Page 56 - Korean Buncheong Ceramics, Samsung Museum Collection (great book)

The shape of Things

Buncheong vessels were formed on the potter’s wheel, rather than shaped by hand or by the
coil method; in addition, the multichamber climbing kilns were designed for efficient firing at high
temperatures. Buncheong thus takes its place in a continuum of advanced ceramic technology
in Korea dating to at least the fifth century c.e. At the same time, buncheong pieces are generally
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rather thickly potted compared to the same period’s porcelain, which is made of a finer clay.
In addition, certain types of buncheong, such as the innovative flask-shaped bottles with flattened
sides (see cat. 55), are noticeably uneven, displaying an emphatically handcrafted look. The
surface decoration, too, contributes to buncheong’s earthy, even rustic appearance. Fundamen-
tally, it is the potting itself that gives these delightful ceramics their substantial, yet sensuous
physical presence.
Evolved from an earlier stoneware, Goryeo celadon, buncheong ceramics inherited some of
its predecessor’s basic shapes, on which it rang subtle but significant changes. For example, the
plum bottle, or maebyeong, is a quintessentially Goryeo celadon type whose contours in buncheong
examples became curvier and top-heavy (see cat. 17). The principal decorative motifs became
simultaneously simplified and exaggerated, while the elongated bottom half of the jar was often
embellished with a characteristic version of stylized lotus petals. The classic teardrop-shaped bottle
has a more prominent and taller foot (see cat. 16). As with the maebyeong, the surface decoration
on these bottles further distinguishes them from their predecessors. Both this type of the bottle
and the maebyeong, staples of Goryeo celadon, can ultimately be traced back to the classic
Song-period ceramics of China. Such roots evince, on the one hand, the longevity — and a certain
degree of conservatism — in pottery forms across cultures and through time. On the other hand,
the notably different appearance of buncheong examples inspired by traditional forms epitomizes
the nonconformist character of this early Joseon ceramic genre. In some cases the traditional
bottle shape was given a mischievous twist by the slight flattening of two sides and the addition of
a spout and handle that take the shape of the head and scaly body of a dragon-fish (see cat. 18).
Such ingenious and eye-catching conflations of a vessel’s functional parts with an animal’s body
parts can also be found in other containers for liquids, such as a water dropper (cat. 19); drops
of water from this fifteenth-century vessel would have been used in preparing ink for writing or
painting. The stem cup, often larger and less delicately constructed than its celadon counterpart,
is invariably adorned with stamped patterns over the entire surface (see cat. 20).

opposite: Catalogue 17 Maebyeong with dragon-fish decoration. Korean, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910); early 15th century.
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Buncheong with inlaid design, H. 11 ⁄2 in. (29.2 cm), Diam. of mouth 2 in. (5.1 cm), Diam. of base 4 ⁄4 in. (10.8 cm).
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Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, Treasure no. 1386
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