Koreana Spring 1993 (English)

KOREAN PA

Our Prestige Class Is Modelled On Everybody Else's First Class.

So What Could Our First Class Be Like?

Come aboard our Prestige Class, and you might be forgiven for wondering if you'd stepped into the wrong cabin. Because every seat is at a window or an aisle, and arranged with room to spare.

Room to let you sink into the 21-inch wide cushions, adjust the back to tilt ¡a full 38 degrees, and stretch out in the full three and a half feet of legroom.

Space other airlines set aside only for their first class passengers. As your hostess gently sets about looking after your needs, you may be left with just one unfulfilled wish - to experience what our First Class could be like.

We've worked hard to take our Prestige Class a class above the rest. Fly with us, and experience the dedication that could only be Korean.

KSRFANAIR Fly the Spirit of Dedication.

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;~ . s e.ditors we spend our days · •

surrounded ,by'reams of paper. thus per aps it was only.natural that -~e fea1ure ·p(i)per in ..

Ko'REANA. H~nj; wifh its beauty qnd .·. many uses. spe~ks .volumes about tradi. tiona!,Korean ~ulture. . ! · · I

What makes hanj i. ew;n more spe, ' cial to.us. h<M€\er. is.that it is •not 'just q hi,s•• : .. • ."M tori cal qr.~i>fact removed from our daily . .. lives. b~1t an intrirsic:Pbrt of pur earliest .. ; ...,{. :' memories. As middle-aged Koreans who · · grew up i~ traditional . . Korean h~uses: our ' . childhood memories would not be corn-~ plete without the comfortable warm .' .... ,.ondol floor·on a wintry night andJhe . :' whistling sound of munpungj i (lifE:~rally 'door-wind-pope() which was·pasted in . strips ;{royn9 doo&tra.m~s -to keep o,uf · . drafts. MooJ11ight stream~d gently ~. 'thr.ough c~anghbji while·we read our books. creating a r()mantic ambiance which may have inspired' poets old.

Af!p although the mater.ial.and heating s~ystem have changed, the ondo I, floor is stiii.Parf of every Korean horhe. ~n I~ the ·: impersonal. high~r!s~.,apartrnent blq't:ks .~ which are so common today. . ~-

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. f4anji remains an ideal_medium for fine arts ar:id calligraphy.· Contemporary. artists-ha~ devoted t~i; li\es to carrying ~ . . o-n the pape'r crafts. Without this. long~

lasting materiaL VIe s.urely.would.have lost .· · many a valuable his'torical.document. and .ancient book. f,) · ' .

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·in ad'dition to artietes on Hanj t. we have included artiCles on music and other. topics. I~ fact startin~ from this 1ssue we will be giving more space ro secondary topics in order to bring a little more of the . ' . diversity of Kor~n culture'to our .readers. .I

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Korea Foundation ~g~~.ii!-\Ptl.-.!

KOREANA Vol. 7/No.1 Spring 1993

6 Hanji Ven. Young Dam

14 Hanji: Sturdier Than

Silk or Leather Lee Chone;sang

55 ON THE ROAD

MUNGYONG-SAE]AE Kimjoo-young

62 PHOTO POEM

WIND BURIAL Hwang Tone;gyu

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AKaleidoscope of Papercraft Im Youne;joo

30 Guardians of Traditional Crafts Lee Kyune;hee

40 Paper & Modern Art Lee Yime;woo

44 Keeping the Tradition Alive Sung Wooje

48 CONTEMPORARY SCENE

Pop Music Trends Cho Yoonjung

CURRENTS

64 Challenges For Korean Fiction Kwon Youne;min

68 Ryu Choon-soo: FOR PRIZE -WINNING ARCHITECT, THE FU~E IS NOW R. Richard Williams

72 Korean Designers on the Move Kim Young-joo

76 Korean Dancers: Graceful Exports to the World's Stage' Kim Youne;tae

52 INTERVIEW

Lee Kang-suk ByunEun-mi

79 Seoul Arts Center ChoiSungja

KOREANA Published quarterly by the Korea Foundation 52b 5ga Namdaemunno, Chung-gu, Seoul, Korea KOREANA was r~tered as a quarterly magazine with the Ministry of Information, the Republic of Korea, on August 8, 1987.

Registration No. Ba-10:33. ©The Korea Foundation 1992 All

ri[jJts reserved No JXlrf of this publication may lx? reprrxluced in any fonn without tlx? prior permission of tlx? Korea Fountlation 7be opinions expressed by the authors do not necessarily represent those of the aiitors rf KOREANA or the Korea Fountlation PUBIJSHERIEDITOR SON Chu-Whan EDITOR-IN-cHIEF Chul-Soo CHIN ARTDIRECI'OR Park Seung-u COPY EDITOR Denise Chai

CIRCULATION Overseas The Korea Foundation CPO. Box 2147, Seoul, Korea.

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PRINTING

Sanbung Moonwha Printing Co. , Ltd !67-29 Hwayang-dong Songdong-gu, Seoul, Korea Tel: (02) 468D.36I-5

Printed in Korea June L1993

Pricepercopy: US$5(W3,500)

AKERS of hanji, traditional Korean paper, have relied on the bark of mulberry trees grown naturally in the Korean climate as their primary raw material for more than 1;600 years.

The art of hanji making has survived the onslaught of Western culture which has since the 18th century encouraged the mechanization of the production of most other folk crafts. The traditional method has endured, than~s to its delicate and subtle characteristics which cannot be reproduced by machine. Its soft texture and natural pattern of fibers can only be made by the hands o( accomplished paper craftsmen.

Hanji is made from the bark of a mulberry tree called ch6mok (Broussonetia kasinoki sieb). Since these deciduous trees grow well i!1 low-lying hills and fields in all regions of Korea, they are often seen on ridges around dry farmland, on the slopes and in the valleys of small mountains.

There are three slightly different species of mulberry trees in Korea, distinguished by the climatic conditions in which they grow These are mayopjong yojojong and chinjojong Mayopjong, which is grown mainly in the mid-section of South Korea, is characterized by leaves split like flax and a trunk which does not stand upright but tends to grow sideways. Its bark is tough but thin, yielding fewer fibers. Its resilience, however, makes it suitable for books, wall and floor paper, and noyokgae, a rope made by twisting papers.

Yojojong and chinjojong are noted for their thick bark and smooth fibers.

Grown in middle and southern Korea since ancient times, these mulberry trees are the primary materials in calligraphy paper. Compared with fibers produced in

other Asian countries such as China, Japan and the Philippines, the fibers of Korean mulberry tree bark are longer, more resilient and have sheen.

Hanji possesses five excellent properties. First, it endures more than 1,000 years, as attested to by the old Korean adage "while canvas lasts for five hundred years, paper has been known to last a thousand years." Second, hanji is durable, yet smooth to the touch. Third, it ventilates well. Fourth, it retains heat as well as cotton. Fifth, it has sheen and translucency. It is essentially the fine natural properties of its raw material coupled with the delicate touch and devotion of Korean paper craftsmen that give hanji these unique characteristics.

Water is essential in paper-making, and one cannot overlook the fact that the natural water flowing throughout Korea is good for hanji. The water must be pure and soft, with low calcium and magnesium content, in order to make long-lasting paper. If it contains too much iron or magnesium, the paper retains these chemicals and oxidizes easily, which dramatically reduces its longevity.

Moreover, if the water is contaminated with dust or tiny sand particles, the paper's fine texture suffers, losing its clear and smooth character. Thus, hanji has traditionally been made near the brooks that flowed through isolated mountain hamlets.

Hanji is produced in a ten-step process.

(1) The bark is peeled from mulberry trees and (2) the fibers are boiled (3) Impurities are elminated and (4) the fibers are then pulverized. (5) Next the crushed fibers are mixed and (6) mulberry starch is added.

(7) The fibers are then strained with running water and (8) dehydrated. Finally the hanji is (9) dried and (10) pounded.

Dried fibers destined to become not only the material for paper, but objects of art.

Peeled mulberry tree bark.

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1. Peeling bark.

This work usually takes place during the agricultural off-season between December and February: Pieces of mulberry branches are steamed in cauldrons before the bark is peeled. The first layer of bark is called the "dark skin." Since the dark skin still retains the very outer layer of bark, boiling it with caustic soda causes its fibers to turn dark brown. It is therefore mainly used to make makp'iji or dakt'iji.

Whitening it requires a bleach, which tends to weaken the fibers. If a good quality traditional banji is to be produced from this material without using a bleach, the dark skin must be soaked in water once again and the outer layer of dark skin peeled off to get the "white skin."

Additional manpower to obtain the white skin increases the cost of the white skin material to about three times more than that of the dark skin, but this material produces the finest banji. Since the original color of the white skin retains a tint of brown, the color of the traditional banji, compared with the "white paper" of the West, is a delicate hue of beige.

2. Boiling fibers.

The bark must be well boiled, and in order to eliminate impurities, 98 percent caustic soda should be used in the vat. But since caustic soda weakens the fibers, yukjae (ashes made by burning buckwheat straws or bean stalks) and lime powder is used to make traditional banji. For 60 kilograms of white skin, about three mal (one mal equals 4.765 U.S. gallons) of yukjae, and 20 kilograms of lime powder are mixed in the boiling process. The mulber10

ry bark, which is usually 2 to 2.5 meters long, is cut into four equal lengths and stirred well while boiled for three to four hours.

3. Eliminating impurities.

The boiled fibers are washed repeatedly in clear running water to get rid of sodas before eliminating the impurities. A great deal of time and effort is required to remove by hand the impurities embedded between strands of fibers. Usually; four to five workers have to spend a whole day cleaning the quantity of fibers necessary for a craftsman's day's work.

4. Pulverizing fibers.

Once the impurities are removed, the clean fibers are pulverized. In contemporary paper manufacture, a motorized machine called a bida is used in this process.

However, the bida is not used to make traditional banji because the machine's blades cut the fiber strands To retain banji's natural grain, the fibers are pounded against stone plates with a large mallet.

5. Mixing crushed fibers.

Crushed fibers are put into a wooden water tank about 2 meters square and 45 centimeters high. About 20 kilograms of crushed fibers are put into the tank, which is half-filled with water. The key to this process is to gradually add just the right amounts of fibers and water and mix them gently; if too many crushed fibers are put into the tank at once, they do not disperse properly in the mixture.

6. Mixing mulberry starch.

After pouring crushed fibers into the water in the tank evenly; takpul, an annual plant (Hibiscus manibotb), is mixed as a gluing agent. Takpul secretes a sticky fluid from its roots. Grown especially for use in making banji, takpul is an essential ingredient because it prevents crushed fibers from sinking to the bottom of the tank. It also controls the speed of the flow of water on the surface of the screen serving as a strainer and helps to shape an even paper surface. Takp'ul's function remains mysterious since it never causes the layers of wet paper to stick together, even when several hundred sheets of wet paper are heaped on the wet paper plate. Long years of experience of a very skilled paper craftsman are needed to control the thickness and toughness of the paper by adjusting the density of takpul.

7. Straining fibers with water.

The traditional Korean method of screening fibers, the "dripping style," differs from the "caged-in" method commonly used in the West or Japan. In the Western and Japanese method, the frame of the

screen has a lid and fibers are caged in by a rim around the screen and form the sheet of paper after they are strained. In comparison, the Korean "dripping style" of making hanji uses no lid; fibers are merely strained through the screen as it is shaken in a forward and back motion. In this manner, one section of the paper is shaped first, followed by the shaking of the screen sideways to shape the other in a crisscross pattern We can be sure that hanji's toughness

and resiliency, or the degree of resisting force against tear, owe much to this "dripping style." Thus, out of all the steps needed to make hanji, this is the process where a paper craftsman's skill counts the most. Generally speaking, to make one

sheet of hanji, the fibers must be strained 10 to 15 times, a process called muljil.

Another noteable characteristic of hanji is that it is made by putting together two layers of paper, symbolising in the paper itself the combination of Yin and Yang.

The labor-intensiveprocess used in the manufacture of hanji has also mrned it another name: paekji (100 -paper).

8. Dehydrating.

A paper craftsman can produce an average of 300 sheets of wet paper a day. Water is squeezed out of the wet papers overnight by putting a heavy stone on top of the wet

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paper plate, and any remaining moisture is later squeezed out by a compressor. If too much pressure is applied all at once, fibers ooze out from the side of the plates.

Dehydrating must be a gradual process.

9.Drying.

When the moisture has been removed from the wet papers such that the pressure of a person's finger does not make a dent on their surface, the sheets of wet papers are separated one by one and dried.

Each sheet of paper is placed on a hot iron plate to dry and dusted with brooms.

Alternatively; they can be dried by heaping them on a stone-heated floor, or in the sun with each sheet placed on a wooden plate or wall. Once dry, traces of the brooms remain on the rough side.

10. Pounding fibers.

Although the papermaking process is generally regarded as complete when the sheets are dry; the paper is still pounded with a large mallet to make the surface soft and smooth. This removes the traces of brooms and further compresses fibers, yielding a finer texture.

According to an old saying, in order to make one sheet of hanji in the traditional method, it must be touched by a human hand 99 times. When a user takes out a sheet of hanji, his or her hand is the lOOth. This labor-intensive proces has given hanji another name, paekji (100-paper).

The artistry of the craftsman comes into play as the fibers are strained through a hand-held screen unique to Korea.

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The nearly dried sheets of hanjiare appraised with acritical eye.

The Uses of Hanji The uses of hanji fall into two broad categories-for recording and for everyday utensils. With its fine texture and smooth surface, brush strokes of ink appear deep and elegant, making it very popular for writing throughout the ages. Hanji was exported to China and Japan from early days and praised by writers and scholars. It was also favored for use in the recording of important documents because of its remarkable longevity. Numerous calligraphic writings and paintings of the Koryo and Choson Periods have been preserved, proving once again the paper's durability.

Because of its toughness, hanji has also been put to a wide range of uses. Indeed, few countries have used their papers in more diverse ways than Korea. HangukChi filed by the finance ministry of imperial Russia toward the end of the Choson Period, described hanji in this way : "Korea's paper is made of fibers, so it is not so weak as that of the West. It is so strong that it is made into ropes and used

in various handicrafts. The paper has texture and, unless torn along the grain, is very difficult to tear, much like cloth.

Papermaking is one of the most developed industries in Korea. It is exported to China and used as wallpaper by high officials."

This record attests to both hanji's toughness and usefulness.

For hundreds of years, the Korean people lived through cold, windy winter weather in houses with doors and windows covered with usually only one layer of hanji pasted on them. Perhaps this says more than anything about hanji's indispensability and utility.

Since hanji has translucency it conducts light well into the room when it is pasted on the windows and doors. At night, moonlight shines on the hanji windows, creating a calm and cozy atmosphere inside the room. Shadows thrown on paper windows and doors and the sound of wind brushing against them never fail to touch the hearts of the Korean people. â&#x20AC;˘ 13

Hanji:

Sturaier than Silk or Leather FROM CRADLE TO GRAVE, PAPER WAS A PART OF LIFE

Lee Chong-sang Professor of Fine Arts, Seoul National University

ULBERRY PAPER was inseparable from the life of most Koreans from very early days.

Unusual as it may sound, we might even say that most Koreans were born on mulberry paper and lived surrounded by it. They touched the paper from day to day most of their lives and, upon death, their bodies were wrapped in it prior to burial.

Traditional Korean homes are unique in their extensive use of mulberry paper. It is used to cover walls, windows and even floors. Books and various articles of daily life were also made from this paper in the old days. Even today; undertakers use generous amounts of it to safely place dead bodies in coffins.

Koreans were ingenious not only in manufacturing paper of excellent quality but also in putting it to creative use. They invented a "yellow paper carpet" for their ondol-heated floors, built military tents with oiled paper and even made arrowproof armor for soldiers from waxed paper strengthened with glue, to name just a few of the unusual ways paper has been used by Koreans over the centuries.

The earliest historical reference to paper dates back to the first Han Period in China (206-208 B.C.)when the first writing paper is said to have been made. This crude material was produced by beating hemp, bark and leftover pieces of silk in a cotton machine. Then, in 105 A.D., Ts'ai Lun, the chief eunuch and supervisor of imperial factories for the court of the Han emperor, Ho-ti, made a sheet of paper by pounding hemp, bark, shreds of cloth and old fishing nets in a stone mortar. It is 14

Koreans were ingenious trot only in manufacturing paper ofexcellent quality but

also in putting it to creative use.

