Tongyeong Ottchil Art Museum, Geoje Island

Ottchil, also known as an East Asian Lacquer, contains the chemical substance Urushiol. Ottchil is most frequently used in najeon-chil-gi (mother-of-pearl inlay lacquer ware); however, the West has typically perceived ottchil as being a synthetic and not derived from organic sources. Therefore, in an attempt to refute this misbelief and to raise awareness of the natural beauty of ottchil in elaborate artisty, artist KIM Sungsoo has organized a series of Korean Ottchil Painting exhibitions in the hopes of "enlightening others". In result, the Tongyeong Ottchil Art Museum was created for the purpose of establishing ottchil in the Korean art culture--specifically its historical claims to natural beauty and its current modern usages.

KOREA: Ottchil is an art form with long-lasting preservation qualities as well as offering the aesthetics of visual depth and elegance. Ottchil is the semi-permanent material which doesn't get discolored even if it is buried in the earth for thousands of years, obviously having better durability than canvas or paper. In current times creating new concepts and usages of the traditional form of ottchil is a modern art trend.

VIETNAM: Son mai was a traditional pigment originating in Vietnamese temple art over 1,000 years ago. The art was used for gilding, painting dark brown or black colors, and varnishing pillars and sculptures of religious iconography with som mai (resin of the som tree). Traditionally, Buddhist statues were lightly painted and then varnished with som mai to "bring forth the magical and holy world of Vietnamese traditional painting". The pigment was also used on household furniture and items such as beds, drawers, furniture, plates and chopsticks.

Vietnamese painting culture originated in the Puto region, which was known for producing the best quality of som mai. Before the sun rose, people collected it. It was then put in a large container and after some time, the som mai would separate into layers. The top layer was of the richest blacks and browns (som mai) and used for creating elegance and the lowest layer was of the heavy elements with waterproof qualities and had everyday, commonplace usages (som song). In modern times the simple traditional ingredients have been replaced with more controllable and aesthetically pleasing synthetics. Since the 1980s and 1990s, Vietnamese artists have been expanding the uses of som mai into abstract works to reach new levels of loveliness and idealism.

JAPAN: Urushi has been used by the Japanese since the Jomon era 1,000 years ago. However, this number is young when considering the thread-processing tool with urushi applied on it and surmised to be 7,000 years old. Currently, in Kyoto there are a series of activities to develop and promote urushi quality. A lacquer ware youth association in cooperating with young pupils, craftsmen, Maki-e artisans and urushi refiners has launched various programs to expand the uses of lacquer ware gum.

CHINA: Daqi initially was used in lacquer ware but has since been transformed through a long process. In 1962 the "Vietnamese Daqi Exhibition" was opened first in Beijing and then in Shanghai, and these would influence the artistic world of China. In the same year that Vietnamese daqi entered China, university students Qiao Shiguang (who later became knows as "the father of contemporary Chinese Daqi art") and Li Hongyin were sent to Vietnam to study daqi, which started a daqi trend. 

A selection of some of the ottchil art in the museum:

 

lacquered table by Master KIM Sung Soo

"The Great Leap"  (1986) by Master KIM Sung Soo

And then a solo exhibition of Myung Pum Kwan (adjacent building):

 

  

  

  

  

Kansong Art Museum at the DDP

Selected priceless artifacts from the Kansong Art Museum are currently on display at the DDP, Dongdaemun Plaza or Dream Design Play. The Kansong Art Museum was first opened in 1938 as Bohwagak, the first private art museum in Korea. The collector "Kansong" Jeon Hyeong-pil, born 1906, died in 1962 and so the museum name was changed to Kansong Art Museum and since 1971 has only opened twice a year for a brief time in the spring and again briefly in the fall. "Gansong" Jeon Hyeong-pil (1906-1962), a young wealthy landowner during the colonial period, collected the art treasures of Korea's past to keep them within Korea rather than see them be taken most notably to Japan, the then colonizing country of Korea.

