Moon jar is a type of traditional Korean white porcelain which was made during the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910). [1] The Joseon white porcelain was adopted as imperial ware in the fifteenth century. Moon jars first appeared in the late seventeenth century and remained popular until the mid-eighteenth century. However,they were not nicknamed “moon jars”until the 1950s. [2] The name comes from its shape and milky color of the glaze to resemble the coloration of the moon. This type of vessel is unique to the Joseon Dynasty and were never produced in China or Japan. [2]
There are approximately 20 surviving moon jars more than 40 cm (15.75 inches) tall,and of these 3 are Korea's national treasures. [3] Several moon jars have sold at auction for in excess of $US1 million, [3] with one selling for $US4.5 M in March 2023. [4]
Moon jars often consists of two hemispherical halves that are thrown separately and then joined in the middle. [5] The slightly uneven natural shape added to its appeal during the Joseon dynasty. Usually jars are made in a stable shape due to their wide bottom and smaller mouth,but moon jar has a wider mouth than the diameter of the bottom,causing instability,making it feel like the jar is floating in air. [6]
It has inspired many artists such as Kim Whanki and Bernard Leach. [7] [8] [9] [10]
Moon jars have been described as being big,sturdy,rich,and proud with a slightly waddling and distorted appearance that is attractive. [11] Because of this slight irregularity,most moon jars assume the shape of a waning moon,rather than a full moon. However,this grants them the “symmetry of asymmetry,”causing them to look different when viewed from various angles. [12]
Since the 1950's,when production restarted in South Korea,about 150 Korean ceramists have made moon jars. [13] Some critics contend the term moon jar can only be applied to plain white jars with no adornment that are made in a wood-fired kiln. [2] However,the usage of the term is more fluid and a large variety of moon jars have been produced. These fall into the following categories:
Traditional moon jars are fired within a wood-fired kiln that helps add character to an otherwise plain white vessel. Ceramist Kang Min-soo (b. 1971) calls this the ‘aesthetics of fire.’ [14] Examples can be seen at:
Modern ceramic production equipment,and clays that were not available during the Joseon period,have enabled ceramists to make pure white,symmetrical moon jars. Some of these are very large. Shin Sang-ho,the first ceramist to make this style within a gas-fired kiln,imported his kiln to South Korea after he worked in Japan. [15] See photo for one example,additional examples at
This style features traditional,cobalt blue,Joseon-period motifs. Blue and white pottery was popular when moon jars were first made. [16] Dragons,and the four gentlemen are common motifs. Ronald Reagan received a blue and white moon jar that was made by Shin and presented by Korean President Chun Doo-hwan . [17] [15] It was painted by a Korean artist named Chang Woosung (b. 1912 d. 2005). [18] Examples can be seen at:
Buncheong ware was also popular during the Joseon period. This style combines the moon jar shape and this traditional design. Examples can be seen at
Celadon ware was popular during Korea's earlier Goryeo period (918-1392).
According to the definition of a jar,there has to be a wide opening at the top. This opening introduces asymmetry into a moon jar. Some ceramists reduce the asymmetry by closing the top of the vessel to form a small opening with a narrow neck. After the top of the vessel has been closed in this manner,a vessel should be called a bottle vase. However,some ceramists call this style a moon jar. [24] [25] Examples can be seen at:
Some artists are producing moon jars featuring colors and motifs that have no basis in traditional Korean ceramics. Examples can be seen at: Italian architect Ico Migliore,vertically slices the moon jar shape and adds a red pattern featuring human and arrow figures. [26]
A few artists have blended other types of traditional Korean art. Son Dae-hyeon surfaces his moon jars with mother of pearl and lacquer using a technique called najeonchilgi. Artist Jian Ryu's mother of pearly jar was selected by the Korean government to Joe Biden, [27] and can be see at: Ryu's largest mother of pearl moon jar is 111 cm (43.7 in) in diameter.