They invented a ')!ellow paper carpet" for their ondol-lu!tltedfloors, built military tents with oiled paper and even made arrow-proofarmorfor soldiers from waxed paper strengthened with glue.

Sijooji(above)is paper used for writing letters while a close-up photo(below) shows kanji wonderful natural texture.

said that he made the paper from a slimy mixture of these materials and water, a historic invention which influences the papermaking process around the world to this day.

No documents exist on the early history of papermaking in Korea, but an entry in Nihon Shoki, a collection of ancient chronicles of Japan, states that a Kqrean monk named Tamjing brought paper, ink and inkstone, together with a grinding stone, to Japan in 605. Tamjing was a Buddhist monk and painter from Kogury6, one of the three ancient Korean kingdoms. The Japanese are said to have learned papermaking from Korea, although it is not known whether it was Tamjing or another person who introduced the skill to the islands across the sea.

The art of papermaking traveled westward at a slower pace, finally reaching Samarkand, in Central Asia, in 751, with Tang rescue forces sent to assist the Turkistans fighting against Arabia. Among these Chinese troops were those with experience in paper manufacture back home.

They helped produce the so-called "Samarkand paper" by a filtering method.

Then, in 793, Baghdad made its first paper in the golden age of Islamic culture, bringing the art further westward to the frontiers of Europe.

Historians claim that by the 14th century, a number of paper mills existed in Europe, concentrated in Spain, Italy, France 6 and Germany. In spite of vast increases in ~ the demand for paper following the inven"'2l tion of printing in the 1450s, the paper0c making process remained essentially un15

changed through the 18th century, with linen and cotton rags furnishing the basic raw materials. The introduction of groundwood pulp in Germany in 1840 paved the way for numerous technological innovations in the industry.

Around the world, the art of papermaking developed in close connection with progress in writing and printing technologies. Naturally, religious institutions, because of their extensive need for handcopying and printing scriptures, played a significant role in improving paper manufacturing and processing skills in the early years.

Existing copies.of ancient Buddhist sutras attest to Korea's advanced papermaking technology from early on. The world's oldest surviving woodblock print, the Pure Light Dharani Sutra, a small scroll of bluedyed paper, dates to 751 during the reign of King Ky6ngd6k of Unified Silla.

Preceding by over a century the oldest Chinese woodblock scroll, the Diamond Sutra, which was discovered in a cave in Tunhurang, this Korean sutra was found in a sariras reliquary inside Sokkat'ap, or Sakyamuni Pagoda, at Pulguksa Temple in Silla's old capital, Kyongju.

Other existing ancient scriptures include the frontispiece for the Lotus Sutra at Magoksa Temple, The Commandments for Bodhisattva at Dongguk University, a hand-copied edition of the Lotus Sutra at Naesosa Temple and the frontispiece for Avatamsaka Sutra, dated to 1337, at the HoAm Art Museum. These sutras manifest fine skills in hand-copying the numerous letters in compact compositions and illustrating the texts with pictures, all executed with pure gold powder on purple-dyed mulberry paper. There is no doubt that, had the paper not been of an extraordinary quality, the excellent craftsmanship of ancient scribes and artists would have perished long ago.

Still more monumental is a collection of Buddhist sermons, entitled Pulcho Chikchi Shimch'e Yoj6l, which is celebrated as the earliest verified example of movable type printing in the world. The book, printed in 1377 at the now defunct Hungdoksa Temple in Ch'ongju city in central Korea, 16

antedates Gutenberg's Bible by eight decades. It is currently in the possession of the French National Library in Paris.

But even with the remarkable standard of printing techniques achieved by the Koreans of those early days, it doubtless would have been impossible to produce all these works without paper of sufficient strength and durability, not to mention beauty of color and texture. Why did many ancient Chinese and Japanese scholars so wish to use kory6ji, the Korean mulberry paper? What properties of the paper manufactured on the peninsula attracted them?

Even today, despite the phenomenal technological development achieved by the paper industry, Korean traditional mulberry paper is highly prized for its outstanding quality, especially its fine texture, muted c,olors and luster as well as its amazing durability. What are the sources of all these unusual properties? There are many, but here we will focus our discus-

sion on three: raw materials, the papermaking method and processing techniques.

First, Korean papermakers are blessed with an ideal natural environment. Paper mulberries growing on the Korean peninsula (Broussonetia papyrifera)-especially in central and southern provinces where the four seasons are distinct and marked with a severely cold winter-produce the best fibers of the finest quality available from natural sources. The fibers are unusually long (7.3 to 17mm) and sturdy, with more pectin and less lignin than those of any other plant.

Paper mulberries, or taknamu, grow in abundance on sandy soil, on the embankments of vegetable fields, along rice paddies and on the gentle, sunny hillsides in Korea. The Korean species contains far less lignin-a chemical substance that decisively affects the durability of paper-than the mulberries of China and Japan or the nonwoody fibers used in traditional paper

mills in these two neighboring nations.

The low percentage of lignin in Korean mulberries (about 9.8 to 17 percent) also compares well with the 20 to 30 percent for groundwood pulp which is widely used for paper production these days.

This means that not only is chemical processing of raw materials needed only to a very slight degree in traditional Korean paper mills, but also their products have more durability than other papers.

Though modern inventions and engineering have transformed an ancient craft into a highly technical industry; the basic processes in papermaking remain the same to this day. Water is as important in

today's paper mills as it was a thousand years ago. In this respect, Korean papermakers merit envy from their colleagues in other countries as they have at their disposal plenty of fresh, soft water gushing forth from between rocks. In the old days, paper mills were often built at scenic spots where clean, soft water was available in large quantities. As the quality of water had a decisive impact on the quality of their products, papermakers took extreme care in the choice of water. They even temporarily halted work during the rainy season in summer and right after torrential showers to avoid using hard water containing organic matter and minerals.

Ancient books made of hanftare still read and consulted even today:

Second, the time-honored manufacturing method of Korean papermakers, though it may appear somewhat primitive, guarantees a product with excellent properties of function, texture, color, strength and durability.

The process begins with the cutting of mulberry stalks in October. The stalks are steamed in a large kettle for a whole day so the bark can be peeled off easily. The peeled bark is soaked in water, preferably a cool stream, to make it soft and get rid of impurities. Then the fibers of the white inner skin are separated from the outer skin.

The best fibers are boiled again, in water mixed with bean chaff or straw ash to increase brightness and strength. The fibers are then rinsed slowly in running water to remove alkaline substances, and any remaining impurities are picked out by hand. The clean fibers are beatep or pounded repeatedly until they become soft and slimy; and the wet pulp is placed in a large vat of cool water and stirred vigorously. When the fibers are well mixed with the water, the glue-like sap of the abelmosk plant is added.

Again the suspension is stirred thoroughly prior to dipping a fine rectangular bamboo screen into it. The screen is lifted out and moved rhythmically to and fro, so that the liquid drains out properly; evenly distributing the fibers all over the screen.

Seemingly a simple process, this is no doubt hard work, each step requiring intense care as well as a considerable amount of physical labor. The two most crucial steps in the manufacturing process are beating and filtering.

The beating of cellulose fiber permits water to penetrate its structure, causing the fibers to swell and become flexible.

The action further separates and frays the fibrils, the submicroscopic units in the fiber structure. This process has a tremendous impact on the quality of the finished product, in both its strength and visual properties. In traditional mills in Korea, beating is done by hand, with an oak wood stick against a flat stone plate, or w.ith a grinding stone or a stone mill.

While no doubt an exhausting job, there 17

can't be a better pulping method from the standpoint of making the raw material as pure as possible.

The water-soluble sap of abelmosk, or hwangch'okkyu, does not actually function as an interfiber bonding agent, as is commonly believed. Mixed with the water suspension (some 4 to 5 percent of its amount), the sap, called takp'ul, helps the fibers float and disperse evenly near the surface to make filtering easier. It also works as a neutral sizing solution, efficient for producing paper of outstanding durability and with little chance of discoloration.

Paper stock produced by this method is almost neutral (pH7), an ideal condition for the extended preservation of the paper, whereas most products of modern paper mills contain residue acid from sizing. A typical sizing solution these days consists of a rosin soap dispersion mixed with the stock in an amount of 1 to 1.5 percent of fiber. Since there is no affinity between rosin soap and fiber, it is necessary to add a coupling agent, normally alum. Although the acidity of alum precipitates the rosin dispersion and attaches the size firmly to the fiber surface, it also hastens the discoloration of the paper.

The abelmosk sap, however, raises the temperature of the water suspension and, after some 18 to 32 hours of exposure to oxygen at room-temperature, its viscous

Coordination between papertnilkers and artists is one means to discover 1ww to graft traditional skills onto the advanced technolfygyof the modern paper industry.

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property rapidly deteriorates. This is probably why the Korean traditional papermaker rhythmically sways his bamboo screen to and fro, quickly and lightly near the surface of suspension. He needs to reduce the contact between the flowing liquid and the screen in order to keep the fibers as sticky as possible.

This filtering method, different from the Chinese method of working with stagnant liquid, creates the unique texture of Korean mulberry paper. Hanji's grain of fibers contnbutes not only to its beauty, but also to its tensile strength. In particular, this method of placing wet sheets of filtered fibers one upon the other, with the grains of the sheets arranged crisscross with each other, and dried together, can produce a paper of exceptional durability.

Neither the mulberry paper made in China nor Japan possesses such a grain.

Obviously; the difference in the qualities of the papers had much to do with the different styles and techniques-and even the spirits-of traditional painting in the three countries.

It must be noted that what we define

today as "Oriental painting" has existed in only these three countries. There is no doubt that, aside from their geographical proximity and active cultural exchanges over the past centuries, the advanced papermaking skills of these nations helped give rise to their outstanding painting traditions. The Chinese have traditionally made dense-fibered paper which reacts sensitively to ink, the Japanese have favored paper with an impeccably clean surface and the Koreans have used paper which is loose in appearance but actually very sturdy. .

In sum, ancient Korean papermakers developed efficient processing methods to produce excellent printing paper that marvelously endured through both time and use. The so-called "pressing method" of pasting the desired number of sheets of paper with plant glue and beating it against a stone block in a way, similar to fulling cloth, was a popular technique used to produce printing paper. This method, effective for getting the fuzz on to settle the surface of the paper, facilitated neutral sizing as well. A book cover made in

this manner is incredibly strong, even sturdier than leather.

Among other plant varnishes favored by ancient papermakers, lacquer was most frequently used for both sizing and coloring. Persimmon juice provided tannin, which was also used for dyeing paper, and floor papers were commonly waxed with ground beans.

The accessibility of quality mulberry stalks and clean, soft water was the primary condition for locating a paper mill in ancient times. It is interesting to note that Ch6lla Province in the southwestern tip of the peninsula had the largest number of paper mills. Ch6nju, Sunch'ang, Namwon, Soyang, Ku-i and Changs6ng are some of the places readily associated with the paper industry in Ch6lla Province. In Ky6ngsang Province in the southeast, Y6ngd6k, Andong and Y6ngju were relatively well-known, while Tanyang and Chech'6n in the central inland Chlingch'6ng Province also had famous paper mills. In Ky6nggi Province, large mills operated around Kap'y6ng and P'y6ngt'aek. Sek6mj6ng in northern Seoul

also had several paper factories up until the 1940s.

Songgwang Village, some 12km from Ch6nju, is distinguished as the birthplace of Korean traditional floor paper, which is normally yellowish and waxed with plant varnishes to prevent the penetration of moisture. History says that Py6ggam, a renowned Buddhist priest in the early 17th century; made the first modern floor paper to cover the ondol floors of the nearby Songgwangsa Temple, whose repair he had just overseen. It is said that Pyoggam made the floor paper by pasting together several sheets of mulberry paper and pressing them against a stone block. Then he dyed the thick paper with gardenia seed juice and coated it with resin.

Before long, the floor paper came to be widely used in private homes across the country as well as the royal household in Seoul. The varnishing method developed further in the capital by making use of ground beans. Thus was born changJJ'anji, the enormously popular "breathing paper carpet" for the warm floors of Korean homes, which enables the circulation of

heat and moisture. This unique floor covering, available in varied yellowish tints and graded qualities, is widely used even today as it provides living spaces which are aesthetically pleasant and easy to keep clean.

In the Chos6n Period an office was establishe for governing paper production in Ch6nju. The office supervised the manufacturing of floor papers and later the oiled paper for military tents as well.

Ch6nju City; which is now the provincial capital of North Ch6lla Province, still lives up to its reputation as the home of mulberry paper of the finest quality in all Korea.

Western paper made of groundwood pulp is said to have been first imported to Korea through Japan in 1888. Then, in 1901, a public paper mill was established in Yongsan, southern Seoul, to produce mulberry paper sized with rosin and al.um, a combination of Korean and Western techniques. The factory employed this method in the manufacture of paper for bank notes and bonds, which require high resistance to tearing. In Yongsan, paper was machine-dried for the first time in the nation, in contrast to the process in traditional mills where wet sheets of pulp were dried and bleached in the sun simultaneously.

In spite of its long, celebrated history; the current manufacture of Korean traditional mulberry paper reflects a situation far from. ideal. The greatest problem stems from the modern mass production system devised to cope with massive demands for quality paper. As an artist for whom high-quality paper is indispensable, I cannot but feel the time-honored methods of our ancestors are being adulterated to satisfy the burgeoning needs of an industrial :Society. Coordination between papermakers and artists is one means to discover how to graft traditional skills onto the advanced technology of the modern paper industry. In this way; we can both preserve and develop our valuable cultural asset+

19

FROM 1m Young-joo Director

Handicraft Art Museum

20

Exactly when thefirst paper was made has been lost to the secrets of time, butKoreas mulberrypaper may datefrom as early as the 7th c.

OMPOSED PRIMARILY of fibers, paper serves as a versatile handicraft material for making articles of everyday use, in addition to its traditional writing and printing functions. Plant or synthetic fibers are set to gel and glued together, taking on their shape in the drying process.

In China as well as Korea and Japan, maji (flax paper) has been in use since 50 or 40 B.C In 193~ Ch'aemunch'il Ku:Ontong a lacquered cylindrical case for scrolls, was found with an ink stone case in Chaeh6p Tomb (circa 40 B.C).

While we lack firm evidence that Koreans made and used paper in ancient times, historical records indicate that Tamjing in the Kingdom of Kogury6 taught the Japanese how to make paper in the 21st year of King Y6ngyang (610 A.D.).

From this, we can assume that the Koreans manufactured and used paper prior to that time.

One of the oldest papers found in Korea dates back to the Silla Period. This page of the Bumhandarani, a Buddhist scripture, is kept at the National Museum in Ky6ngju. Furthermore, in 1959 a prayer for the soul of King Munmu written on white paper was found in Kamun-sa Temple, which was built in the second year of Silla King Shinmun (682 A.D.).

Recently, maji was reported to have been found in an archeological excavation of the P'y6ngyang ruins of the Kogury6 Period. Since people in the Three Kingdoms Period appear to have used pa¡ pers made mostly of flax, it is believed that the technique of making mulberry papers could not have been perfected at that time.

However, other relics suggest that mulberry paper was made as early as the Three Kingdoms Period, forcing us to rewrite the history of the paper. Among these are the Darini Sutra found in the . Shyakamuni pagoda, the "Silla Muns6," preserved in Japan's Shosoin Temple, and the Daebanggwangbul Hwa.Om scripture, currently in the possession of the Ho-Am Art Museum. The scripture, believed to have been written in the 14th year of King Ascrollofletterpaper,19thc.

Ky6ngd6k (755 A.D.), offers by far the 21

most complete record as it describes the process of mulberry paper manufacture as "growing mulberry trees sprinkled with perfume, peeling off the bark and grinding it with stone hand mills." This evidence indicates that mulberry paper had to have been made during the Silla Period to write the Buddhist scripture. We know that in China at that time, there existed a paper called paekch'uji of Silla, which could well have been mulberry paper. This paper was said to be tough and white with smooth fibers produced by good fulling.

In China, Korean papers were called kyerimji, ky6nji (cocoon) and manji.

According to the japanese paper expert Yagi, "Silla's paekch'uji was an excellent paper, incomparable to any other papers of the time. Even in China, people called it the world's best and valued it."

