Page 37 - Korean Buncheong Ceramics, Samsung Museum Collection (great book)

One of the changes in the decoration of buncheong ware was the manner in which white slip
was applied. In the case of a bottle from the first half of the fifteenth century, the motifs were first
incised and stamped, after which white slip was applied into the notches or indentations (cat. 12).
In contrast, later incised or carved, sgraffito-decorated, and iron-painted vessels were covered with
white slip before the designs were carved or iron-painted. This conceptual and procedural shift
transformed the quality, decoration, and production methods of buncheong. For example, if the
quality of the clay was poor, an overall layer of white slip evened the color and texture of the surface,
creating a new visual effect. The application of the white slip as a base layer allowed for a greater
freedom of design, resulting in a more diverse range of decoration and more energetic expressions.
Most of all, the use of white slip made it possible to achieve the maximum decorative effect in
less time and less strenuously. Such dramatic effect is on full display on a late fifteenth- or early
sixteenth-century bottle (cat. 13): the stunning contrast between black and white, dark and light
pigments, combined with the dynamic speed of the brushstrokes is captivating and refreshing.
The second half of the fifteenth century witnessed more varied and liberated decoration.
By the sixteenth century, buncheong’s ornamental range had greatly narrowed, the most
prevalent decorative modes being slip-brushing or slip-dipping to imitate the look of white
porcelain — by then the ceramic of choice not only for the ruling class but increasingly for the
general population. The white-slip-brushed or -dipped types eclipsed the regional characteristics
and vitality of the earlier buncheong ware. Nearly all the buncheong kilns throughout the country
decorated their products with white slip and nothing more, the visible traces of the brush their only
design. A prime example of this trend is a sixteenth-century jar (cat. 14). Here, the swift, powerful
strokes, executed with a broad flat brush called a guiyal, create an exuberant expression that is
appealing in its simplicity.
As an even more direct response to porcelain, buncheong makers turned to dipping the
whole vessel in white slip rather than using a brush. A small sixteenth-century jar provides a classic
example (cat. 15): though its surface color resembles that of white porcelain, the areas of exposed
dark clay, the glaze, and the production method reveal the fundamental differences between the
two ceramics.

opposite: Catalogue 12 Bottle with decoration of peonies and dots. Korean, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910);
first half of the 15th century. Buncheong with inlaid and stamped design, H. 11 in. (27.9 cm), Diam. of mouth 2 3 ⁄4 in. ( 7 cm),
1
Diam. of base 3 ⁄8 in. ( 7.9 cm). Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul

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