Longquan celadon is a type of green-glazed Chinese ceramic,known in the West as celadon or greenware,produced from about 950 to 1550. The kilns were mostly in Lishui prefecture in southwestern Zhejiang Province in the south of China,and the north of Fujian Province. Overall a total of some 500 kilns have been discovered,making the Longquan celadon production area one of the largest historical ceramic producing areas in China. "Longquan-type" is increasingly preferred as a term,in recognition of this diversity,or simply "southern celadon",as there was also a large number of kilns in north China producing Yaozhou ware or other Northern Celadon wares. These are similar in many respects,but with significant differences to Longquan-type celadon,and their production rose and declined somewhat earlier.
Pottery and porcelain is one of the oldest Japanese crafts and art forms,dating back to the Neolithic period. Types have included earthenware,pottery,stoneware,porcelain,and blue-and-white ware. Japan has an exceptionally long and successful history of ceramic production. Earthenwares were made as early as the Jōmon period,giving Japan one of the oldest ceramic traditions in the world. Japan is further distinguished by the unusual esteem that ceramics hold within its artistic tradition,owing to the enduring popularity of the tea ceremony. During the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1573-1603),kilns throughout Japan produced ceramics with unconventional designs. In the early Edo period,the production of porcelain commenced in the Hizen-Arita region of Kyushu,employing techniques imported from Korea. These porcelain works became known as Imari wares,named after the port of Imari from which they were exported to various markets,including Europe.
Celadon is a term for pottery denoting both wares glazed in the jade green celadon color,also known as greenware or "green ware",and a type of transparent glaze,often with small cracks,that was first used on greenware,but later used on other porcelains. Celadon originated in China,though the term is purely European,and notable kilns such as the Longquan kiln in Zhejiang province are renowned for their celadon glazes. Celadon production later spread to other parts of East Asia,such as Japan and Korea,as well as Southeast Asian countries,such as Thailand. Eventually,European potteries produced some pieces,but it was never a major element there. Finer pieces are in porcelain,but both the color and the glaze can be produced in stoneware and earthenware. Most of the earlier Longquan celadon is on the border of stoneware and porcelain,meeting the Chinese but not the European definitions of porcelain.
Icheon is a city in Gyeonggi Province,South Korea.
Korean ceramic history begins with the oldest earthenware from around 8000 BC. Throughout the history,the Korean peninsula has been home to lively,innovative,and sophisticated art making. Long periods of stability have allowed for the establishment of spiritual traditions,and artisan technologies specific to the region. Korean ceramics in Neolithic period have a unique geometric patterns of sunshine,or it is decorated with twists. In Southern part of Korea,Mumun pottery were popular. Mumun togi used specific minerals to make colors of red and black. Korean pottery developed a distinct style of its own,with its own shapes,such as the moon jar or Buncheong sagi which is a new form between earthenware and porcelain,white clay inlay celadon of Goryeo,and later styles like minimalism that represents Korean Joseon philosophers' idea. Many talented Korean potters were captured and brought to Japan during the invasions of Korea,where they heavily contributed to advancing Japanese pottery. Arita ware,founded by Yi Sam-pyeong opened a new era of porcelain in Japan. Another Japanese representative porcelain,Satsuma ware was also founded by Dang-gil Shim and Pyeong-ui Park. 14th generation of Su-kwan Shim have been using the same name to his grandfather and father to honor they are originally Korean,14th Su-kwan Shim is honorable citizen of Namwon,Korea.
Korean arts include traditions in calligraphy,music,painting and pottery,often marked by the use of natural forms,surface decoration and bold colors or sounds.
"Blue and white pottery" covers a wide range of white pottery and porcelain decorated under the glaze with a blue pigment,generally cobalt oxide. The decoration was commonly applied by hand,originally by brush painting,but nowadays by stencilling or by transfer-printing,though other methods of application have also been used. The cobalt pigment is one of the very few that can withstand the highest firing temperatures that are required,in particular for porcelain,which partly accounts for its long-lasting popularity. Historically,many other colours required overglaze decoration and then a second firing at a lower temperature to fix that.
Buncheong (Korean: 분청),or punch'ong,ware is a traditional form of Korean stoneware,with a blue-green tone. Pieces are coated with white slip (ceramics),and decorative designs are added using a variety of techniques. This style originated in the 15th century and continues in a revived form today.
Chinese ceramics are one of the most significant forms of Chinese art and ceramics globally. They range from construction materials such as bricks and tiles,to hand-built pottery vessels fired in bonfires or kilns,to the sophisticated Chinese porcelain wares made for the imperial court and for export.
Shin Sang-Ho is a Korean ceramicist. His works can be found in museums around the world especially the Shin Sang-ho Art Museum. He is the former Dean,College of Fine Arts at Hongik University in Seoul,and former Director of the Clayarch Gimhae Museum.
Joseon white porcelain or Joseon baekja refers to the white porcelains produced during the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910).
In Chinese art,the Four Gentlemen or Four Noble Ones,is a collective term referring to four plants:the plum blossom,the orchid,the bamboo,and the chrysanthemum. The term compares the four plants to Confucian junzi,or "gentlemen". They are commonly depicted in bird-and-flower paintings,a broad category of classical Chinese art,and they are particularly popular subjects for ink wash painting.
Goryeo ware refers to all types of Korean pottery and porcelain produced during the Goryeo dynasty,from 918 to 1392,but most often refers to celadon (greenware).
Chinese influences on Islamic pottery cover a period starting from at least the 8th century CE to the 19th century. The influence of Chinese ceramics on Islamic pottery has to be viewed in the broader context of the considerable importance of Chinese culture on Islamic arts in general.
Ceramic art is art made from ceramic materials,including clay. It may take varied forms,including artistic pottery,including tableware,tiles,figurines and other sculpture. As one of the plastic arts,ceramic art is a visual art. While some ceramics are considered fine art,such as pottery or sculpture,most are considered to be decorative,industrial or applied art objects. Ceramic art can be created by one person or by a group,in a pottery or a ceramic factory with a group designing and manufacturing the artware.
Sangkhalok ceramic wares are ancient Thai traditional ceramic wear specifically derived from Sukhothai kingdom period. Decorated with traditional motifs,and fired at 1,150-1,280 °C,made into pottery,jar,teapot,spoon,and ceramic doll. The technique of manufacturing and firing dates from the beginning of Sukhothai period (1238-1351) through the end of Ayutthaya kingdom according to evidence of ancient kiln that appear around Si Satchanalai District in Phranakhon Sukhothai province,Thailand.
Nabeshima ware is a type of Japanese pottery,specifically an unusually high-quality porcelain. It was produced in Ōkawachi kilns managed directly by the Saga Domain under the Nabeshima clan from the 17th to the 19th centuries. Imari ware and Arita ware were also under the control of the Saga Domain,and Nabeshima ware is sometimes regarded as a variant of Imari ware,as its kilns were located in what is now the city of Imari,Saga Prefecture Japan. The technique also differs from that of most Japanese porcelain,with the outlines of the pattern done in underglaze blue before the overglaze "enamelled" final decoration. Nabeshima ware was not made for sale,but for the specific use of the Nabeshima clan and as gifts for the Tokugawa shogunate and various daimyō. It was discontinued in 1871 with the abolition of the feudal domains,but the technique was revived as a modern craft by the Imaizumi Imaemon family,descendants of the master lineage,and has continued to the 21st century.
Jizhou ware or Chi-chou ware is Chinese pottery from Jiangxi province in southern China;the Jizhou kilns made a number of different types of wares over the five centuries of production. The best known wares are simple shapes in stoneware,with a strong emphasis on subtle effects in the dark glazes,comparable to Jian ware,but often combined with other decorative effects. In the Song dynasty they achieved a high prestige,especially among Buddhist monks and in relation to tea-drinking. The wares often use leaves or paper cutouts to create resist patterns in the glaze,by leaving parts of the body untouched.
Yaozhou ware is a type of celadon or greenware in Chinese pottery,which was at its height during the Northern Song dynasty. It is the largest and typically the best of the wares in the group of Northern Celadon wares. It is especially famous for the rich effects achieved by decoration in shallow carving under a green celadon glaze which sinks into the depressions of the carving giving contrasts of light and dark shades.
Kim Se-yong is a South Korean ceramist and C.E.O of Sechang Artistic Ceramic Institute. He is known for his celadon style on ceramics based upon the traditional Goryeo wares. Kim was a former Professor of Ceramic Art at Chungkang College of Cultural Industries,and currently resides and works in Icheon,South Korea.
Ancient pottery | |||
---|---|---|---|
Ceramics | |||
Porcelain | |||
Objects |