The Kansong Art Museum is the home to 12 national treasures, 10 treasures, and 4 Seoul tangible cultural assets, and according to the Joongang Daily, the Kansong Art Museum since January 2014 has posted a few of its treasures online to share the glorious history of the Korea's rich past. If one clicks on the pictured art treasures at the Kansong Art Museum and Culture Foundation site, one can read about the treasure, and in many cases even learn what Jeon Hyeong-pil paid for the artifact.

To give a little background to Jeon Hyeong-pil, before the age of 25 he inherited a huge fortune, and being a man of leisure and having what can be regarded as a keen interest in art, he began to collect art treasures. During the 1930s and 1940s is when he collected the majority. Legendary stories evolved from his purchases, one in particular in 1935 concerns the now famous National Treasure No. 68, the Celadon Prunus Vase with inlaid Cloud and Crane Design, which was in the process of being sold to a Japanese. Jeon Hyeong-pil paid a huge sum (according to the museum web site: 20,000 won) which was equivalent to 20 decent houses of the time!

National Treasure No. 68, the Celadon Prunus Vase with inlaid Cloud and Crane Design

"Kansong", Jeon Hyeong-pil's pen-name, is also known as promoting the Korean language when the Japanese colonial rulers decreed that all Koreans must speak Japanese and the Japanese language became the language of education in the limited number of schools. Jeon Hyeong-pil purchases and supported Posung High School, the first private school established by a Korean citizen. It was through this high school and another purchase, the Hannam printing press that Mr. Jeon promoted great resistance against the colonial rulers. 

1906 July 29 - born
1921 March - graduated from Eouidong Primary School (now Hyojae Elem Sch)
1926 March - graduated from Whimoon High School
1930 March - graduated from law school, Waseda University, Japan
1934 - opened Bukdanjang in Seongbuk-dong and set up Geosan Stupa
1935 - purchased Celedon Prunus vase with inlaid cloud and crane design (Nat'l Treasure No 58) from Maeda Sayichiro
1936 - Hannam Bookstore and Publishing Company
1936 - purchased Blue and White Porcelain Bottle with Chrysanthemum Design in Underglaze Iron and Copper (Nat'l Treasure No. 294) at Gyeongseong Art Club, the Mori Koichi's collection auction

Blue-and-white Porcelain Bottle with Chrysanthemum Design in Underglaze Iron and Copper (Nat'l Treasure No. 294)

"The elongated neck of this elegant bottle and the globular body reflect the spirit of the age. The body is painted in blue, brown, and red by using cobalt, iron and copper oxides as pigments. This extremely rare bottle, painted in three different pigments, is recognized for its exceptional quality utilizing every color pigment and carving technique of the era.

Kansong purchased this masterpiece through heated bidding battle against Japanese art dealers in Gyeongseong Art Club in 1936. The final bidding price was record breaking, 14,580 won!

1937 - purchased Nat'l Treasure No. 65, 66, 74, 270, and Treasure No. 238, 286, 349, 1955, 1954
1938 - opened the first private art museum, Museum Bohwagak, in Bukdanjang
1940 - established the school foundation Dongsung, taking over the Posung Middle School
1940 - collected the Huminjeongeum Hyeraebon (Nat'l Treasure No. 70)
1945 Oct - 1946 Sept - worked as principal of Posung Middle School
1947 - selected as member of Historic Assets Preservation Committee
1950 June 25 - outbreak of the Korean War
1954 - delegated to first and second subcommittee member of the Cultural Properties Protection Committee
1956 - awarded with Education Service Commendation
1960 January - established the Art and Archaeology Society
1962 Jan 26 - "Kansong" passed away
1962 Aug 15 - posthumous honors of Order of Cultural Merit conferred on "Kansong"
1964 Nov 13 - posthumous honors of Order of Civil Merit Republic of Korea on "Kansong"
1965 - establishment of The Center for the Study of Korean Arts
1971 - Bohwagak renamed Kansong Art Museum, and project exhibition opened to the public every spring and autumn

Kansong Art Museum opens every May and October for a brief time. Be sure to visit this museum with exceptional masterpieces!

Hangeul Day, 2018 - Calligraphy at City Hall

History of Hangeul Day (Wikipedia)

According to the Sejong Sillok, King Sejong proclaimed publication of Hunmin Jeongeum, the document introducing the newly created alphabet which was also originally called by the same name in 1446. In 1926, the Korean Language Society, whose goal was to preserve the Korean language during a time of rapid forced Japanization, celebrated the octo-sexagesimal (480th) anniversary of the declaration of hangeul on the last day of the ninth month of the lunar calendar, which is on November 4 of the Gregorian calendar. Members of the Society declared it the first observance of "Gagyanal" (가갸날). The name came from "Gagyageul" (가갸글), an early colloquial name for hangeul, based on a mnemonic recitation beginning "gagya geogyeo" (가갸거겨). The name of the commemorative day was changed to "Hangullal" in 1928, soon after the term "hangul", coined originally in 1913 by Ju Si-gyeong, became widely accepted as the new name for the alphabet, and celebrated according to the lunar calendar.  

In 1931, the celebration of the day was switched to October 29 of the Gregorian Calendar, the calendar which is in contemporary use. Three years later, the date was moved to October 28, to coordinate the date with that of the Julian Calendar, which had been in use during the 15th century, when King Sejong had made his proclamation. 

The discovery in 1940 of an original copy of the Hunmin Jeongeum Haerye, revealed that the Hunmin Jeongeum was announced during the first ten days of the ninth month. The tenth day of the ninth month of the 1446 lunar calendar was equivalent to October 9 of that same year's Julian calendar. The South Korean government, established in 1945, declared October 9 to be Hangeul Day, a yearly legal holiday which excused government employees from work. 

Major employers pressured the South Korean government to increase the country's annual number of work days. In 1991, to balance out the adoption of the United Nations Day, it vacated Hangeul Day's status as a holiday. By law, Hangeul Day remained a national commemoration day, and the Hangeul Society campaigned for the holiday's restoration. On November 1, 2012, the Society won that campaign, when the National Assembly voted 189 to 4 (with 4 abstaining) in favor of a resolution that called for the return of Hangeul Day as a national holiday. This put pressure on the Lee Myung Bak administration, which applied the change in 2013.

But in reality, this is a bit of a "free" day for Koreans, meaning there are no social or family obligations entwined at all with this day. This holiday has no specific food traditions, no ceremonial traditions, and no duties or functions to perform or even think about. So people can just enjoy a whole day without communal obligations or need to gather over specifically prepared foods. They are totally free to plan their hours without any social constraints. and so I was really pleased to see a large gathering at City Hall where people could indulge in street food and experience Hangeul Day themed art. 

An extensive line-up of display boards lined the Cheongyecheon and the boards were loaded with Hangeul Day postcards, many done in watercolors and calligraphy inks. I'm under the impression that middle and high school students made a large contribution to this display, but the public was certainly encouraged to make their own Hangeul Day postcard at booths on both sides of the display. Wherever this huge display of handmade postcards came from, I have to say that the art level of some of the postcards was quite stunning!

Gopanhwa 2018 Woodblock Exhibition

고판화 박물관, The Museum of Ancient Asian Woodblock Prints, held their 5th annual woodblock print competition, and once again the walls of the privately owned museum were decorated with newly made woodblocks. Last year's competitors were divided into three classes: professional class, art student class, and beginner-soldier-foreigner class. This year there were no art students participating; distance was explained as the biggest problem -- mailing large art pieces, attending the awards ceremony (which none did last year), and then arranging for pick-up of their submissions. I thought it is a great loss for the competition as the students were risk-takers in their submissions and had huge variety: engravings, etchings, paint-wood combinations. They were exploring woodblocks as an art form, so it was a joy to see how the muse of inspiration was actualized through their unique pieces.

Like every competition though the style is different, and this year the Grand Prize winner had developed a very unique style of printing! Modern woodblock printing, which I still don't fully understand, but it seems to be done through the process of putting thick paint on wood sheets and laying the paper on top for printing. Somehow in her printing process she was capable of capturing the woodgrain!

[Picture above] Several woodblocks like the once pictured were entered in the competition. The woodblock featured on the wall posting was wild cherry, a rather hard to carve but very durable wood.

Grand Prize Winner - Bae Nam Kyung (2 entries using the modern woodblock printing style of "wood planography"). On first and even second impression these woodblock prints look like watercolor! Definitely a new type of printing style to me, so I can't offer much comment. It's always interesting to learn a bit about the piece painted and the "model" and inspiration for this piece was the artist's mother. 

Other wood planography and a woodcut (the woman in hanbok) from a publication
on her 2016 wood-cut / wood-planography exhibition in China. Artist Bae Nam Kyung.

Bae Nam Kyung has a PhD in Fine Arts from Seoul National University (2015) with particular focus and emphasis on painting and printmaking. Her first award (according to the art publication "배남경 나무글나무그림 / Bae Nam Kyung Woodletter Woodpicture" on a Chinese exhibition held in 2016) she won in the 2002 22nd National Competition of Prints by KCPA, Kwanhoon Gallery, Seoul - Superior Prize. Since, she has won several awards and participated in more than 100 group exhibitions as well as hosting 10 solo exhibitions (as of 2016). 

Han Byung-ok, second highest award!
Han Byung-ok doesn't want his work displayed anywhere as he makes only ONE copy of each woodblock carves, making that single print very special. He does realize that by entering this contest that a copy of his woodblock will be reproduced and perhaps posted online. He admits it's the price of entering a contest. 

This young man has only been carving for 3 years, and yet he won the fourth or fifth highest award!
He told me that in the past 3 years since starting to woodblock carve, he has only carved about 200 or so woodblocks!

Honorable Mention

And I was even recognized with an honorable mention, which very much surprised me! I had sent the scroll print from my carved woodblock to the competition but explained that the print was not an "honest" one as I had had to darken the lines with a paintbrush because I couldn't get a good print. I did a very credible job of following the lines with Chinese ink, BUT it was not a 100% woodblock print. Before the exhibition, I told the owner monk that again and he just smiled and said "well done", and then he affirmed what I already knew, that printing is another art form related but separate from carving. This was my second year to win honorable mention; however, I do feel that my cranes from last year were better presented than the tiger reflection of this year. Just my opinion. That said, I've already got ideas for the 2018 woodblock carving competition.

Un-lim Sanbang, Sochi's Home

Un-lim Sanbang, surrounded by the evergreen forest of Mt. Jeom-Chal, is a place where the famous Ryun Hur lived and worked. A pond, a traditional house, and a garden attract many visitors annually. Ryun Hur (1808-1893), better known by his pen-name Sochi, was a scholar artist born to a yangban family but, rejecting his aristocratic roots, took up painting; he spent his later years working at Un-lim Sanbang and teaching his traditional painting skills to disciples. He introduced a more realistic style of painting and his school or style was followed by a number of traditional artists. The unique style of painting started by Sochi has been passed down through five generations, always through the fourth son, until the fifth generation, which only had two sons. I believe it is this second son which continues in the footsteps of his painting ancestors.

Un-lim Sanbang, Sochi's house - perfect tranquility for an artist!

The Sochi Memorial Museum just around the corner from Sochi's house houses a number of his paintings and those of his disciples. At the foyer to the museum is the five-generation painting legacy tree that shows the importance of birth and position -- all explained in yin-yang terms by the very elderly tour leader, who also explained that the temple nearby where we did templestay nestles near the lap of the mountain-woman. The woman is kind of obvious once it's pointed out. The very rolling hills of the area show the reclining position of a woman, her hips and breasts are obvious and valleys between are the geomantically beneficial places. The old man was quite graphic. The temple is positively positioned in the woman's region and Sochi's house and the museum are off to the side. I remember hearing a lot of geomantic tales when I first came to Korea in 1991 (Kwangju). It's too bad these local legends aren't being much documented. Culture is definitely being lost.

Sochi, the start of a five-generation artist family, a family that strongly influenced Korean art today
Sochi's school of art was based on realism, and the pictures in the museum show examples of each of the generation artists and how each influenced art in his era

This is my favorite artistic piece in the museum!
There were several I liked but the fan-shape plus combination
of realistic color and mountain structure with calligraphy really appeals.
I realize I didn't take notes on which of the five generations of artists created this piece :(

Anyway, the museum houses paintings, calligraphic works, drawings, historic records and other artifacts. One long display case really caught my attention: one half of the display showed tube paints and painting equipment of several decades ago, and the other half had an impressive display of calligraphy materials like brushes and very stylish stamps for completed artworks.

a collection of stamps for signing off on calligraphy, documents, art

Korean Painting Lesson

A one-time experiential class in Korean folk painting was offered at the Buddhist English Library, located at Anguk subway station, seconds walk from exit 6. According to the advertisement for the free class, up to 12 participants could attend. Unfortunately, only 4 people, and of course all female, registered. Very sad for the hosts who prepared a lot and had four assistants to augment the head painting teacher.

The teacher introduced a very famous 18th century folk painting to us - one of the most famous works of art by painter 신윤복 (born 1758), otherwise known by his artist or pen name Hyewon. His most famous piece is entitled "다노풍경", Dano for the spring celebration day and 풍경 meaning scenery; in short, the scenery of Dano. Dano is a traditional Korean holiday celebrated on the 5th day of the 5th month of the Korean lunar calendar. Traditionally on the day were special rites, singing and dancing, of course drinking, the playing of folk games like Korean traditional wrestling (씨름), and the presenting and eating of beautiful delicate foods symbolizing spring. To prepare for Dano was for the young ladies to wash their hair elaborately in iris-petal water to scent it and prepare it for the celebration. This hair-washing scene is part of the scene inside the women's court depicted in 신윤복's painting ... young women preparing themselves for Dano. We only painted a small portion of the scene, a court lady stepping on a traditional swing, but in the foreground of the original painting are young women gathered around a stream in the different stages of washing and scenting their hair.

This painting, although done in the 18th century, has been relatively well preserved and the colors, though somewhat faded over the march of decades, largely retained, which says a lot for the natural dyestuffs of the time as well as the hardiness of the natural paper products. "다노풍경" is a picture depicting the court and its ladies in the Joseon Dynasty. The original painting has been designated National Treasure No. 135.

Before we started painting, our teacher briefly introduced the famous painting to us and stressed how this painting depicted traditional court life. Therefore, by emulating the painting we would be participating in cultural knowledge advancement related to the Joseon Dynasty.

While we were painting, the four assistants constantly moved around the room to "advise" us on mixing colors properly. They insisted that we copy the color and design of the original as closely as possible. I've done a little research on why this copy technique is so important, and basically there are no copyright laws regarding old paintings and Korean art in general. Rather, to emulate exactly is to reach a higher realm of expertise and respect as a "great artist". Ok, I don't want to be a great artist. I made tons of color mistakes, but I wouldn't let anyone mix my colors. We had the basic pictures printed on the paper anyway, so what really could go wrong?

Of course a class, ceremony or celebration is NEVER complete without the closing ceremonial picture-shoot, so here we all are with our "original" paintings.

Art in a Park

Students in a wide age range from kindergarten to high school were scattered throughout a temple ground, not a park (but it sounds so much better to use assonance). The students had such a beautiful range of drawings of various aspects of the temple and were using such a wide array of art supplies that I felt inspired to document the range of artistry employed in Korea. The US is just so deficient in art training and usage of artistic supplies and skills ... it's so sad ... so seeing this is truly inspirational to me!

coloring with oil pastels - the Korean version of Crayola crayons

tubed Chinese water color paints (which have more glue than typical water colors)

And a paint palette to squeeze out the water color paints in

Felt-tipped markers

very inexpensive water colors in plastic tubes so very popular in elementary school arts and crafts

the typical elementary and middle school medley of art materials: wax-based pastels, colored markers, paintbrushes ...

more of the wax-based pastels (the Korean crayon)

Very nice! water color pencils!