Between the 23rd year (1145 A.D.) of King Injong and the 18th year of King My6ngjong (1188 A.D.) of the Kory6 Period, authorities encouraged the people to cultivate mulberry trees and promoted the private business of paper manufacturing.

Prior to this period, Kory6 had exported large quantities of paper to China from the latter half of the 11th century. Among the tributary gifts sent to the Sung court in China in the 34th year of King Munjong of the Kory6 Period were daeji and ink sticks. In trade with the Sung, Koyr6 exported a great deal of white paper and songy6n ink sticks.

Later, during the Yuan Period, Chinese bought paper from Kory6 for use in Buddhist scripture, importing enormous amounts of paper in 100,000 sheet loads.

The Kory6 paper was tough and thick, with smooth surfaces on both sides well suited for writing, drawing and printing.

Thus, as long ago as the 13th century, the characteristics of hanji had already taken shape.

Pure paekch'u paper, made with highly polished craftsmanship in the processes of fulling and bleaching, was put to various uses after being dyed with yellow, blue, jade green, verdure, red and indigo blue pigments.

Not surprisingly, there are many differ22

Originalhanji was dyed with yellow, blue, jade green, verdure, red and indigo blue pigments.

ent kinds of hanji. Among the papers made in the early Chos6n Period's government paper mill were: p'yoj6nji, jamunji, koj6ngji, yuy6pji, yumogji, ui-iji, magoiji and sunwaeji. These papers were distinguished in both their com position and function. . P'yoj6nji was used to write reports for the king on important national affairs, while documents to be exchanged with China were written on jamunji. Naturally, both were treated with caution. Koj6ngji was made mainly of oats or barley straw and used for stamps and letter paper.

Produced in Puryong, Hamgyong Province, koj6ngji was famous for its toughness and resiliency, and it saved mulberry. Magoiji was made of flax with the outer skin peeled off and mixed with ground mulberry bark in a proportion of five to one. Tough and durable, magoiji also conserved mulberry. Yumogji and yuy6pji relied on leaves and branches of willow trees for their raw material while lii-iji used adlay.

In addition to those papers manufactured at government paper mills, there was a specially-made paper called taeji.

Invented by a man named Kim An-ku in the 36th year of King Jungjong of the Choson Period (1541), it was composed of lichen mixed with mulberry bark. More mulberry bark was needed in mixtures with young lichens, while older lichens requireq less mulberry.

The Kukongj6 of the North Cholla Province section of the "Sejong Shillog Chiriji" named fifteen Kory6 papers including pubondanjaji, kapeiji, and unji.

The Kongjonjo of the Daej6nhoetong lists daehoji and ten others.

These papers were also classified according their uses: kanji (letter paper), juji, banjuji (paper folded in half), bongt'uji (envelopes), dobeji (plastering paper), shij6nji (poetry writing paper), bongmuiji (wrapping paper), shiji, ch'o'ji, hons6ji (matrimonial documents), jamunji, p'yoji, inji (stamps), ch'aegji (books), yakp'okji (wrapping medicine), changhoji (windowscreen), hwabonji (painting) and s6njaji (fans).

According to their size, papers were

futher classified as: baekji, jangji, and by at least ten other names.

Sunwaeji is not believed to be an indigenous Korean paper. Rather, it seems to have been made with a technique acquired from Japan in 1428 during the reign of King Sejong. ]6juji, which was used for printing paper money during the Chason Period, was made of mulberry bark and categorized according to the color it was dyed: hwangy6mcho-juji (yellow), ach'6ngch'o-juji (dark blue), oksaekj6-juji (jade), hongsaekj6-juji (red), chorokj6_juji

(green), ch6ngj6-juji (blue), hwangj6-juji (yellow), chiji, napji, unmy6nji (silver surface), ch'6ngsaekji (blue) and kUmbunji (golden powdered).

The different raw materials used to produce the papers gave rise to a number of craft functions. There were p'oji, made by Ch'aeryun from kopo, mangji made from fishing net, maji, made of saengp'o, ky6nji made of cocoon, ch6ji made of mulberry bark and kokji made of the bark of ordinary trees. In addition to jukji, for books, there were a number of other papers with

different characteristics.

Paper handicrafts were very common, especially for clothes and accessories. juyusam, an oil-cured paper, was made into rain coats, and jisatkat, a conical hat made of oil-cured paper, was worn in the old days by women or servants in the rain. ji-ui was used in winter clothes. Stuffed with paper instead of cotton, these garments were said to have been worn by soldiers guarding national borders. jijang, a kind of paper screen, was hung inside rooms to keep drafts out dur-

Opened thread kit, 32x21x2cm, 19th c.

23

ing the winter. In addition, paper was fashioned into purses, armor, tubes for arrows and cases for ammunition. Amazing as it may seem, armor was made by placing several layers of paper together with two inch square metal scales strung with deer hide and painted with black lacquer.

Paper twisted into ropes was called jisung It was also used to make rings, baskets and cases for seeds, which were said to be the best available.

In the master living-bedroom of well-todo families was a tri-layered colored box on top of the chest of drawers. Its frame was made of strawboard with colored papers pasted on it in beautiful designs.

Since these boxes were usually used to keep pieces of clothes and materials left over after making clothes, some contained a number of drawers and pockets. In these drawers were colorful cases of thimbles which were also made of colorful pieces of cloth.

Hanji is little affected by humidity and, if cured in oil, also works as an insect repellant. With these useful properties, pouches and drawers and even large paper cabinets for storing clothes can be found in a great variety of styles. The cabinets and other furniture made of paper for use in the master living-bedroom were covered in designs of plants and flowers, criss-crossing bars,dragons and phoenixes, clouds and cranes, swaskitas, swallows, and the sun and moon.

Handicrafts of colored papers include large furniture pieces such as chests of drawers, three-sectioned cabinets, baby cabinets, storage boxes and dressers. They also include such small paper products as y6nsang (a box for storing calligraphic brushes, ink sticks and ink stones), boxes for documents, book cases, boxes for coneshaped men's rainhats and Korean horsehair top hats. Colored handicrafts were made from papers dyed in five colors-red, blue , golden yellow, white and black-based on the Chinese philosophy of the five elements. These colors were often mixed to produce colorful handicrafts.

Korean handicrafts made with colored papers are distinguished by their texture, usefulness and various designs. In other 24

Sewing box 23x23x10cm, 18-19th c.

25

words, they represent a unique handicraft amidst Korean artifacts of little variation.

The colored paper handicrafts could be broadly divided into those for men and those for women. Handicrafts for men included such stationery items as brush cases, boxes for documents, purses, wallets, boxes for top hats and other kinds of hats.

Boxes for papers, threads and jewelry as well as workboxes, small tables, fruit bowls and chests of drawers were among the paper products for women.

In the old days, a bride took a colored box containing various daily necessities with her to her husband's home where she kept it within easy reach. These boxes could be square, hexagonal, or octagonal, and held such items as rulers, scissors, string, needles, thimbles, flatiron and other needlework utensils.

Colored paper boxes for wedding presents contained horoscope data for bride and bridegroom. This box was used by the family of a prospective bridegroom to send wedding articles to the family of the bride. A square box in a colorful design

This hand-held lamp was used to illuminate the feet and surrounding area, 17-lSthc.

26

Hanji artistry as reflected in a variety of objects from the practical to the providentiaL (from upper left, clockwise) Square sewing box wI removable lid 19x19x4cm, 20th c., White fan 19th c., Purse wI ear-shaped flaps 18x28cm, 18th c., Octagonal auspicious characters box17x15cm, 17th c. ,

27

Opened sewingkit34xl9x3cm, 19th c.

with hinges on the sides, it had an accompanying box of horoscope data on both bride and bridegroom. The frames of these boxes and other furniture were made of wood or heavy cbangji paper covered with two to three layers of white paper before pasting on colored papers cut in various designs such as flowers. The technique of drawing or putting designs on the boxes was called jOnjigibOp. Other common paper products included vats for the storage of rice, corn, peas 28

Objects made ofhanji have also

earned a reputation as decorative items.

and other grains. Produced by pounding steaming papers into shape, these paper crocks were cured in oil, making them not only insect repellant but also humidity resistant. Lanterns of oil-cured papers were

highly portable because of their light weight and the light diffused through the hanji created a romantic atmosphere.

According to a Korean adage, paper lasts a thousand years while silk lasts five hundred. Layered hanji is as strong as iron, impenetrable even by arrows.

In old days, women carried handbags made of changji cured in empress tree seed oil. They put personal items into the handbag and carried it around in a larger box.

The widespread use of ordinary paper articles shows that our ancestors lived a very frugal life. At the same time, these utensils provide us with an opportunity to observe and appreciate the simple yet artistic aspects of Korean folk arts.

Toward the end of the Chason Period, making ropes out of books seems to have been a common practice. One record tells of a scholar lamenting over the loss of old books. Among the renowned paper products made in the provinces during the

Chason Period were kanjangji of Chonju, a kind of paper used for letters and envelopes; s6nji for folding fans, made in Namp'yong and Namwon; paengnoji produced in Yongbyon; and s6lhwaji, produced in P'yongkang.

Korean papers were strong and resilient because they were made of sunj6 (pure mulberry). They were smoothed out through repeated pounding.

Paper was also used not only for handicrafts but also for building materials.

Cb'angboji (window paper)was often used to bring subdued sunlight into a room creating a warm and stable atmosphere; filtering out ultraviolet rays, it made the room both brighter and healthier. Moreover, paper products could also help absorb humidity and thus prevent decay and remove odors. The use of cbangp'anji floor paper in traditional Korean rooms with ondol-heated floors represents another example of the uniquely Korean way of life.

â&#x20AC;˘

29

s a teenager back in the 1910s, the late Kim Yong-bok learned the cbisung kong-ye, or paper cord craft, from an old monk in a Buddhist temple near his hometown in central Korea. Though he practiced the craft throughout his life, Kim never accepted money for his work, but instead gave away the tobacco cases, chess boxes, vases, purses and briefcases he made during his leisure time to admiring friends.

A popular Oriental herbal doctor and respected community leader who was deeply interested in the welfare of his fellow Koreans under colonial oppression, Kim most certainly knew the value of his craft. But it was only decades later that he realized that he had saved an ancient craft from being forgotten forever.

Looking at the paper cord objects Kim made, which are now in the possession of Ch'oi Yong-jun-his granddaughter-in-law and the sole inheritor of his skill-one cannot help but marvel at the incredible properties of Korean traditional mulberry paper. A water-resistant vase, a purse in a simple, classic design which still has appeal, and a briefcase as firmly crafted yet tender to the touch as one made of highquality leather at a modern fashion store-leads one to imagine the amazing amount of toil and loving care that went into the making of each article.

"These paper cord objects endure much longer than one would expect," explained Ch'oi, an accomplished artist in her own right, during an interview at her home in Hongsong, South Ch'ungch'ong Province.

"They are very sturdy. Believe it or not, 30

Lee Kyung¡hee Freelance Writer

Carrying on a tradition net~rly lost during the 20th c,

Ch'oi Yongjun (above) and Sang Ki-ho (below) continue to interpretpapercraftin uniquewa~

31

you can't destroy them without burning them," she added.

The paper cord articles are not only strong and durable, they also have a comforting effect on those ·who use them, probably because of their familiar designs and subtle colors. Their solid but soft texture is acquired in the weaving process, which is done entirely by hand The weaving begins after a highly te· dious process of preparation. First, a sheet of mulberry paper is cut into thin strips, about l.Scm wide and 25cm long, ·. T~e·se strips are tightly rolled up aslant to form a thin string-like strand, using only the thumb and the index finger of both hands and moistening the fingers with a wet sponge from time to time. Two strands are twisted together for the warp, and a single strand for the woof. Weaving begins from the bottom of an object and proceeds toward the top, and then goes down again to end at the center of the bottom, where it all began.

A paper knife and a small gimlet for fastening the cords while weaving are the only tools needed for the entire process.

The final procedure for host items is lac· quering, either for water-resistance or greater durability.

Incense burners, brush holders, tea tables, sewing boxes, purses, vases and trays are among the objects that Ch'oi most enjoys making. She finds that larger pieces like incense burners or tea tables can take over three months to finish, while a small vase can be completed in about 20 days.

"It takes so much time and effort to finish each piece that I have never thought of selling my works," she remarked. Ch'oi believes it is fortunate that the materials for her craft are not expensive, allowing her to meet the entire cost with the small monthly subsidies she receives from her provincial government as the only artist designated a "living cultural treasure" in the field.

Ch'oi assumed the coveted title from her grandfather-in-law following his death in 1986. And like the late Kim, she, too, has lost her fingerprints as a result of years of hard work.

"I can still remember very vividly how 32

Mostancient

paper cord objectS wer~ madefrom

easilyacquired old books.

Thus the objects were speckled with dots from the print.

33

happy he was when I first told him I wanted to learn the paper cord art from him," said Ch'oi, now a housewife in her early forties and an active volunteer youth counsellor her community. But despite his glee, the late Kim was not a kind teacher, at least initially. Although he taught her only the most basic skills, he scolded her more often than he praised her. Afraid to show her work to him, she would hide it when she heard his footsteps near her door. Then one day, coming across a vase she had made, he smiled and asked her, "Who made this beautiful thing?"

"Then," Ch'oi recalled, "he changed all of a sudden. He even told his friends that I was better than he was." Though belatedly, she said, she finally realized that this was his way of educating her.

Ch'oi, too, has begun passing on her craft. Recently, she began teaching the paper cora art to some 50 local housewives in a weekly class sponsored by the county government of Yesan. "This is a new experience for me," she said, adding that she has so far refused most casual requests to teach from women in her neighborhood or from those with a seem-

ingly passing interest. "I refuse because I don't think this is something you can do simply as a hobby," Ch'oi stressed.

Traditionally, however, the paper cord craft was practiced not only by skilled arti¡ sans but also by common people. Even retired men of noble classes would take pages from worn-out books in their leisure time to make such simple objects as tobacco cases and chess boxes. While it offered them a means to pass the time, the craft was also good for their health as they constantly moved their fingers, rubbing them against the soft paper. From time to time,

servants would make simple pieces in their spare time. And with plenty of old books on hand, Buddhist monks at ternples found it a good way to spend their leisure time, too.

Most ancient paper cord objects, made of easily accessible old books, naturally bore dark grey or black dots due to the printed characters. The tradition of using printed paper continues to this day.

AlthoughCh'oihasrecently begun to teach the paperrord art to neighbors she considers learning the skills to be more than "simplyahobby."

Paper cord serving tray and basket wI lid(left) Paper cord book case.(below)

35

TUNNINGLY DIFFERENT from the cord craft in concept and technique is the "five-colored cut paper craft," or osaek ch6nji kong-ye. Though little known among most Koreans these days, the colorful cosmetic boxes, letter files and clothes containers-often decorated with fanciful patterns adroitly cut from colored mulberry paper-could be found in almost all Korean homes until only a few decades ago.

The workshop of Sang Ki-ho, located in bustling Kangnam, southern Seoul, is among the few places in modern-day Korea where one can find a great variety of these traditional craft objects in all their pleasant colors and shapes. Sang, 43, is a self-taught artist who has succeeded in making both his craft and himself known among contemporary art-loving Koreans after many years of hard work I discovered the beauty of cut paper craft almost by chance," said Sang. While running an antique shop with his father in the early 1970s, his attention was caught by old paper boxes discolored but very pretty that passed unnoticed by most.

The boxes were actually among antique dealers cheapest goods at the time because they fell outside the interest of most collectors who craved expensive paintings and ceramics.

To Sang, however, the boxes were charming. Once he decided that he wanted to make them himself, he soon learned that there was nobody to teach him the art, nor could he find any books describing the art. Making up his mind to learn it by himself, Sang set to disassembling quite a number of boxes and studied how they were made right from the beginning.

"It was simpler than I had expected," Sang noted. "I found out there is no complicated technique involved, though you need a sharp eye for color and design.

This is what I always emphasize to my students." Believing that the craft is easier than most other Korean folk handicrafts, Sang recommends that children learn it both as a pastime and as a way to understand the Korean artistic tradition. After all, in the old days, not only professional artisans but also housewives made cut-pa36

Traditionally, framesfor stiUlll objects such as stationary boxes and brush holders were made by

pasting together numerous sheets of mulberry

paper until the

desired thickness was achieved The motifs applied to the suiface include symbols of

the eternal wishes for longevity and happi~

37

per objects both for enjoyment and use in their daily lives.

Learning the art was a joy for Sang, but making a business out of it was a very different matter. He was so preoccupied with his craft that he eventually closed his thriving shop in order to devote himself completely to it. Debts began to accumulate before long, however, as few people were interested in buying his works.

A breakthrough came after many dark years of unbearable poverty and frustration. In 1984, Sang won a special award in the government-sponsored annual folk handicrafts exhibition, which changed the public's reaction to his work overnight.

His debts were soon paid off, but far more satisfying for Sang was that he was no longer the lone crusader for a dying craft that he loved so much.

As Sang concedes, the technique of the craft is relatively simple compared with other folk crafts handed down from generation to generation in Korea. Despite its simplicity, it nonetheless yields works of a

Dragon¡tiger motif letter holder 60x22x8cm, 18th¡ 19th c., Paper server (below) and paper trays (right).

beauty rarely seen and characterized by diverse imaginative patterns and delightful color schemes drawing on folk symbolism.

The process begins with the preparation of a frame and the cutting of patterns.

In ancient times, the frames for small objects such as stationery boxes and brush holders were made by pasting together numerous sheets of mulberry paper, layer upon layer with rice glue, until the desired thickness was achieved. These days, hardboard frames make convenient substitutes.

The surfaces of wooden frames, which are normally used for larger pieces such as chests and tea tables, are covered with several layers of mulberry paper, sometimes following specific patterns worked out in relief.

Cutting decorative patterns and applying them on the surface of an object demands experience and skill as well as aesthetic sensibility. The patterns are first drawn on paper and then cut with scissors or a knife, but the delicate texture of mulberry paper coupled with the complexity

of design never allows even the most skilled artist to work with complete ease.

Interestingly, the craft shares popular motifs with traditional folk painting, such as symbols of the eternal wishes for longevity and happiness. In the traditional Korean outlook, happiness came from good health, conjugal harmony, many sons, respectable social standing and comfortable financial status. Among their favorite motifs from nature were cranes, phoenixes, chrysanthemums , grapes, pomegranates, butterflies and bats, which they believed would help them fulfill their

wishes. The t'aeguk, a symbol of harmony among contrasts in ancient Oriental philosophy-and which is now seen on the Korean national flag-is another common design on traditional cut paper craft objects.

Most of these patterns are presented in stylized, symmetric form. Quite often, they are used with a fine network of arabesque or geometric backgrounds reminiscent of the dainty carvings on ancient metalcraft works. Once all the intricate patterns have been pasted to the work, the surface is coated with lacquer for lustre

and enhanced durability. Traditionally, oils from sesame seeds, pinenuts, beans and paulownia seeds were also applied.

As its name osake ch6nji kong-ye indicates, colors are very important in this craft. The five basic colors-red, blue, yellow, white and black-symbolize the five cardinal directions or the five elements forming all matter in the universe.

Ancient artists used natural dyes from various plants and minerals, but nowadays most artists, including Sang, work with colored papers from factories. +

39

PAPER &MODERN ART Lee Yong-woo Art Critic

ODERN ART is increasingly turning to paper as a basic mediuin. Long confined mainly to Oriental paintings, paper has gained much ground in Western art circles.Western painting, traditionally synonymous with canvas painting, now embraces a new form called. "work on paper" as a distinct genre. Paper has also been widely used for soft sculptures, highlighting its diverse artistic applications.

Furthermore, because of its delicate quality, paper has become a favorite element in a wide range of creative activities, such as fashion design, woodblock printing and packaging design.

For well over a millenium, paper has been an integral component of art works in Korea, Japan and China. Indeed, paper is so dominant in their traditional paintings that they are simply called paper paintings. In terms of preservation, paper enjoys a definite edge.

As the saying goes: "While canvas lasts .for five hundred years, paper endures one

Muguchooggwangdaedaraniky(ng 40

thousand years." Thus, the traditional use of paper as a chief medium in Oriental art has been widely reeognized as a proud legacy.

In the world of modern art, however, paper is being put to increasingly diverse uses, apart from its traditional use as described above. This trend mirrors the growing 'Variety and volume of new forms of media and materials that are emerging in art as society becomes ever more industrialized. The idea that paper is merely a base material for painting is now obsolete, although the use of paper for painting is still prevalent. Modern art considers print media using paper as a more positive vehicle for artistic expression, which reflects the changing aesthetic values of art in latter-day industrial society.

Since the invention of paper by Ts'ai Lun in 105 A.D., there has been an elaborate, often painstaking, quest for new uses of paper. It has maintained a special place in Korean fine arts. One of its major legacies is Muguch6nggwangdaedaraniky6ng a Buddhist scroll designated National

Treasure No. 126. Another is Saky6ngchidaebanggwangpulhwa6mky6ngdo, also a Buddhist scroll and designated National Treasure No. 10. These scrolls have been remarkably well preserved, though the latter is more than 1,200 years old.

Asians, have traditionally believed that paper possesses a quality more valuable than mere longevity. They believed that there was a perfect rapport between paper and ink. From that belief, they gave philosophical meaning to the act of writing calligraphy on paper, which explains the traditional reference to zen calligraphy.

The basic idea is that writing or drawing on paper with ink, to attain a certain level of art, requires more than just brush

Modern art offers contemporary artists the opportunity to experiment with paper in increasingly creative ways-not simply as a material for painting. ¡

stroke techniques: it requires a fully cultivated character and a trained mind. Thus, the importance of a mature consciousness on the part of the artist wielding the brush on paper. Traditional artists believed that in masterly hands there is a process of philosophical refinement in the encounter between ink and paper, not just a contrast between the blackness of ink and the whiteness of paper. This idea was echoed by Kazimis Malevich, a Russian supremacist, in his interpretation of art in terms of pure non-objectivity.

In viewing calligraphy, Westerners tend to perceive the strokes of the brush as thick lines of ink. In contrast, Koreans think that through the strokes of the

brush, ink gains depth. Unlike mass-pro- means of recording the duced commercial paper, hanji, traditional history of human lives?

Korean hand-made paper, bears a certain And as such, is it a means quality that lends maturity to the work of of expression or a manifestation of sensithe artist using it. tivity? The art festival tackled all these An international art festival held in questions. Some Western artists participatSeoul three years ago demonstrated the us- ing in the festival seemed to have gained a es of paper in art and showed how hanbetter understanding of the ji fits into the world of formative spirituality of paper in arts. The event reconfirmed the art, while others clung long-established fact that ingenuto the notion that paity and variety in the use of paper is merely useful for doing a rough per in a country tells much about sketch before drawing the cultural level of that country.

Is paper just a common daily on a canvas. commodity-a medium for written comLike their Asian countermunication? Or, more than that; is it a . parts, several artists including Nancy Graves, who has created paper artworks in China in recent years , and Robert Rauschenberg, who held a paper exhibition in Japan, demonstrated a gradual, deft \ and metap_horical approach to the unique attributes of hanji. The art festival gave the Asian artists exposure to the Western perception of hanji as a material. More importantly, the festival greatly stimulated the promotion and dissemination of hanji, a traditional Asian material, for artistic and other uses.

Koreans' unusually strong affection for hanji remains undiminished. The traditional technique of making hanji has been handed down intact from generation to generation. Koreans believe that hanji elicits a feeling of warmth in their daily lives and speaks for the unique mood and The 1990 Seoul International Art Festival invited spirit of Koreans known as paekuin1injok, Western artists to create works of art on a" hanji" a white-clad people. In a broader sense, canvas. Nancy Graves,The Contest Between the Genders IX-1(}-90 (top), Robert Rauschenberg, Red however, hanji is just one of numerous Still,1990(above) materials used in a bustling industrial soci41

ety and a direct medium widely utilized in ¡ an information society.

Hanji represents a particular kind of paper that enhances the beauty of traditional Oriental formative arts, although it is just one category of paper. As such, hanji is recognized as an aesthetic material in such areas of applied fine arts as commercial packaging design, visual design, and fashion design, which testifies to its wide-ranging uses. The aesthetic scope of modern art as a whole should be kept as openended and all-embracing as before, even in an age of modernism that tends to narrow the scope of aesthetic expression.

With the spread of the mass media throughout the entire world, political and social activities in the 21st century will be more and more attuned to the dictates of an information society. This means that such v'isual media as advertisements, movies, and television will largely lead the future growth and advancement of human society. What about the role of paper? As a basic material for print media, paper will most likely become a high-tech material reflecting changing aesthetic values, as demanded by the 21st century.

AnCien~ Egyptians made paper from the reedy papyrus that grows in abundance along the Nile River. Papyrus, which still thrives along the river, reaches up to 2 to 3 meters and its stalk grows to about 10 centimeters around. The Egyptians cut the papyrus stalks, glued them together, then pounded and dried them to produce writing paper. Historians believe that this Egyptian process of pa. pyrus papermaking dates as far back as 2, 500 years.

Papyrus paper was, at the time, the best material for writing and had been widely used in areas ranging from the Mediterranean region to Asia Minor. It remained in use until about the eighth century, when the Chinese technique of pa. permaking was transmitted to Europe.

Thus, some theories claim that papyrus is the genesis of all papers ever invented.

Papyrus, however, can hardly be regarded as paper in the strict sense of the word since it was no more than a rough-hewn product made of the fibrous plant.

42

Hanji is also known as takji because it is made from tak, i variety of paper mulberry. It is the deep-growing roots of the paper mulberry which are said to give hanji a feeling of depth. The nature of paper mulberry precludes papermaking in the Western style because its fibers have ¡ long staples that are very sturdy and tend to stick together.

Hanji-making has never been and is not likely to be mechanized, nor is hanji likely to be commercially mass-produced.

In addition to the limited demand for hanji, the supply of paper mulberry is not large enough to support mass-production.

Perhaps more importantly, hanji would lose its unique artistic value and attraction in mass-production, becoming just another ubiquitous commercial paper. As with anything of value that is hand-made, the true quality of hanji-at once crude yet refinec:l with a touch of serenity and eleWhether the artist gance-lies in the careful combination of expresses himself in Western acquired skills and painstaking work. oils or Korean ink, hanji Hanji-making may well be compared provides a medium for to pansori, a traditional Korean solo narrathat expression. tive song rendered with the accompaniment of a drummer. It is the drummer's Park Seo-bo, ECRITURE No.88107, Mixed Media with beating and his strategic vocal kibitzing .

Hanji(above), Kwon Youn~who,Sur le papier encre that arouses and enhances the artistic de Chine, Korean Ink on Hanji (below) pitch of the p'ansori singer. Of course, a p'ansori singer can perform to a taped drum beat instead of a live one. But then the song ceases to be true p'ansori.

Without a live drummer with whom to interact, the p'ansori singer would find it hard to keep up his inspiration and enthusiasm. In the art of painting, even a tiny dot or a touch of the brush makes a great difference in terms of aesthetic balance.

Similarly, it is like the vital glue that keeps the cells together in a living organism.

The technique of making paper specifically for artistic uses is common in Korea, China and Japan. Such paper is invariably hand-made, requiring extensive manual skills and a great deal of effort. . All three countries have maintained a strong sense of pride in making their traditional papers through processes that border on artistic expertise. Each boasts that its traditional paper is the best of its kind, and rightly so.

Chinese paper, is more varied and com- ¡

plex in both quality and kind than Korean and Japanese papers. Chinese paper appears light and ingenuous, with a touch of crudeness; it has no luster and absorbs Chinese ink deeply. In contrast, Japanese paper is relatively more delicate, and writing or drawing in Chinese ink on it leaves an impression of greater sharpness and, hence, a more distinct sense of color than in the case of Korean or Chinese paper.

These different qualities of the three countries' traditional papers seem to reflect the national character and temperament of the cultures from which they derive.

From ancient times, it has been said that one need only see a work of art on traditional paper to identify the country from which it comes. Thus, paper has been a key eiement in most art of the past, which was largely plane art. In particular, in Korea, China and Japan, where the culture of letter writing flourished, the tradition of exchanging letters using handmade paper and written in ink produced by rubbing an inkstick on an inkstone, has been valued highly for the sense of personal warmth and sincerity which it embodies. It is a far cry from the practice nowadays of scribbling or typing soulless

cause materials for modern art work have become diversified, perhaps excessively.

Nonetheless, banji continues to maintain its unique value thanks to its long history and the extraordinary and uncompromis.· ing method employed to produce it.

With popular interest in traditional culture growing remarkably, hanji is likely to ~ gain new respect and assume a fresh role ~ in our modern world. ~ Despit~ the accelerated development of § high:~ec? med~a ~or ou: high-~e~h so.ciety, ·u ... · dergo" . . uiari . h hanp wtll retam tts untque, dtstmgmshed nanptsun mgar~cempop tywtt .. . consumersrediscoveringthepleasureof~ghanji posttton scarcely affected as long as tt reenvelopesandw.illpaper. mains true to the artistic spirit, enthusiasm and devotion of hanji-makers, and continues to enjoy the profound love 9f artists letters on commercially mass-produced pa- and those who appreciate it. pers, a product of what may be called an In its own right, hanji represents a mea"instant culture." · sure of the cultural awareness of the · Many traditionallerters written in the Korean people. The level of formative art past have been carefully preserved to of a country is more o(ten than not serve as valuable materials for studying judged by the number of art museums the this major aspect of royal court culture nation has. Similarly, the extent of hanji's and the customs of aristocratic society, as unique realm largely reflects the status of well as those of the literary, especially the Korea's formative arts. In this sense, it can poetic, circles. be said that paper relates positively to Modern art does not seem to make as modern art.+ much of paper as it should, apparently be43

N APRIL 21 at the Hyau Hotel Grand Ballroom in Seoul, fashion designer Lee Young-bee held a show to commemorate her participation in the March Paris Freta-Porter Collections. Lee's finale was a white wedding dress made from 70 sheet§ of mulberry paper produced by paper expert Kim Ky6ng. "This is the world's first paper wedding dress," the hostess said excitedly; and a burst of applause followed from the audience. The dress had the delicate appearance of dragonfly .wings, a look that no other material could come close to.

At last year's Tokyo Collections, design· er Lee Shin-woo displayed six paper outfits from materials made by 69-year-old Kim Ky6ng. Kim has lived in the world of paper for the past 30 years and is probably the nation's only full-time researcher of traditional Korean paper.

From April 21 to May 1, Kim held an exhibition of 40 creations entitled ."The Art World of Korean Paper" at Se.oho Gallery in In~acdong.

On display were 20 outfus created by some of Korea's top fashion designers, 8 traditional banbok amd the creations of the Hanmaejae paper resea-rch group headed br Kim. Paper materials used included changft, cbamky6nft and 1\brh'fl<rtfn.ll

"Since ·J..-."'Y'L•·- ..:..

~

paper has all but disappeared, remaining only in name," said Kim. As fine and smooth as silk, cbamky6nji was widely used in the Three Kingdoms Period. Transparent like gauze and marked here and there with a faint pattern of silk worms, okcb'ungji was a precious paper used by Chos6n Period aristocracy to wrap their jewels.

Kim Ky6ng developed new techniques for the recreation of these papers by dissolving them first in water. To make cbamky6nji, she grinds mulberry wood under a millstone and then kneads it by hand. Okcb'ungji is made by boiling the mulberry bark in water, bleaching it in caustic soda and then kneading it by hand.

Kim calls her unique methods the cbumcb'i or pocket, technique.

So far, Kim has not been able to hand down this technique to a single person.

Even after six months of training, her students, more often than not, end up with unusable paper.

Six years ago, before Kim developed her cbumch'i technique, she wound her 46

Kim Kyong creates paper that can serve in both traditional and contemporary roles.

way through the country collecting traditional handicraft items made of paper.

"Thirty years ago when I was in Hahoe Village in Andong, I saw a strange pot under a cabinet," Kim recalls. "It was made of woven paper and laquered. I found out that it was placed in the palanquin of a bride on her way to be married."

Since then, she has been collecting pieces one by one, gathering over 200 items as diverse as flasks and purses. The oldest item in her collection is a mud shield estimated to date back to the early (Chos6n Period. It was worn by scholars to protect them from mud while riding on the bqck of a donkey.

According to Kim, paper clothing was worn only by the royal court or the wealthy, as it was harder than silk to make and more expensive. Common people often stuffed their clothes with ordinary cbangji instead of cotton, while soldiers wore it as armor. Kory6 Period soldiers often waged battle wearing several layers of cbangji wet down or covered in oil which, it is said, even an arrow could not pierce.

From ancient times, the quality and variety of Korean paper was known throughout China and Japan. Chinese paper was made by grinding mulberry bark or barley, wheat and rice. The paper was soft and smooth, but its short fibers caused it to tear easily. In Korea, however,

the mulberry bark was beaten with a club, producing longer and stronger fibers.

Afterwards, the paper pulp was beaten again for a smooth, shiny finish. The oldest existing examples of Korean paper are two Buddhist sutras dating to around 753 in the Silla Period.

The Korean papermaking tradition entered a period of decline during Japanese colonial times, and research into the field remains less active than it should be. In the history of clothing, designs and patterns take precendence over materials, thus overshadowing the beauty and importance of paper craft items.

Kim Kyong held exhibitions of her own collection of paper craft items in 1987 and newly created items in 1989.

Knowledge of the craft was so lacking that errors in Kim's explanations passed unnoticed.

In contrast, paper research is active in Japan. In 1988, Kim held a 38-day exhibition there at the Fuji Museum titled Beauty in Korean Tradition-Papercraft", which drew 25,000 visitors. Many of the items shown had been dated with the help of Japanese records.

"In th e 1989 Internation al Paper Competition in Japan, the superiority of Korean paper was again confirmed", declared Kim. "Other papers fell apart almost as soon as they were immersed in water.

People were astonished to see that the Korean papers were unaffected."

Not only can Korean paper be washed, she added, but because of its high absorbency, it is also easy to dye. At her exhibition in April, Kim showed off papers that had been dyed to a golden hue with pear flowers cultivated by the monk Songp'a from T'ongdosa Temple. Another paper was dyed with the juice of an indigo plant, which is said to drive away evil spirits.

Although nowadays paper clothes are impractical for everyday wear, Kim plans to make other items such as paper scarves and hats for practical use.

Kim hopes that her exhibition has opened the eyes of the public to the superiority of Korean paper. Ultimately, she dreams of opening a paper museum. â&#x20AC;˘ 47

CONTEMPORARY SCENE

Pop Music Trends Cho Yoon-jung Reporter, The Korea Herald

EARLY LAST YEAR, three boys in baggy shorts blasted onto Korea's pop cenfer stage yelling "Yes I know." And the young masses screamed in recognition. It seems they knew too.

Their parents, however, took on~ look at Seo Tae-ji and Boys, shook their heads and muttered to themselves, "Little boys, you don't know anything. You've got your hats on back to front. You wear your sunglasses indoors. Your clothes are the wrong size and you forgot to take the tags off." Mom and dad were obviously not in the know.

But what was there to know?

Korean pop music had largely drifted along year to year on an almost unvarying stock of ballads, soft rock and that peculiarly Korean singing style known as "trot."

But 1992 saw the onset of rap, not new in other countries but a revelation to Korea.

Rap launched a new generation of stars, "pretty" boys with almost exclusively teenage appeal. A clear distinction was made between teen and adult audiences and it is the teenagers who firmly hold the cards in marketing and broadcast programming.

The New Music

Changes had been brewing for a long time, of course, as Korea grew increasingly Westernised. Last year Seo Tae-ji and Boys, the messiahs of a new generation, seemed to bring many social and cultural changes to the surface all at once. Their rise coincided with increased hype over the new youth subculture of fun and consumption.

The Korean teenager trapped on the hellish merry-go-round of exams and more exams could hardly have laid claim to any lifestyle at all. But questions were posed to the status quo, and for the first time a generation of Korean teens seemed to be more concerned about the color of their jeans than the color of their politics.

A certain measure of democratic maturity; economic inequality and social uncertainty provided the background for new kinds of music and the suggestion of other lifestyles.

Rap and the "Seo Tae-ji syndrome" took the older generation by surprise, but they should have been warned. The first sign came last February when American teen idols, New Kids on the Block, hit Korea.

Their effect was both devastating and eyeopening. Starting with a melee upon their arrival at the airport, their visit ended with an aborted concert and 50 hysterical fe-

Korean pop music was not known for its variety until1992 when Korean-style rap launched a new generation of stars.

48

male fans in hospital.

Organizers of the concert took their share of the blame for their lack of proper planning and their greed in filling the con-

\

\\\\\.\

cert hall beyond capacity. The brunt of the attack, however, fell on the young fans.

"What is wrong with them?" people asked.

"How can they act so crazy? Where did this behavior come from?"

The New Kids phenomenon was branded an undesirable import. With rather misguided intentions, the Culture Ministry promptly moved to ban any concert that had the potential of arousing similar hysteria. Paula Abdul was allowed in, but Michael Jackson never had a chance.

Then less than a month later, along came Seo Tae-ji and Boys, three homegrown kids spitting out songs rather than singing them and creating an almighty stir.

Within three months of release of their

debut single "Yes I know." they had sold 700,000 albums.

"Yes I know," was an innocuous song about love and infatuation. It was rap considerably toned down, inoffensive and fashionable. And the Korean kids lapped it up.

The Seo Tae-ji Syndrome

Rap had been around for a long time in America and other parts of the world, and in Korea rap albums could be obtained easily enough. But it was not easily transplanted like mainstream pop as represented by New Kids on the Block. It was black, urban American, full of the anger and rhythm of the streets and alien to Korean

life.

There is no continuous surfeit of video music here, no MTV or native equivalent pumping out sounds and images 24 hours a day: There is only one program on TV devoted to videos, "Global Video Music" on KBS. Radio broadcasting of foreign pop music is overpowered by the local product.

For these reasons, Korea had long remained relatively immune to foreign music fads. Mod, punk, acid and house have as yet had minimal effect.

Seo Tae-ji acted as a medium. They adopted rap, Koreanized it and put it on nationwide television. The "syndrome" began to take on a life of its own. Kids screamed. The boys were plastered on billboards, interviewed, scrutinised and analysed. Kids of all ages and from all over the country imitated their music and their style.

The syndrome gave rise to rivals. Hyun Jin-yong appeared in the latter half of the year as a formidable opponent in all essential areas-music, dance and fashion.

In the fashion stakes, Hyun carved out a Kriss Kross and Malcolm X-inspired niche with oversized outfits in rastafarian colors and the obligatory hood. His rather inane dance was the comedians' delight.

Lee Hyun-woo had already strutted onto the scene in a black leather biker's jacket and a rap mix called "Dream." One of a growing ~and of "kyop'o kasu," overseas Korean singers returning for a shot at fame, Lee brought with him first-hand experience of the sounds and looks of America. He mixed English with Korean and made himself a name on a string of remixes of one song. In January this year, he was caught smoking marijuana, further, consolidating his image as a quintessential new generation star.

Foreign influences, rather than coming direct, are first filtered through local faces.

The suggested lifestyle, the look and the sound of the new music were criticized as ~ copycat of the foreign. In a summary of ~ 1992, Lee Jin-kyu from the production ~ team of SBS radio said that although the ยง year had been rich in new styles, there 49

had been no real development musically; with most songs setting themselves up as ripe candidates for accusations of plagiarism.

However, it should be remembered that such accusations have been leveled at nearly all forms of Korean pop music. Rap, house, rock and techno pop may be far removed from the Korean cultural identity; but even trot, which is generally accepted as traditional Korean popular music, has had its share of controversy.

Arguments have been going back and forth since the '60s with Lee Mi-ja's "Camellia Girl" ( Tongbaek Agassi). Critics charge that trot is derived from Japanese enka, a leftover from colonial times, and therefore could not and should not be called Korean. Oh Yong-rok, standing committee member of the Music Composers Association, says, however, that although the rhythm is similar, trot is definitely Korean. "It grew out of the grief and sorrows of colonial times and has been embodying the social color of each generation for 70 years now," he said. "Rap and ballads may be popular with the kids, but when they grow older they'll be listening to and singing trot songs." Ballads, which are generally considered harmless, are said to follow Japanese styles a little too closely.

A case in point was Byun ]in-sup's "Laura" (1991) which was accused of ripping off a song by Japanese singer Yuki Saito.

When it's a question of lyrics, the largely random use of English comes under attack. Yet this too is not new. Looking back at some titles, there are "Circus" (1937), "My Love Julia" from 1947, "Bohemian Tango" and "Rose Colored Scarf" from the '60s and "Wedding Dress" from the 70s.

Coming into the '80s, the frequency of English lyrics grew with the brief fervor of dance music and the Olympics in 1988.

The official Olympic songs were "Welcome to Seoul," "Seoul, Seoul, Seoul" and Koreana's "Hand in Hand," and current hits include "Dance With Me Agassi" and "HyunJin-yong, Go Jin-yong, Go." The critics decry the "songs with no nationality," with Kim Kyong-il saying "Korean pop music has no roots, it's a 50

hodgepodge." But the question is, can Korea have native pop music any more?

The real issue may be the fact that influences are all one way. Korean pop has made almost no impact overseas. Trot is popular in Japan and singers like Lee Mi-ja have a small claim to fame but any other impact outside Korea has been limited to Korean immigrant audiences.

Past Perspective

The new generation has not completely taken over as it may seem, since the mainstays of pop since the '60s are not as

Ballad/folk singer Byun]in-sup has been accused of sounding a little too much like a japanese counterpart. easily forgotten as suggested. The Korea Broadcasting Research Center estimated that ballads dominated the market in 1991 with 83 percent. In January that year, KBS Top Ten had two trot singers, Tae Chin-a and Kim Chi-ae, continually in first and second place respectively.

Even at the end of 1992, the top KBS music award went to clean-cut ballad crooner Shin Sung-hun and other awards were evenly distributed amongst the different genres. MBC's top award went to Seo Tae-ji and Boys but their top ten of the year included trot singers Chu Hyun-mi,

Hyun Chul, Sol Wun-do, and ballad singers Kang Su-ji and No Sa-yon.

Though these awards cannot be taken as the be-all and end-all of the music industry status quo, they are reliable indicators of tastes across the board.

Image Making

Rap may have been the catalyst for certain changes, but it did not constitute all the changes themselves. Some singers have always had peripatetic tendencies, moving from one fad to another. With the advent of rap, however, it became clear that image was becoming more important then ever.

Established stars such as Shin Hae-chul underwent major image transformations.

Shin in one sense could be called one of the predecessors of Korean rap. Though he may have been doing a soft rap in jazz cafes two years ago, he was taking to the stage in a cowl-necked sweater that looked hand-knitted, with the best of intentions but little skill.

The new Shin Hae-chul grew his hair down to his waist, pierced his ear, hung a crucifix in it and another one around his neck, and bought a pair of contact lenses.

He also got himself a band, for that was another of the trends; a single star was not so attractive as a whole band of them. To top off the experiment, Shin and the boys from NEXT appeared bare-chested in one of the early editions of Korean ELLE. Others who had been nameless found their way to the spotlight via the same road. High fliers for early 1993 are Chuli and Miae, a rap duo sporting bright outfits, sunglasses and pirate's scarf worn on the head. They are representatives of a new breed of stars culled from a pool of D]s and dancers.

Chuli used to be a DJ and one half of a mop-topped dancing duo called Boom Boom which provided visual accompaniment to the songs of mid-80s star Na Mi. Miae was one of an anonymous band of dancers that the networks keep on hand.

Together with some help from the fashion muses and a fairly generic rap tune, star status is now theirs.

One inherent reason for the popularity

of the new music is that it offers an image to imitate. The youth of the '90s are hungering for heroes. It is no coincidence that changes in the music scene accelerated as the fight for democracy weakened as an issue. The last major student demonstrations here were seen in the spring of 1991.

Ballads, soft rock and trot could not provide the desired idols of the '90s.

Ballads were too tame; ballad singers do not do much on stage and they invariably dress in neat but uninspiring doublebreasted suits. Trot singers were too old.

As for favorites such as Tae chin-a, wearing a shiny suit, waving a yellow handkerchief on stage and carrying with him the suggestion of a cheap cabaret, well, he left the kids cold.

The new generation of stars, for starters, look good. In bands rather than lonely solos, they are more colorful; they fill a stage better with their movement and energy. They are getting taller, younger and better looking-traits which are shared by their born-in-the-70s fans. Visually, they leave the old stars no room for competition. As TV is a visual medium, the look becomes as important as the sound.

Secondly, they are not as irresponsible and hedonistic as they are sometimes made out to be. Pop music-induced teenage hysteria is a worldwide and generational phenomenon. It comes with the territory and is not new to Korea. Cliff Richard brought it on in the '60s, Leif Garret in the early '80s.

The new generation stars are socially concerned and aware. In line with world trends, the environment is proving to be one of their focal points of concern. In a major campaign initiated by the nation's largest vernacular daily, the Chosun Ilbo, major pop stars including Seo Tae-ji and Boys, NEXT and 015B gathered together in Korea's own version of a superband to record an album under the title "Tommorrow May Be Too Late."

015B, one of the most popular bands going into 1993, is part of what is known as Korea's "underground" scene. The term underground refers not to any political or social attitude but a refusal to be at the beck and call of the all-powerful TV pro-

ducers. Their stance, however, does not preclude mass appeal, though it may be harder to come by.

Lee Sung-whan, Kwon In-ha and Cho Ha-mun are some of the better known and well-respected underground figures.

Soft rock band 015B has it both ways.

They are popular, but they do what they want with the confidence to produce what could be taken as an image killer for less established stars-a gospel album.

They are also students at the nation's top universities.

But in most cases the structure of the

Concerts provide an outlet for adolescent fans burdened by academic pressures.

music industry is such that a star is made through live TV exposure. Rap was accused of splitting family viewing as it pushed trot and ballads to the sidelines of the entertainment and show programs which had previously covered the whole spectrum more evenly.

Now and the Future

Into the first months of 1993, Kim Yong-gun, producer of "Pop Favorites" on KBS 2FM, pointed out that although rap may be dying, it has left a legacy of stars almost exclusively young, good-looking

and male. Son Chi-chang and Kim Min-jong are characteristic cross genre operators, happily racing from the posts of singer, OJ, MC, actor and billboard idol. There are also more bands around, also all male: 015B, Finocchio, Noise and NEXT. Clearly this leaves a void on the female side. Anaemic singers Kang Su-ji and Ha Su-bin come to mind. Dancing queen Kim Wan-son has officially retired. "Female singers are harder to handle," said producer Kim. "A hint of a scandal and they're history. But the main reason for the lack of female singers is that they simply don't sell records. The record buying public is mostly female adolescents and naturally they like pretty, young boys."

The Korea Record Association estimated that, as a group, teenagers make up 70 percent of the record-buying public.

This trend is not likely to change significantly in the near future. Kim and his peers are naturally well aware of this. The Djs on Kim's program are none other than the hottest names and faces in town including Son Chi-chang, the boys from 015B and Kim Chong-so.

Kim concedes that continuation of this trend is likey to lead to even further alienation of the adult public. To counter this he stresses the need to develop more specialized shows aimed at specific audiences and the same separation when it comes to top ten awards. This seems only natural from the global perspective as "pop" has almost always belonged to the young.

One of the major positive trends for 1993, Kim sees, is the surge in bands, be they affiliated to rap, rock, jazz, house or techno pop. "Band work encourages live performances. There are a lot of live appearances but lip syncing has been the rule rather than the exception."

Most of all, he hopes that foreign influences will be interpreted rather than simply being copied and passed on. "I'm not ¡ looking for Korean pop. The only true native Korean music is our traditional classical music. But we've got to get past copying," he said. â&#x20AC;˘

51

INTERVIEW:

A STAR- STUDDED FACULTY LAUNCHES NEW CONSERVATORY

Lee lang¡suk FEW YEARS AGO, former Culture Minister Lee 0young bitterly re~ marked that Koreanborn performers active in the international classical music scene could not be considered =? truly Korean musicians be~ cause they had all been ~ trained in Western conservato"' ries.

II: /QJ ''We can take pride in producing such world-<:lass performers as Chung Kyung-wha, Kim Young-uk, Kang Dong-suk and Paek Kun-woo during our short Western music history," said the scholar and writer. "But it is a pity that they all received their music education in Western countries."

This sentiment underscores the Korean music community's long-standing frustration with the drain of musical talent to the Western world, a loss which has been largely blamed on the absence of a quality music school here to train professional performers.

All that is set to change. The nation's first Western-style conservatory opened at the Seoul Arts Center in S6ch'o-dong in southern Seoul last March. The National School of Music will mark a mapr turnaround in Korea's Western music history, which dates back to the turn of this century. It is also expected to bring substantial changes to the current music education system which centers around universities.

The mastermind of the project is Lee Kang-suk, 57, a music critic and former musicology professor at Seoul National University. Since he was appointed president of the envisioned Korean National Institute of Arts last july, he has taken the lead in preparations to open the school The music school is part of a planned comprehensive arts education institution which will incorporate five more schools for fine arts, dance, acting, visual arts and traditional arts.

Interviewed by Byun Eun-mi, Reporter, The Korea Herald.

52

KOREANA: I know you were very busy preparing to open the conservatory on schedule. What was on your mind while working on the project?

Lee: Over the past year, I kept reminding myself that every move I make at this j:uncture is of historical significance.

The school is the realization of a decades-long desire to establish a music conservatory here to train professional performers. I paid particular attention to the job because it will set a model for the next five schools to follow.

The first thing on my mind was torelieve Korean music students of costly study at Western conservatories. That has been regarded as a prerequisite for a professional career here.

Going a step further, the school aims to attract foreign students who want to receiye high-standard music education.

That may sound like a fantasy to some, but I am sure that the dream will become a reality in a decade.

Among other things, if internationally-renowned Korean performers would move back here, it would go far toward putting Seoul on the international culturalmap.

KOREAN A: What is the significance of the opening of the conservatory here in relation to Korean music education?

Lee: My basic notion about education is that it should produce the people a society needs. The kind of people required differs according to specific periods, and I believe that this period calls for both

Among other things, if internationally-renowned Korean performers would move back here, it would go Jar toward putting Seoul on the international cultural map.

performers and non-performing professionals. When I say non-performing professionals, I refer to mUsicologists, music journalists, critics and educators.

I think that non-performers are as important as performers in promoting balanced development.

To that end, I suggest that it is appropriate for the domestic music education system to make a distinction between the two areas. The music conservatory should be responsible for training performing artists, while the universities can specialize in educating non-performers. In this regard, I believe that the opening of the conservatory will greatly change the overall structure of Korean music educatioiL

KOREAN A: One of the original goals of the conservatory was to pick young musical talents and provide them with an early education. Why didn't you select such children?

Lee: When we conducted an audition last August, we found that there was a wide gap between parents and music educators in the perception of musical talent.

A total of 124 students applied for the audition, but none deserved to be called a musical talent.

In light of this, I am planning to establish a research body to implement a scientific method of evaluation of musical talent and motivation. Korean parents tend to have an extraordinary fervor for their children's education. But because of the absence of a scientific method to test talent objectively, many children are mistaken for "prodigies" and have a

music education forced upon them.

it has not been done in an open manner.

KOREANA: The faculty line-up of the school won admiration because it includes some of the nation's best-known educators and a host of renowned expatriate performers. What do you have to say about the faculty of the school?

Lee: I still believe that my approach was correct. I am sure that none of the faculty members I wanted would have applied voluntarily.

Actually, faculty recruitment was the hardest task related to the school project. The reality was that the teachers I really wanted were not inclined to leave their current positions. However, it was my firm belief that the standards of the faculty should be the best in Korea and I fought to have it my way. I had a very hard time persuading the teachers to join my school.

Lee: By the time the school opened , 21 full-time faculty members and about 40 lecturers were on board, and seven parttime faculty members were recruited.

Among them are Kim Nam-yun (former professor at Seoul National University) and New York-based Pae Ikwhan in violin; Chung Myung-wha in cello; soprano Kim Ymg-mi and Choi KOREANA: As for your future plans to put Hym-su in voice; Lee Kymg-suk (former the school on the international cultural map, Yonsei University professor) and Kang do you have any concrete ideas on how to Chung-mo, who taught at the Peabody achieve this?

Conservatory of Music in Baltimore, in piano; composer Lee Kun-yong (former Lee: Future plans I am currently weighSNU composition professor) and conduc- ing include the establishment of an intor Chung Chi-yong in conducting. In ad- ternational music competition and the dition, violinists Chung Kyung-wha and organization of a professional orchestra Kim Young-uk and conductor Chung comprised of the school's graduates and Myung-whun are to give master classes students. whenever they visit SeouL My point in persuading the overseas- KOREANA: The school admitted a total of based performers to join the school was 98 freshmen in four departments-voice, infor them to spend just a couple of strumental music, composition and conductmonths teaching at the school. Then I be- ing, but that fell short of the school's fixed lieve that foreign students will flock to . enrollment quota of 133. Why did this hapSeoul to be taught by them. pen and how do you evaluate the students?

KOREAN A: The school's high-powered faculty line-up is largely owing to your singlehanded efforts to recruit the best. But your recruiting style has prompted criticism that

Lee: There were more than 700 applicants for the entrance test, but the school's admission principle is to apply absolute rather than comparative evalu53

ation. Therefore, we selected only the students who proved eligible.

I am satisfied with the overall standard of the students, but as I had worried, the widely varying standard by genre was a serious problem. In piano and violin, the average level of competence was very high, but that of the woodwind students fell far behind

KOREANA: What makes the conservatory's curriculum different from that of the average Korean music college? lee: We put top priority on practical studies. Performing prowess on stage is the key to the assessment of a performer and the school's curriculum is totally directed to that end In comparison to the typical curriculum adopted by music colleges here, there have been major cuts in music theory courses and liberal arts courses.

Instead, practical lessons for major subjects have been doubled and a chamber music course is required

The reason why the curriculum can be considered "revolutionary" is the integration of diverse theory courses into one called "Usage of Western Music."

Harmonics and counterpoint are required courses at most music colleges, but they are nothing but dead courses for performers. Our "Usage of Western Music" course teaches theories directly related to performance studies.

KOREANA: I know that one of the biggest problems was securing a proper site as headquarters for the Korean National Institute of Arts. How is that going? lee: The problem was recently solved by reaching an agreement with the Culture and Sports Ministry to use a site at the rear of the Seoul Arts Center.

We are temporarily using the facilities at the Seoul Opera House and the Concert Hall within the Seoul Arts Center as classrooms and offices. But the facilities will become cramped next year, so we will need more space.

The National School of Music is located in the Concert Hall building of the Seoul Arts Center.

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The buildings for the comprehensive arts school and the conservatory will be built on the site behind the Seoul Arts Center.

KOREAN A: Your career covers such diverse positions as scholar, educator, pianist, critic, writer and music administrator. How would you define yourself? lee: If I could choose, I would like to be called an educator. All my past activities related to music can be summed up as an effort to put Korean music back on track.

In a broader sense, for example, criticism is looked upon as educational for both the music community and society in generaL In a nutshell, my view of music is that it cannot exist far removed from society and human beings and all musical activities should contribute to the well-being ofboth. â&#x20AC;˘

ON THE ROAD

w

M GYONG-SAIJAI Kim)oo-young Novelist

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MIGHT AS WELL BE FRANK. Prior to the Japanese occupation of Korea at the end of the Chos6n Period (1392-1910), there was hardly a path on the peninsula wide enough to be called a road by Western standards.

Of course, there were many reasons why our ancestors had to content themselves with narrow paths barely wide enough for two oxcarts to pass. Rugged, wooded mountains cover nearly 70 percent of the Korean peninsula, and the rivers and valleys running through those mountains are as twisted as sheep guts.

Korea simply wasn't blessed with the geography for broad, straight roads, no matter how much was invested in construction.

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Besides, in traditional agrarian society, most people had little need for travel to far-off cities. Theirs was a self-sufficient lifeof isolation. And this didn't change much, even after the introduction of industry such as the rubber shoe factory run by foreign missionaries in P'yongyang during the early part of the twentieth century.

The quality of manufactured goods from the cities differed little from that of local cottage industry goods, so villagers felt no need for overland roads linking their communities to industrial centers.

Paradoxically, Koreans actually feared road-opening because of their history of repeated invasions by brutal Chinese forces from the north and Japanese armies

from the south. As a result, the very word "road" came to have a negative connotation for the Korean people. Hence, the old saying-"First thing we saw when the road went through was a dog."

The unscrupulous King Sejo (r. 14551468), who usurped the Chos6n throne from his eleven year-old nephew Tanjong, laid out a systemic framework for monarchical rule in the Kyongguk Taejon (National Code). Included in the Ky6ngguk Taej6n were regulations governing the width of roads in the capital of Seoul.

Main roads were to be approximately 18 meters in width, middle-sized roads were to be 5 meters across, and small roads, or lanes, were to be approximately 4 meters

wide. There were no main roads in the provinces, but mid-sized and small roads were subject to the same regulations as those in Seoul.

At first glance, these dimensions seem quite generous, even by contemporary Western or Japanese standards. The problem was people's attitude toward public roadways. During the Chos6n Period, it was common practice for the outer walls and eaves of roadside homes and shops to encroach on the street. Household utensils and tools which did not fit in private homes were often left in piles along the roadside, and all sorts of refuse, from human waste to kitchen garbage, was regularly dumped in the street. In fact, some

people even disposed of dead bodies along the road or in open ditches. No wonder the roads couldn't serve their true purpose.

Photographs of Chongno, an 18 meterwide "main road," taken around 1910, reveal a narrow, twisted path with so much stuff piled along the wayside that carts could hardly pass.

¡¡... beCause of their history of repeated invasions ... the very word 'road' came to have a negative connotationfor the Korean people."

Aview of the first gate and author Kimjoo-young.

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Waterways

While overland roads were not particularly efficient, waterways played an important role in Chos6n Period development.

One thing you can be sure of in Korea: where there are mountains, there are bound to be streams. These streams thread through the mountain ranges to join in larger tributaries, and finally rivers. Thus, it is only natural that most of Korea's rural communities are located at the foot of a mountain facing a river or stream. These conditions were perfect for the development of a water transportation network, and ambitious river merchants linked rural communities as they traveled the rivers and streams peddling local agricultural crops and handicrafts.

It was thanks to these river merchants that some of the Chos6n Period's most famous metropolitan markets, such as Map'o, Noryangjin and Songp'a, were founded along the Han River. In fact, this phenomenon was not restricted to Seoul.

Markets formed at ferry crossings throughout the country, and with them came inns providing weary travelers with food, drink, and female companionship. By custom, these inns only charged for food and liquor.

Rooms were provided for free. It was at these riverside markets that the river merchants traded with peddlers who worked the inland. They had nothing against a little bartering, and when they struck a mutually satisfactory bargain, they often bought a round of drinks at the market inn. This custom of treating counterparts to a drink after striking a bargain is still quite common at rural cattle markets around Korea.

The morning after a good-natured transaction between a land-based peddler and a river merchant often found the river man in the arms of a flirtatious whore, paid for with a few coins from his bulging money belt, while the peddler was up early, packing his purchases onto his donkey's back.

Days were short in the cavernous mountain valleys, and the peddler and his donkey had to leave the market by the ferry crossing before the sun rose over the eastern ridge. Once they were on the road, however, the peddler never rushed his donkey. They both knew they had to reach the 58

next market by the time the sun dropped behind the mountains to the west. It didn't matter whether the valleys were enveloped in milky fog or veiled by curtains of icy snow-the peddler always used a calm voice to urge his donkey along the narrow mountain paths. There was no need for whips or scolding. They had shared the joys and burdens of that life for years and years, and the beast knew which path to take, which market they were headed for.

Indeed, the path was so familiar, a lonely clump of wild flowers along the wayside often served as a welcome signpost for the weary travelers.

Another important element in Chos6n Period attitudes toward inland roads was

the Korean people's traditional reverence for nature and belief in the symbiotic relationship among all living things, even the lowliest patch of grass. In traditional society, Koreans much preferred a winding mountain path, even if it meant losing a day, to a direct route which sliced through a mountain range. If a huge zelkova tree stood in the way of a road, the road simply had to go around it. Roads had to find their way around trees, boulders, even patches of wild flowers. Often, roads ended at ferry crossings serviced by one-oared barges, only to be picked up on the other side by a faint trail that climbed into the next valley.

No wonder Korea's land-bound peddlers were poets and the river boatmen singers.

Rugged Terrain

Mungyong Pass, south of Ch'ungju in North Ch'ungch'ong Province, is one of Korea's most dramatic inland thoroughfares. In Korean , the pass is called Mungy6ng-saejae, "Mungyong Birds Pass," because it is said to be so high that only the birds can cross over it. Mt. Chuhol, which the pass crosses, is part of the T'aepaek Range and serves to divide the Kyonggi region, to the north, from the Yongnam region, to the south. It is said there is no mountain on the journey from the southern Yongnam region to Seoul as rugged as Mt. Chuhol. The peak is only 1, 100 meters high, but there is no getting around it.

The second gate.

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This is because the T'aepaek Range stretches stubbornly from the eastern coast to the heart of the Korean peninsula.

There are no valleys cutting through it from north to south. The sight of Mt. Chuhol from the bottom of Mungyong Pass strikes awe in even the most stouthearted traveler.

During the Chos6n Period, Mungyong Pass was the only route linking the Y6ngnam region to the Seoul-Kyonggi region. It may have been daunting, but there was no avoiding it, not for the traveling peddlers or for the young literati heading for the capital to take the state examinations.

These examinations were administered for more than 900 years, from 958 when they 60

were introduced by the Kory6 king, Kwangjong, until1894 during the reign of the Chos6n king, Kojong, so one can imagine how many Y6ngnam scholars made the trip over Mungy6ng Pass on their way to Seoul and back.

It is a 100 Li walk from Mungy6ng in North Kyongsang Province to Koesan in North Ch'ungch'ong Province. It wasn't the distance, however, that intimi~ated travelers. It was the rugged terrain. The only human settlement along the path was P6phi:ingsa Temple, built during the reign of Silla King Munsong in the mid-ninth century and renamed Hyeguksa Temple in the late Kory6 Period(918-1392). However, when it came to crossing that treacherous

pass, famous for its hungry tigers, few people were willing to count on a handful of Buddhist monks living in a secluded mountain temple.

In fact, no one had the nerve to cross the pass on their own, so taverns catering to passing peddlers and the literati heading to and from the state examinations in Seoul began to sprout up at the bottom of the pass. Travelers gathered at their favorite tavern until they had enough people to venture over the pass safely. It could take three or four days to form a party large enough to fend off the vicious beasts of prey that haunted those mountain woods. And even so, when a donkey laden with valuable goods was spooked

The won or inn served government officials byproviding a place to sleep as well asfresh horses. Modern place names still rejlect this traditiontllfunction.

by the growl of a fierce mountain beast, no one dared run into the woods to catch it. Imagine how terrified those poor peddlers must have been when they had to stop their caravans to comfort a nervous donkey.

Welcome Outposts

It wasn't until the Japanese invasion of 1592 that the Chos6n court came to realize the strategic potential of Mungy6ng Pass in the defense of the capital and the Ky6nggi region. In 1708, during the reign of Sukchong, three barrier gates and fortresses were built in the pass to prevent future Japanese aggression. Prior to the construction of these structures, however,

lished in the Kory6 Period, and toward the latter part of the Chos6n Period, it was thrown open to serve ordinary travelers as well as government officials. In fact, there was even a small market place on the site in latter years.

