao.