• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
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• v.96
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• pp.18-53
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• 2019

The paintings Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion were recently donated to the National Museum of Korea and unveiled to the public for the first time at the 2019 special exhibition "Through the Eyes of Joseon Painters: Real Scenery Landscapes of Korea." These two paintings carry significant implications for understanding Joseon art history. Because the fact that they were components of a folding screen produced after a sightseeing tour of the Gwandong regions in 1557 has led to a broadening of our understanding of sixteenth-century landscape painting. This paper explores the art historical meanings of Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion by examining the contents in the two paintings, dating them, analyzing their stylistic characteristics, and comparing them with other works. The production background of Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion can be found in the colophon of Chongseokjeong Pavilion. According to this writing, Sangsanilro, who is presumed to be Park Chung-gan (?-1601) in this paper, and Hong Yeon(?~?) went sightseeing around Geumgangsan Mountain (or Pungaksan Mountain) and the Gwandong region in the spring of 1557, wrote a travelogue, and after some time produced a folding screen depicting several famous scenic spots that they visited. Hong Yeon, whose courtesy name was Deokwon, passed the special civil examination in 1551 and has a record of being active until 1584. Park Chung-gan, whose pen name was Namae, reported the treason of Jeong Yeo-rip in 1589. In recognition of this meritorious deed, he was promoted to the position of Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Punishments, rewarded with the title of first-grade pyeongnan gongsin(meritorious subject who resolved difficulties), and raised to Lord of Sangsan. Based on the colophon to Chongseokjeong Pavilion, I suggest that the two paintings Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion were painted in the late sixteenth century, more specifically after 1557 when Park Chung-gan and Hong Yeon went on their sightseeing trip and after 1571 when Park, who wrote the colophon, was in his 50s or over. The painting style used in depicting the landscapes corresponds to that of the late sixteenth century. The colophon further states that Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion were two paintings of a folding screen. Chongseokjeong Pavilion with its colophon is thought to have been the final panel of this screen. The composition of Gyeongpodae Pavilion recalls the onesided three-layered composition often used in early Joseon landscape paintings in the style of An Gyeon. However, unlike such landscape paintings in the An Gyeon style, Gyeongpodae Pavilion positions and depicts the scenery in a realistic manner. Moreover, diverse perspectives, including a diagonal bird's-eye perspective and frontal perspective, are employed in Gyeongpodae Pavilion to effectively depict the relations among several natural features and the characteristics of the real scenery around Gyeongpodae Pavilion. The shapes of the mountains and the use of moss dots can be also found in Welcoming an Imperial Edict from China and Chinese Envoys at Uisungwan Lodge painted in 1557 and currently housed in the Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies at Seoul National University. Furthermore, the application of "cloud-head" texture strokes as well as the texture strokes with short lines and dots used in paintings in the An Gyeon style are transformed into a sense of realism. Compared to the composition of Gyeongpodae Pavilion, which recalls that of traditional Joseon early landscape painting, the composition of Chongseokjeong Pavilion is remarkably unconventional. Stone pillars lined up in layers with the tallest in the center form a triangle. A sense of space is created by dividing the painting into three planes(foreground, middle-ground, and background) and placing the stone pillars in the foreground, Saseonbong Peaks in the middle-ground, and Saseonjeong Pavilion on the cliff in the background. The Saseonbong Peaks in the center occupy an overwhelming proportion of the picture plane. However, the vertical stone pillars fail to form an organic relation and are segmented and flat. The painter of Chongseokjeong Pavilion had not yet developed a three-dimensional or natural spatial perception. The white lower and dark upper portions of the stone pillars emphasize their loftiness. The textures and cracks of the dense stone pillars were rendered by first applying light ink to the surfaces and then adding fine lines in dark ink. Here, the tip of the brush is pressed at an oblique angle and pulled down vertically, which shows an early stage of the development of axe-cut texture strokes. The contrast of black and white and use of vertical texture strokes signal the forthcoming trend toward the Zhe School painting style. Each and every contour and crack on the stone pillars is unique, which indicates an effort to accentuate their actual