It is hard for us, living in modern society, to imagine the rigidity of the Chos6n system of social stratification. The barriers between the upper class yangban, composed of literati and officials, and petty merchants and peddlers were partic~larly strict, prohibiting even the most casual fraternization at inns along the road. The upper class yangban were not permitted to go to markets because that would require conversation with peddlers who were subject to the same contemptuous treatment as other low-born people, such as slaves, entertainers, boatmen, and prostitutes. Instead, the yangban prepared a list IB> of the items they needed from the market ~ and entrusted it to a servant charged with ~ the task of purchasing the goods. ~ Remnants of this strict system of social e: stratification can still be found in Korean there had been an inn for passing court of- society today; but there is evidence that reficials. This inn was one of many such fa- strictions were eased along the road over cilities, known as won, which served gov- Mungy6ng Pass. There, peddlers and other ernment officials around the country. Not ordinary travelers could be found at the only did the won provide passing officials same inn as government officials of the with a place to sleep, they also supplied yangban rank. Why would such an exthem with fresh horses. The won tradition traordinary exception be allowed? The onis the source of many modern place ly reason I can imagine is a deep sense of names, such as Hongjewon, T'woegyewon, hum.an caring born in the face of the Tarakwon and It'aewon. rugged environment and horrible beasts Urban growth has wiped out all trace of prey on Mungy6ng Pass. of the won in metropolitan areas, but the When a ship is lost upon a violent sea, site of the old won at Mungy6ng Pass of- the sailors are united by their common fers us a glimpse at a long forgotten past. fate. They forget their differences and One sign at the site is worthy of special at- work together for the sake of the entire tention. Apparently, artifacts unearthed crew. No doubt it was much the same in there suggest that the won was first estab- those desolate mountains. + 61

PHOTO ESSAY

IND BURIAL Hwang Tong-gyu

Challenges For Korean Fiction Kwon Young-min Prof~ of Korean literature, Seoul National Uni\mity

Literary Challenges in the 1990s Can the ideologies and values that Korean fiction has pursued so far continue to be relevant in the 1990s? What will be the trend of Korean fiction in the new decade? These questions must be addressed as we examine the new directions of our fiction in the coming years, impossible as it may be to come up with solid answers. The current trend of Korean fiction is not yet clear, and, of course, trying to foresee changes that may occur in the real world is also problematic.

Since the late 1980s, Korean society has been undergoing a major transition. This cannot be considered a passing phenomenon, but rather a sweeping, significant structural change. First of all, political and social democratization has been making real progress. Our society has been pursuing ideological openness. In the economic field, the forceful pursuit of government-led industrialization has been phased out in favor of economic activities guided by economic logic, leading to structural readjustments. In the social and cultural fields, clear tendencies to de-emphasize ideology have emerged Of particular importance is the fact that dissident groups, which used to adhere to confrontational attitudes toward the establishment, are now repositioning themselves as progressive forces opposed to the conservative camp as the nation's democratization makes headway.

And yet, the basic orientation of these epochal changes is still unclear. So far, no one has been able to grasp the significance of these transitional phenomena and come up with a logical explanation.

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No clear ideas have emerged as to how to build a new order on the ruins of collapsed ideological confrontation. All that we have been able to confirm, through the process of democratization of our society since the late 1980s, is that it is possible to change social norms and order through the forces innate in a society; rather than through such extreme means as revolution or war.

As we are finding, the shock waves of these social changes are inevitably relieving Korean fiction of its old obsession with tendentious literary themes. When we assess the prospects for Korean fiction in the 1990s, our attention is drawn to one major development: the decline of ideology. Fiction dealing with Korea's division, a category which had been gaining prominence since the mid-1970s, is conspicuously going out of fashion. However, no new acute issue consciousness has emerged as of yet on the part of Korean fiction writers. Moreover, fiction about the working class, which was a favorite topic during the 1980s, is also showing signs of change.

In other words, the focus of fiction about the working class is shifting from class strife and struggle toward broader humanistic concerns.

Another change pointing to the trend of Korean fiction in the 1990s is an increasing tendency to focus on writing techniques. Some critics suggest that recent Korean fiction is characterized by a shift from realism to modernism and still further to postmodernism. This means that the foremost concern of fiction writers is shifting from what to write about to how to write. Throughout history; fiction

writers have experimented with techniques of writing.

What is new in Korea is the fact that it is mostly the new writers who are extensively experimenting with writing techniques. These pioneers sometimes take stories apart, while at other times they reject. the old concepts of time and sequence of presentation. Moreover, they are more fascinated with powers of imagination than actual experiences. One concrete example is HaIl-chi's Kyongmajang Kanun Kit (The Road to the Racetrack), a postmodern novel. We cannot, however, quickly predict what new literary aesthetics these new writers will be able to establish. All the same, these emerging characteristics of Korean fiction appear to be taking hold The Emergence of New Styles of Fiction Signs of new possibilities in Korean fiction in the 1990s can be found mostly in the works of the emerging generation of writers. These young writers, who began to make their mark during the 1980s, include Ku Hyo-so, Kim Y6ng-hy6n, Kim Hyong-gyong, Pak Sang-u, Shin Kyong-suk, Yi Sun-won, Ham Chong-im, Ch'ae Yongju and Ch'ae Hui-mun. Their novels and short stories often pursue peculiar dual self-awareness from variable perspectives using experimental writing techniques intended to mirror the dizzily changing times. Examples include Cbadongch'a Nun Naiji Motbanda (A Car Cannot Fly) and Nugak ill Ch'ajas6 (In Search of a Pavilion) by Ku Hyo-so, Pya! (The Star) and Uri Ch'ongch'un ui P'urun Ot (The Green Dress of Our Youth) by Kim Yong-

"All that we have been able to confirm ... is that it is possible to change social norms and order through the forces innate in a society, rather than through such extreme means as revolution and war."

hyon, Tora Oji Anniin Shiin iii Wihan Shimya iii Hamming Korasu (The Midnight Humming Chorus for the Poet Who will Not Return) and Shagal iii MaulE Naeriniin Nun (The Snow Falling on Chagall's Village) by Pak Sang-u, Kamy6n Chiugi (Taking Masks Away) and Saeby6k Tu Shi Paradaisii Kape (Paradise Cafe at Two in the Morning) by Ch'a Yong-ju, Hogak Sori (The Sound of a Whistle) by Ch'ae Hui-mum and Tari Wi Es6 (On the Bridge) and Kyoul Kihaeng (Winter Travel) by Ham Chong-im One common characteristic of these

works is a pronounced diversity in themes, marking a clean departure from the past trend of writers of the same generation focusing on similar topics. These themes range from group ideologies to the stream of consciousness of an individual.

The most noteworthy characteristic of their works is the fact that there is no stereotype of the characters they describe.

Since they deal with extreme experiences or emotions, they do not try to present an ideal man or woman. Most characters appearing in their works struggle to escape the realities that mold their lives, thereby

suffering from serious schizophrenia. For example, the stories are full of escapades of the rich tormented by ennui Characters in a novel or short story cannot exist in total isolation from the realities of their society any more than real people can. A writer should express his overall view of the world through the c~aracters he describes in his works-after all, characters are what fiction is all abOut. And yet, those above-mentioned young writers are more concerned with destroying stereotypes than with creating truly interesting characters. Accordingly; they

65

end up parading many superficially-conceived, fragmented characters in a professed attempt to explore various people's inner egos. Sincere personalities who were often featured in past novels and short stories are no longer present in their works; their world of fiction is peopled by weird two-dimensional characters with unpredictable behavior. These warped characters have no consistency in their personalities and seem to act only on the spur of the moment. If there is any meaning in these characters, it is merely a series of their negative reactions to the realities that sway their lives.

The vagueness of these characters is aggravated by the haziness of the social classes to which they belong. This is especially true in the works of Pak Sang-u, Ch'ae Yong-ju and Ham Ch6ng-im. Up until the mid-1980s, fictional characters usually had relatively keen class consciousness; it was thought that class consciousness was the key to realistic works of fiction that stress a comprehensive view of the relationships between individuals and society.

However, characters recently created by young fiction writers do not show any clear sign of the social strata to which they belong;there is only vague tension between the characters and society. One cannot be sure what the guiding principles for their lives are or what social class they are from. Even the concept of family as the primary social unit that influences the life of an individual to varying degrees has no binding effect at all on them. They are thus liberated from blood ties and transcend the class structure of society.

They do not maintain ties to any social group, and they do not get along with their peers or colleagues. Nor do they want to. They seem to be mere loners who wander about as they please.

On the contrary; however, it does not seem that they behave with a will of their own. Most of them are inactive most of the time and only act impulsively from time to time according to what happens to cross their minds, making it difficult to un66

derstand why they act the way they do.

Their existence does not show any clear sequence of time and frequently only extends spatially under the influence of circumstances.

The appearance of such characters leads one to question the underlying techniques of fiction writing. These writers totally reject the concept of cause-and-effect in human behavior, as well as the traditional principles for structuring works of fiction. They do not believe that a work of fiction should have a plot that comes to

a finale; a story is broken up to explore incessant changes in circumstances and their inner workings. Random fantasies about realities are depicted as they arise, making episodes fragmentary and actions transcend continuity. A sort of linguistic collage is formed by interweaving fragmentary dialogues, partial scenes, unbridled behavior and repeated thoughts. It is believed that such writing techniques have been devised to reveal the multiple layers, variability and arbitrary discontinuity of the empirical world.

These young writers also show diverse concepts of the language and style of

writing, sometimes disregarding the established norms of prosaic fiction writing.

Many say their language has become rough, while others complain their writing is ungrammatical and unpolished. Such tendencies, however, do not stem from any lack of a sense of style but are intended to present a challenge to the traditional style. The dynamism of their language and style combines with the ordinary everyday language and diction of the readers to create a new impact.

The language of these young writers is visual. It is intended to be seen, rather than read. Emphasis is on the pace, rather than the rhythm, of writing. Likewise, each sentence is varied according to the logic of circumstances, rather than the logic of usage. Their writing departs from traditional sentence patterns and sets new ones. For instance, Ham Chong-im uses few designative words that identify objects; he only seeks to mirror the unique images of objects that are sensuously caught. Although we cannot yet judge what significance such linguistic variations and styles of writing will achieve, there is no denying that they pose a major challenge to the existing aesthetics of fiction based on traditional methods.

Conclusion: The Possibilities of Postmodern Fiction Changes anticipated for the 1990s are heralded by the recent and rapid metamorphosis of the ideologies and values that had reigned over our society for the past several decades. The political and social impact of the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the East European bloc has combined with uncertainty over issues between South and North Korea to greatly influence our overall social environment.

This new-found ideological openness has caused the long-standing structure of internal tension in our society to crumble, leading to an imbalance in our consciousness and confusion in our values. Social cacophony is arising as our society advances into the information age, at the same time

that our culture and traditions continue to undergo upheavals due to industrialization. This is narrowing the range of common interests between individuals and scr ciety at large, impeding smooth formation of empirical consensus.

Our present social conditions are characterized by the lack of a solid framework for a new society; coupled with the lack of a single set of values binding the society.

It has become difficult to grasp the fundamental problems of life against this background of social strife, and it is unclear how the interrelationships between individuals and society are going to evolve. Accordingly; it is not easy to determine how to represent them through the medium of fiction. If there is a way for fiction to survive in this period of uncertainty; this writer thinks that it will be by discarding ideological fantasies. If the current situation makes it difficult for the lives of individuals and problems innate in them to become a concrete common concern of the Korean public, fiction writers should progressively seek a credible new vision of mental and spiritual values.

It is true that the real lives of people and their historical significance that Korean fiction has been tirelessly trying to reflect are interrelated with the inner format that fiction has maintained as a genre of literature. However, the narrative elements of Korean fiction have begun to disintegrate even before fiction writers become able to grasp the characteristics of our current social convulsions.

Past novels and short stories have questioned how people should live. Nowadays, however, fiction writers are only dismayed by the collapse of once-enshrined ideolcr gies even before they find logical answers to basic questions. Instead, they are merely trying to find a new format of fiction that can answer the question of how peer ple live. As they attempt, in various ways, to find meaning in the increasingly diverse empirical realities, traditional human stereotypes are breaking down. At the same time, the grammar of their fiction is

disintegrating.

The current situation is in such a flux that it cannot support any all-inclusive ideology. Still, the framework of fiction as the literary genre for dealing with real lives is preserved to some extent, owing to the continuing validity of the classic dictum that language reflects concrete things and novels and short stories imitate reality.

However, as language loses its absolute authority; the absolute dichotomy between reality and falsehood is also disappearing.

This is ushering in a new era that demonstrates how reality itself is composed linguistically; an era Western historians of civilization call the "age of postmodernism."

In the world of Korean fiction as well, Ky6ngmajang Kanun Kil has provoked continuing controversy over postmodernism.

Is postmodernism a peculiar literary trend? Or is it a mutational Western social phenomenon? Does postmodernism try to establish norms needed to judge the values of today's cultural phenomena? Or is postmodernism merely a new category of writing technique? Such questions are basic to any discussion of postmodernism.

Ihab Hassan, the pioneer of postmodernist theory, says that postmodernism has become a common word even before it gains authority as a literary concept and even before the term is clearly defined.

Hence, he says, the time has come to clearly analyze it. Although Hassan emphasizes postmodernism as a perspective for understanding the current era, postmodernism is still confined to Western society.

Some consider the concept too nebulous to be useful in understanding the global cultural phenomena now facing mankind, which has prompted the theory to become a subject of heated controversy in the Korean literary community.

Through all ages, it has hardly been possible for any literary format to acquire universality. Culture in any age maintains its own system but evolves over time. By the same token, postmodernism operates within the current cultural system from

which it has been conceived, and therefore has yet to be widely recognized as a new paradigm. Still, postmodernism poses a challenge to present-day cultural phenomena and foreshadows something new to come.

The controversy over postmodernism in fiction that is raging in the Korean literary community stems from the realization that Korea is undergoing a major transition. Now that Korean works of fiction have begun to mirror the on-going changes in Korean society, it is necessary to conceptually define the characteristics of this transition, and postmodernism is one such attempt. Accordingly, the current debate in Korea over the concept of postmodernism and its poetic potential should not degenerate into counterproductive polemics. Instead, the possibilities of postmodernism should be considered in conjunction with the exploration of the directions along which Korean fiction should evolve, in keeping with the realization that the value of ideologies per se is evaporating.

It is not easy to determine in advance whether new works of fiction appearing in the 1990s can be fully explained by the concept of postmodernism, or whether the trend of the new works is itself a sort of postmodernism. In light of the confusion caused by just such uncertainties, I think the following argument by Linder Hunchun gives food for thought to our literary community: "I understand postmodernism as a literary trend or activity that continues to evolve. In this context, I think we need poetics more urgently than the giving of a fixed definition to postmodernism. By per etics, in this regard I mean an open and continuously changing theoretical struct\.J.re that offers the methods for understanding and criticizing our culture. This is not the poetics frequently mentioned by structuralism. It is a poetics that excels studies of cultural expressions in words to explore literary practices and theories."+

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Ryu Choon-soo: FOR PRIZE-WINNING ARCHITECT, THE FUTURE IS NOW R. Richard Williams

LL of the outstanding architects that I have known and worked with during my 30 years in that profession have shared one very strong characteristic: They have all been excellent artists in their own right.

Ryu Choon-soo is no exception. In conversation he is exuberant to say the least, but it is when he seizes any available illustration medium that the light begins to shine. Pen, pencil, brush, felt tip marker - the instrument makes no difference. The format may be a scrap of

A

RyuChoon~

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tracing paper, the back of an envelope or any drawing surface at hand, and his sketches are spontaneous, clear and frankly brilliant.

His quick, fluid illustrations develop at a furious pace, but there is no anger involved- only the creative energy.of the moment that is, in a word, impressive.

My personal opinion is that his more studied watercolors are among the best I have ever seen. Mood and ambience are beautifully portrayed in landscapes, seascapes, portraits and traditional architectural themes from Korea and a num-

ber of other countries.

I have digressed into the personal artistic abilities of Ryu as an introduction to the man. The major purpose of this article is, of course, to examine his professional accomplishments and works in progress, but since the personality steers the artist in so many ways, I have taken this liberty.

Ryu Choon-soo, at age 48, is¡getting ready to build one of Asia's tallest bui1dings in Haikou, China. It will be 86 stories high.

Where does a man like this develop

Tireforce behind Beyond Space¡ Group, Ryu luls been commissioned to design one ofAsias tallest buildings.

the skill and experience for such undertakings at such a relatively early point in his career, and from where does the drive for such undertakings come?

Ryu is currently chairman of Beyond Space â&#x20AC;˘ Group, whose headquarters are housed in an 8-story building in Bongch'6n-dong in southwestern Seoul.

The rather quiet-looking, gray structure, designed and owned by Beyond Space â&#x20AC;˘ Group, is the nerve center for the three departments of the organization.

Born November 18, 1946, in Ky6ngsangbukdo Province, he graduated from Andong Normal Middle School in 1961 and Taegu High School in 1964. Ryu readily admits to having determined his future career in fine arts while in high school, but although his early artistic works won prizes and acclaim, he was not accepted in fine arts at the university level. This rejection was a crushing blow to the young artist who had so totally focused his future on the fine arts field.

