Essential beauty of Joseon art
Jar with decoration of clouds and bamboo from 17th century Joseon Kingdom.
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Muneyoshi Yanagi (1889-1961), credited as the father of ``Mingei,’’ Japan’s folk art movement during the 1920s and 30s, is considered to be among the most influential Japanese culture figures of the 20th century. He was also a significant presence in shaping modern understanding of Korean art and crafts during the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) period, for better or worse.
Yanagi was enthralled by Joseon art from his very first visit to Korea in 1916, in particular the ceramic crafts, and visited Korea about 20 times more until 1940 to collect craftwork and study their styles and roots. His trips led to the founding of the Korean Folks Crafts Museum in 1924, which influenced his blueprint for the Japan Folk Crafts Museum 12 years later.
To Yanagi, the essential beauty of Joseon art was in the simplicity of its expression, which he believed conveyed a sense of poignancy. There were critics who attacked his interpretation, saying it inadvertently devalued Joseon art, cementing a passive image of it.
Muneyoshi Yanagi at his library in 1953
These debates are worth revisiting now as the National Museum of Contemporary Art holds an exhibition highlighting the artifacts collected by him throughout his lifetime.
The central Seoul museum is displaying 139 artifacts from Yanagi’s vast collection, now owned by the Japan Folk Crafts Museum. Korean artifacts account for about 10 percent of the 20,000 artifacts the artist collected through his life, which include pottery, woodwork, lacquer ware and metal works from Asia and Africa.
Choi Eun-ju, the museum’s chief creator, said that the focus of the exhibit is to explore Yanagi’s interpretations and philosophies about Joseon art and discuss their modern relevance.
Lotus tray-table with legs in the shape of dog’s legs from 19th century Joseon Kingdom.
"`We resolutely prepared for this exhibition to help interpret Yanagi's thoughts for the younger and future generations," said Choi, who finds Yanagi’s collections and works significant for their dedication to the practically beauty of daily life.
The first section of the exhibition is titled ``Yanagi's Interest in and Study on Modern Western European Culture: Shirakaba, William Blake and Bernard Leach’’ and explores Yanagi’s early days when he first developed an interest in arts and crafts while communicating with British potter Bernard Leach.
Yanagi was also enthralled by 18th-century British poet William Blake and lectured on Blake in Korea in the 1920s. His biographical review of Blake’s life and literature works, which opens with a preface written by Leach, is one of the items displayed in the section.
Bernard Leach’s “The Tiger in the Forest.” / Courtesy of MMCA
"Yanagi's Encounter with Joseon: His Recognition of the Formative Beauty of the East’’ section features a series of pottery and other craftworks of Joseon collected by him. He showed his affection to the porcelain by attaching detailed descriptions of the artifacts and its origins after purchasing them from small antique shops.
The third and final part of ``Yanagi's Interest in the Arts of the Neighboring Countries and His Notion of Mingei’’ shows how he reshaped the idea of craft for the public by establishing folk craft movement.
A wooden Buddhist statue made by Mokujiki, which ignited Yanagi's interest in the ``non-extraordinary beauty,’’ and rubbings of other statues are on display. His collection of patterns from Japan's Okinawa region and Taiwanese garments show how his love of folk craft widened to the Asian region.
The exhibit runs through July 21. Admission is 4,000 won.
Meanwhile, the nation's flagship art museum officially changed its English name from the National Museum of Contemporary Art (NMOCA) to National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea. The change of museum identity came from the completion of MMCA's Seoul branch, which will officially open in November.
For more information, visit www.mmca.go.kr/engN or call (02) 2188-6114.