characteristics. The birds sitting above the stone pillars, waves, and the foam of breaking waves are all vividly described, not simply in repeated brushstrokes. The configuration of natural features shown in the above-mentioned Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion changes in other later paintings of the two scenic spots. In the Gyeongpodae Pavilion, Jukdo Island is depicted in the foreground, Gyeongpoho Lake in the middle-ground, and Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Odaesan Mountain in the background. This composition differs from the typical configuration of other Gyeongpodae Pavilion paintings from the eighteenth century that place Gyeongpodae Pavilion in the foreground and the sea in the upper section. In Chongseokjeong Pavilion, stone pillars are illustrated using a perspective viewing them from the sea, while other paintings depict them while facing upward toward the sea. These changes resulted from the established patterns of compositions used in Jeong Seon(1676~1759) and Kim Hong-do(1745~ after 1806)'s paintings of Gwandong regions. However, the configuration of the sixteenth-century Gyeongpodae Pavilion, which seemed to have no longer been used, was employed again in late Joseon folk paintings such as Gyeongpodae Pavilion in Gangneung. Famous scenic spots in the Gwandong region were painted from early on. According to historical records, they were created by several painters, including Kim Saeng(711~?) from the Goryeo Dynasty and An Gyeon(act. 15th C.) from the early Joseon period, either on a single scroll or over several panels of a folding screen or several leaves of an album. Although many records mention the production of paintings depicting sites around the Gwandong region, there are no other extant examples from this era beyond the paintings of Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion discussed in this paper. These two paintings are thought to be the earliest works depicting the Gwandong regions thus far. Moreover, they hold art historical significance in that they present information on the tradition of producing folding screens on the Gwandong region. In particular, based on the contents of the colophon written for Chongseokjeong Pavilion, the original folding screen is presumed to have consisted of eight panels. This proves that the convention of painting eight views of Gwangdong had been established by the late sixteenth century. All of the existing works mentioned as examples of sixteenth-century real scenery landscape painting show only partial elements of real scenery landscape painting since they were created as depictions of notable social gatherings or as a documentary painting for practical and/or official purposes. However, a primary objective of the paintings of Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion was to portray the ever-changing and striking nature of this real scenery. Moreover, Park Chung-gan wrote a colophon and added a poem on his admiration of the scenery he witnessed during his trip and ruminated over the true character of nature. Thus, unlike other previously known real-scenery landscape paintings, these two are of great significance as examples of real-scenery landscape paintings produced for the simple appreciation of nature. Gyeongpodae Pavilion and Chongseokjeong Pavilion are noteworthy in that they are the earliest remaining examples of the historical tradition of reflecting a sightseeing trip in painting accompanied by poetry. Furthermore, and most importantly, they broaden the understanding of Korean real-scenery landscape painting by presenting varied forms, compositions, and perspectives from sixteenth-century real-scenery landscape paintings that had formerly been unfound.

• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
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• v.104
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• pp.40-69
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• 2023

This paper examines the relationship between celadon wine vessels and royal banquets by focusing on their unique forms. It explores the symbolism in their forms and designs and the changes that took place in the composition of these vessels. By examining the royal annals in Goryeosa (The History of the Goryeo Dynasty), the relation of celadon wine vessels and royal banquets is examined in terms of the number of banquets held in the respective reigns of the Goryeo kings, the number of banquets held by type, and the purpose of holding them. A royal banquet was a means of strengthening the royal authority by reinforcing the hierarchy and building bonds between the king and his vassals. It was also an act of ruling that demonstrated the king's authority and power through praise of his achievements and virtues. Royal banquets were held most often during the reigns of King Yejong (r. 1105-1122), King Uijong (r. 1146-1170), King Chungnyeol (r. 1274-1308), and King Gongmin (r. 1351-1374). Particular attention is paid here to the changes in the types and forms of celadon wine vessels that occurred starting in the reigns of King Yejong and King Chungnyeol, which is also the period in which the number of royal banquets increased and royal banquet culture evolved. The king and his subjects prayed for the king's longevity at royal banquets and celebrated peaceful reigns by drinking and performing various related acts. Thus, the visual symbolism of vessels for holding, pouring, or receiving alcohol were emphasized. Since the manner of drinking at a banquet was exchanges of pouring and receiving alcohol between the king and his subjects, the design of the ewers and cups had a significant visual impact on attendees. It can be seen, therefore, that decorating wine vessels with Daoist motifs such as the immortals, luan (a mythological bird), turtle dragons, fish dragons, and gourd bottles or with Confucian designs like hibiscus roots was intended as a visual manifestation of the purpose of royal banquets, which was to celebrate the king and to pray for both loyalty and immortality. In particular, the Peach Offering Dance (獻仙桃) and Music for Returning to the Royal Palace (還宮樂), which correspond to the form and design of celadon wine vessels, was examined. The lyrics of the banquet music embodied wishes for the king's longevity, immortality, and eternal youth as well as for the prosperity of the royal court and a peaceful reign. These words are reflected in wine vessels such as the Celadon Taoist Figure-shaped Pitcher housed in the National Museum of Korea and the Bird Shaped Ewer with Daoist Priest in the Art Institute of Chicago. It is important to note that only Goryeo celadon wine vessels reflect this facet of royal banquet culture in their shape and design. The composition of wine vessel sets changed depending on the theme of the banquet and the types of liquor. After Goryeo Korea was incorporated into the Mongol Empire, new alcoholic beverages were introduced, resulting in changes in banquet culture such as the uses and composition of wine vessel sets. From the reign of King Chungnyeol (r. 1274-1308), which was under the authority of the Yuan imperial court, royal banquets began to be co-hosted by kings and princesses, Mongolian-style banquets like boerzhayan (孛兒扎宴) were held, and attendees donned the tall headdress called gugu worn by Mongol women. During the reign of King Chungnyeol, the banquet culture changed 132 banquets were held. This implies that the court tried to strengthen its authority by royal marriage with the Yuan court, which augmented the number of banquets. At these banquets, new alcoholic drinks were introduced such as grape wine, dongnak (湩酪), and distilled liquor. New wine vessels included stem cups, pear-shaped bottles (yuhuchunping), yi (匜), and cups with a dragon head. The new celadon wine vessels were all modeled after metal wares that were used in the Yuan court or in the Khanates. The changes in the celadon wine vessels of the late Goryeo era were examined here in a more specific manner than in previous studies by expanding the samples for the study to the Eurasian khanates. With the influx of new types of wine vessels, it was natural for the sets and uses of Goryeo celadon wine vessels to change in response. The new styles of celadon wine vessels linked the Goryeo court with the distant Khanates of the Mongol Empire. This paper is the beginning of a new study that examines the uses of Goryeo celadon by illuminating the relations between royal banquets and these unique celadon wine vessels that are stylistically different from everyday vessels. It is to be hoped that more studies will be conducted from diverse perspectives exploring both the usage of Goryeo celadon vessels and their users.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.19-62
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• 1985

This study was performed to investigate: (i) the bending processing properties of silk worm oak (Quercus acutissima Carr.) and Korean red pine (Pinus densiflora S. et Z.) by boiling and steaming treatments; (ii) the effects of interrelated factors - sapwood and heartwood, annual ring placement, softening temperature and time, moisture content. and wood defects on bending processing properties; (iii) the changing rates of bending radii after release from a tension strap, and (iv) the improving methods of bending process by treatment with chemicals. The size of specimens tested was $15{\times}15{\times}350mm$ for boiling and steaming treatments and $5{\times}10{\times}200mm$ for treatments with chemicals. The specimens were green for boiling treatments and dried to 15 percent for steaming treatments. The specimens for treatments with chemicals were soaked in saturated urea solution, 35 percent formaldehyde solution, 25 percent polyethylene glycol -400 solution, and 25 percent ammonium hydroxide solution for 5 days and immediately followed the bending process, respectively. The results obtained were as follows: 1. The internal temperature of silk worm oak and Korean red pine by boiling and steaming time was raised slowly to $30^{\circ}C$ but rapidly from $30^{\circ}C$ to $80-90^{\circ}C$ and then slowly from $80-90^{\circ}C$ to $100^{\circ}C$. 2. The softening time required to the final temperature was directly proportional to the thickness of specimen. The time required from $25^{\circ}C$ to $100^{\circ}C$ for 15mm-squared specimen was 9.6-11.2 minutes in silk worm oak and 7.6-8.1 minutes in Korean red pine. 3. The moisture content (M.C.) of specimen by steaming time was increased rapidly first 4 minutes in the both species, and moderately from 4 to 20 minutes and then slowly and constantly in silk worm oak, and moderately from 4 to 15 minutes and then slowly and constantly in Korean red pine. The M.C. of 15mm-squared specimen in 50 minutes of steaming was increased to 18.0 percent in the oak and 22.4 percent in the pine from the initial conditioned M.C. of 15 percent The rate of moisture adsorption measured was therefore faster in the pine than in the oak. 4. The mechanical properties of the both species were decreased significantly with the increase of boiling rime. The decrement by the boiling treatment for 60 minutes was measured to 36.6-45.0 percent in compressive strength, 12.5-17.5 percent in tensile strength, 31.6-40.9 percent in modulus of rupture, and 23.3-34.6 percent in modulus of elasticity. 5. The minimum bending radius (M.B.R.) of sapwood and heartwood was 60-80 mm and 90 mm in silk worm oak, and 260 - 300 mm and 280 - 300 mm in Korean red pine, respectively. Therefore, the both species showed better bending processing properties in sapwood than in heartwood. 6. The M.B.R. of edge-grained and flat-grained specimen in suk worm oak was 60-80 mm, but the M.B.R. in Korean red pine was 240-280 mm and 260-360 mm, respectively. Comparing the M.B.R. of edge-grained with flat-grained specimen, in the pine the edge-grained showed better bending processing property than the flat-grained. 7. The bending processing properties of the both species were improved by the rising of softening temperature from $40^{\circ}C$ to $100^{\circ}C$. The minimum softening temperature for bending was $90^{\circ}C$ in silk worm oak and $80^{\circ}C$ in Korean red pine, and the dependency of softening temperature for bending was therefore higher in the oak than in the pine. 8. The bending processing properties of the both species were improved by the increase of softening time as well as temperature, but even after the internal temperature of specimen reaching to the final temperature, somewhat prolonged softening was required to obtain the best plastic conditions. The minimum softening time for bending of 15 mm-squared silk worm oak and Korean red pine specimen was 15 and 10 minutes in the boiling treatment, and 30 and 20 minutes in the steaming treatment, respectively. 9. The optimum M.C. for bending of silk worm oak was 20 percent, and the M.C. above fiber saturation point rather degraded the bending processing property, whereas the optimum M.C. of Korean red pine needed to be above 30 percent. 10. The bending works in the optimum conditions obtained as seen in Table 24 showed that the M.B.R. of silk worm oak and Korean red pine was 80 mm and 240 mm in the boiling treatment, and 50 mm and 280 mm in the steaming treatment, respectively. Therefore, the bending processing property of the oak was better in the steaming than in the boiling treatment, but that of the pine better in the boiling than in the steaming treatment. 11. In the bending without a tension strap, the radio r/t of the minimum bending radius t to the thickness t of silk worm oak and Korean red pine specimen amounted to 16.0 and 21.3 in the boiling treatment, and 17.3 and 24.0 in the steaming treatment, respectively. But in the bending with a tension strap, the r/t of the oak and the pine specimen decreased to 5.3 and 16.0 in t he boiling treatment, and 3.3 and 18.7 in the steaming treatment, respectively. Therefore, the bending processing properties of the both species were significantly improved by the strap. 12. The effect of pin knot on the degradation of bending processing property was very severe in silk worm oak by side, e.g. 90 percent of the oak specimens with pin knot on the concave side were ruptured when bent to a 100 mm radius but only 10 percent of the other specimens with pin knot on the convex side were ruptured. 13. The changing rate in the bending radius of specimen bent to a 300 mm radius after 30 days of exposure to room temperature conditions was measured to 4.0-10.3 percent in the boiling treatment and 13,0-15.0 percent in the steaming treatment. Therefore, the degree of spring back after release was higher in the steaming than in the boiling treatment. And the changing rate of moisture-proofing treated specimen by expoxy resin coating was only -1.0.0 percent. 14. Formaldehyde, 35 percent solution, and 25 percent polyethylene glycol-400 solution found no effect on the plasticization of the both species, but saturated urea solution and 25 percent ammonium hydroxide solution found significant effect in comparison to non-treated specimen. But the effect of the treatment with chemicals alone was inferior to that of the steaming treatment, and the steaming treatment after the treatment with chemicals improved 10-24 percent over the bending processing property of steam-bent specimen. 15. Three plasticity coefficients - load-strain coefficient, strain coefficient, and energy coefficient - were evaluated to be appropriate for the index of bending processing property because the coefficients had highly significant correlation with the bending radius. The fitness of the coefficients as the index was good at load-strain coefficient, energy coefficient, and strain coefficient, in order.