Ryu entered a Buddhist temple for two years to contemplate the direction of his future in Korean architecture. He earned an architectural degree from Hanyang University in 1970 and later secured a masters degree in landscape architecture with a specialization in urban planning and design from Seoul National University in 1985.

Those are the academic credentials of the man. Most architects agree that school prepares you for the "real world" of architectural business, but your true progress and ability are formed by those with whom you work.

After working with General

Architects Associates and Chonghap Architects Associates, Ryu encountered Professor Kim Swoo-geun and his organization Space Group of Korea in 1974 and immediately dedicated himself to this architectural team until Professor Kim's tragic death in 1986.

The relationship initially established as one of master and disciple gradually evolved into a partnership. Both men were open to a good idea, no matter what its source, and the results proved to be outstanding. In 1988, the Olympic Gymnastics Hall they designed received the prestigious Quartenario Gold Medal awarded for technology in architecture.

This project was the final collaboration

by Ryu and Kim, and in accepting the award, Ryu acknowledged his debt to his mentor and the importance of their relationship.

The miracle of the rebuilding of Korea after 1953 can only be fully appreciated by first-hand experience or careful study of the phenomenon. The population of Seoul is now approaching 12 million who live in a modern and international city. Forty years ago, there was nothing left of this city, and yet the Korean spirit and work ethic have accomplished this monumental task of rebuilding and show little indication of slowing down. This extensive rebuilding, in such a short period of time resulted in a city with many look-alike buildings.

So why; in this environment of similarity; do we find Ryu receiving one of the world's most important architectural awards for innovation?

The Olympic Gymnastics Hall is the

world's first erected self-supporting fabric-covered cable dome. Since architecture is a team sport, let's take a look at who was on the team. Kim Swoo-geun, Ryu and David Geiger from the United States led the team to the project's conclusion.

I have been in the architecture business for several decades and, quite frankly; wonder how anything gets built.

Codes, restrictions, egos, quality control and, of course, money are only a few of the hurdles that must be overcome on the way to completing even the smallest building. And yet, in Seoul, we find a very suitable, economically reasonable and spectacularly innovative major building designed through international collaboration and built on a very demanding schedule and inflexible deadline.

The answer to how this and Ryu's other proj~cts have been accomplished is that professionals of proven ability got together with open minds, optimism and determination to succeed and stuck with that commitment. There was none of the usual "my idea versus your idea."

Only our idea, and how to achieve it.

In my encouters with Ryu, I have discovered that one of his strongest characteristics, along with his raw talent and energy; is his ability to listen - to listen to the most subtle content of any discussion. and choose the best direction in which to proceed.

Ryu is a devout Buddhist. Buddha taught us that suffering is inherent in life, and in order to liberate oneself from that suffering we must achieve mental and 69

moral self-purification.

In his personal and professional conduct, Ryu accepts what is - and through the clarity of his thought processes and artistic ability - finds the truth for himself as he goes.

And where is he going? Beyond Space • Group is currently working on many types of domestic projects, including subway stations, hotels, large private homes, office buildings, condominiums, gymnasiums and public park designs in Taejon, Cheju Island and numerous locations in Seoul.

In Haikou, Hainan Province of China, the tallest building in Asia will be constructed, and Beyond Space • Group is under contract to finalize the design and construction documents. The project was selected from high-powered proposals from China, Japan, the United States and Korea. The winning proposition contains an 86-story office hotel tower, a 68-story apartment'tower and a base

ForRyu, the future is now, and Korea can take great pride in this man's contribution to the world in international architecture.

Adrawing by Architect Ryu

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structure with six revels above ground and five below. The total building area is a modest 402,000 square meters.

The project is gigantic in its scope and yet the concept for it was developed by Ryu from a few poetic brush strokes which still clearly express his innermost feelings regarding the best solution to the client's needs. In addition, the same Chinese client has commissioned Ryu's organization to produce a master plan for 8 square kilometers of land located about 50 kilometers southwest of Haikou.

The project includes the following elements: a 36-hole championship golf course and club house; a 300-room fivestar hotel; 2020 single family housing units (50% luxury units); a Formula 1 race track; an airport for single and twin engine propeller aircraft; a 44,000 capacity sports stadium; a 15,000 capacity sports arena; a light to medium industrial district; a shopping and service center;

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and a monumental gateway to a public plaza (180 X900 meters).

In addition, Beyond Space • Group has recently submitted design proposals for three major projects to the Huiyang county government in China. Sun City, one of the biggest and most advanced satellite town projects, is now being undertaken by the Huiyang government, within one of the fast-developing economic zones in the Pearl River estuaries along the coast of Guangdong Province.

The project has recently been opened to foreign investment.

A vast 10 square-kilometer expanse of flat land stretches to the horizon from the downstream area of Danshui River, six kilometers to the north of Huizhou in Guangdong. On this land of abundant resources, the Huiyang county government will build a fully-integrated new town for 100,000 residents that combines high-tech industries, business ventures and deluxe housing complexes.

Ryu has submitted designs for a 12story bank and a 12-story hotel which will form the gateway to the city. He will also design a 170,000 square meter industrial park. Chances are good that Ryu's dedicated and production-oriented team will be involved in Sun City for quite some time.

Ryu modestly admits that he does not know who he is, but it is my impression that he is not trying to find an answer to that question. He works diligently and joyfully on whatever task is at hand, and appreciates the rich experiences of his life without worrying about the past or future. For Ryu, the future is now, and Korea can take great pride in this man's contribution to the world in international architecture.

The author, R. Richard Williams first came to Korea in january 1988, as the design and construction production mana{f!T' for the Lotte World theme J.Xlrk projn His profe§ional experience includes?/) years of architectural design and city planning He /xis receiv«l numerous design awards.

Beyond Space · Group'sHaikou, Hainan Province China, project 71

KOREAN DESIGNERS ON THE MOVE Kim Young-joo Managing Editor, Asiana In-Flight Magazine

NLY A DECADE AGO, the customs which typify the Korean case of other fields of culture, the potenword "design" conjured up an identity; traditional Korean objects, which tial and endless possibility of the Korean image of something unseemly; Koreans might look upon as trite or olddesign field is too precious to be limited unfamiliar, feminine and ex- fashioned, appeared to the designers as to such a simple method of introducing tremely specific in the minds of new inspirations for design.

Korea and the Korean identity. most Koreans. In the 1980s, however, deThe idea of a purely "Korean" design To this end, some Korean designers are signing came of age. Thousands of dehas become a fixture on the Korean detrying a new approach for presenting signers suddenly emerged from design sign landscape, and perhaps the adoption Korean design on the international stage. colleges and schools. Lured by the design of Korean traditional motifs was the A design company named 212 Korea Inc. boom, they were brimming with excitefastest and most appropriate means for is a good example. The company is startment and expectation. the Korean design community to make its ing a new fashion trend in industrial deThe importance of design, which had late entrance into the thick-walled world sign. In addition to its youthful work previously been considered a mere skill force-the average age of employees is market. But it is uncertain how long derather than fine art, was about thirty-its business recognized throughout sostyle is radically different ciety in new designs for from that of other cusgoods, clothing, wrapping, tom design companies whose members work advertisement and editing.

While the field had previtogether in a studio-style ous! y struggled to conoffice. The distinction lies vince government and in 212 Korea Inc.'s busibusiness of the necessity ness orientation. of new designs, this wall Company president of resistance has gradually and designer Eun crumbled. However, inByoung-soo earned his creasing public recogniM.A. in industrial design tion and the presence of at the Pratt Institute in 2U Korea Inc.'s suggestion produced acomplete redesign of Expo's electric car. more designers are no New York, but he is now guarantee of an easy solution to the qualisigns featuring Korean images will remain more heavily involved in selling design tative progress of design itself or to the in- competitive, and even less certain how than in design itself. After founding 212 ternational competitiveness of Korean demuch foreign currency these designs can Korea Inc. in February 1989, with neither sign. earn for the country. family nor business connections, Eun's first From the mid-80s through the Seoul Of course, Koreans' sentimental attachmove was to spend two million won on a Olympics in 1988, the Korean design comment to Korean images cannot be public relations brochure. Firmly conmunity dedicated itself to the production ignored. But there is a danger that future vinced that "business is needed in design," of so-called "Korean-style designs," which Korean design might regress into Korean he believed that it was time for Korean led the breakthrough into the world martradition and national sentiment if Korean design to advance onto the world stage. ket. "Korean-style designs" signify designs motifs are the only means used to distinEun invested a great deal of time and encreated from Korean images such as tradiguish their work as unique on the comergy to get prospective clients in Korea to tional Korean objects, culture, arts and petitive international market. For, as in the understand his philosophy of design. For 72

For example, a visit to the organization committee of the Taejon International Exposition succeeded in swaying the opinion of the committee members, who had planned to build an electric car using the outer hull of a conventional car while merely substituting parts for electric operation. Eun suggested a totally re-designed shape, and 212 Korea Inc. later delivered a very fashionable car.

Eun was also involved in a project to design a kimch'i jar for Hanil Stainless Steel Company. He saw little reason for the new jar to resemble the traditional, round kimch'i jar, though kimch'i is certainly traditional Korean food. Eun emphasized that if the design of the kimch'i jar is faithful to the characteristics of kimch'i - its peculiar method of preservation and usage-then the design, whether modern and Western or not, is certainly "Korean" . Eun's cream-colored, square kimch'i jar was a hit, and with its success 212 Korea Inc. attained public recognition.

This venture coaxed the head of the Hanil Company, who had insisted on a round kimch'i jar, away from old ideas.

Eun was far from idle in preparing for the move onto the international scene .

Establishing a branch of 212 Korea Inc. in New York to monitor world trends in design, he hired employees well versed in Western culture and foreign languages. As a result, Eun was invited to present designs to a competition hosted by Motorola, an American communications company. Perhaps because of his extensive know-how and keen survival instincts, Eun won the competition, getting the better of other design companies from Japan and Hong Kong.

OR has Korean fashion design been left behind. Lee Shin-woo, a top Korean fashion designer, was the first Korean to participate in the Paris Pret-a-Porter Collections, which were held March 12 this year. Since she had already participated in the Tokyo Collections four

N

Lee Shin-woo and her creations...

times, this old hand went to the Paris Collections full of confidence.

Actually, fashion design in Korea, compared to other design fields, has developed rapidly in a very short time. This speedy progress has meant that designers have been confronted with and have successfully overcome a number of hurdles.

Most Korean top fashion designers, emerging around the time of the Seoul Olympics, have focused on expressing traditional Korean silhouettes, colors and 73

ditional Korean silhouettes, colors and motifs. In order to produce original and creative work, they had to universalize the traditional Korean motifs and esprit, while catering to the sensibilities of the wider public.

In this context, Lee played a pivotal role in the Korean fashion design community with her very Korean designs. Until the '80s, she designed a version of the banbok, the traditional Korean dress, which assimilated modern styles. By using traditional Korean cloth and dyeing techniques in her creations, she became known as the designer who best expresses the Korean image. But while she was preparing for this year's Paris Collection, her attitude toward design changed.

Relying on the same basic principles, she turned her attention to creating a more practical and cosmopolitan feeling in her designs.

The point underlined in Lee's designs in the Collections was that creative Korean designs need not clash with international sensibilities. With practicality and economical usage in mind, Lee designed garments which were meant to be combined. Although Lee expresses something uniquely Korean, her subtle lines and colors yield works which speak to nonKorean observers. It may be too early to think that Lee's designs gained worldwide recognition, but it is certain that she contributed a possible solution to the longstanding quandary of the universalization of Korean design.

N ANOTHER FIELD of design, graphics, we see the same ardent desire.

Ahn Graphics Inc. has published an eight volume series entitled "Korean Motifs" since 1986. In the series, Korean traditional objects are presented in a manner harmonious with international sensibilities. Through systematic research and high technology; Ahn Graphics Inc.

From the subtle line of Korean fashion to a series of books on Korean motifs, awareness of design is spreading thoughout Korean society.

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simplified and universalized the motifs.

The series is displayed in an annual book fair held in Frankfurt, Germany; and each time the series presents new motifs.

If Korean traditional motifs were introduced to foreigners unchanged, there would be little reason for foreigners to buy them. But the "Korean Motifs" series faithfully presents the Korean themes and subject matter into designs which are extremely non-Korean. Hence, it provides motifs which can be applied to practical use by designers and specialists the world over.

In 1988, a Japanese graphics company published three thousand copies of the first and second series of "Korean Motifs" in Japanese, which were also popular with dealers from the United States and Europe. In 1990, Ahn Graphics Inc. gave exclusive rights to the series to the Swiss publication company; Rotovision, which publishes three hundred copies of each series every year. The number of copies may not be substantial, but given the technical and special characteristics of the books, it is not inconsiderable, either.

Moreover, this event stands as the first and so far the only time that a Korean design company has signed a formal contract with a foreign publication company for the export of Korean graphic designs and Korean publications. ¡ Though a latecomer to the international scene, Korean design has infinite possibilities. The Korean design community ensures that university students of design train under teachers of broad vision.

Designers are also trying hard to free themselves from falling prey to the previous "a frog in a well" outlook, blind to developments in the international arena.

From now on, their task must be to harmoniously incorporate unique Korean sensibilities in works which are also meaningful internationally. +

75

currents

Korean Dancers:

Graceful Exports to the World¡s Stages

By Kim Young-tae Dance Critic

HE NUMBER of Korean dancers active overseas may be smaller than that of Japan, but in talent and reputation we do not fall behind. In Japanese dance circles, Yoko Morishita, who is still active and currently teaching in her homeland, is said to be the very cause behind the stir created by ballet in Japan in the '70s. Similarly, Japanese-born Seiji Ozawa is very active in the music world as a conductor.

The year 1993 will be one to remember for the Korean dance community.

Kang Su-jin, who has been active as a soloist (next in line to principal dancer) in the Stuttgart Ballet, was chosen January ?9 to play the lead role in a full-length version of "Romeo and Juliet." The Stuttgart Ballet, which is counted among the world's top six along with the Royal Ballet of London, the New York City Ballet and the Kirov of Russia, boasts artistic director Marcia Haydee, who once dominated the European dance stage.

In 1991 when I saw Stuttgart's performance of "Sleeping Beauty," Kang was the first of three soloists. Kang is now in her mid-20s but she was a student at Sunwha Arts High School when she passed the audition for the Monaco Royal Ballet Academy while the renowned ballet instructor, Marika Besobra Soba, was visiting Seoul.

Sunwha Arts School ballet instructor, Adrien Dellras, has fostered many talents during his 12 years in Korea, laying a solid foundation for early developments in the country's ballet education. Many of his top students studied overseas at such institutes as the London Royal Ballet and the

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Monaco Royal Ballet Academy. In addition to Kang Su-jin, his students include Moon Hoon-sook, Kim In-hee, Choi Minhwa, Lee In-kyung and Huh Yong-soon.

One of the male dancers trained by Dellras, Park Jae-geun, is now studying at the Vaga:l\Wa Academy in Russia.

While at the Monaco Royal Ballet Academy, Kang found favor with Soba.

Among the talented students from around the world, Kang stood out in terms of both talent and appearance. In 1985, she became the youngest dancer and the first Asian ever to win first prize at the La usa nne In tern a tiona! Ballet Concours. On the heels of this success, she passed the audition for the Stuttgart Ballet In 1989, Kang performed in "Onegin" in Hong Kong. Last year, the "Year of Dance" in Korea, Kang performed in the fall National Dance Festival with Italianborn Ivan Cavallari in "Romeo and Juliet."

She also danced in "Clouds" choreographed by Jiri Kyllan.

Backed by favorable criticism for her lead role with the Stuttgart Ballet in January, Kang was chosen to play the lead in "Sleeping Beauty" later this year.

With First Prize in the Asia Pacific Ballet Concours under her belt, the new head of the National Ballet Kim Hye-shik headed to London to study at the Royal Ballet Academy back in 1967. Kim was a member of the Zurich Ballet of Switzerland and has also been principal dancer in the Montreal Ballet of Canada.

Among Koreans, she is a pioneer of overseas dance studies.

After giving up dancing, Kim served as choreographer and director of the "Fig Garden Dance Academy" in California before taking her present post with the National Ballet in January this year. In Kim's footsteps, Huh Yong-soon, originally from Sunwha Arts School, is now a soloist with the Zurich Ballet It will not be long before Huh makes her debut as principal dancer.

New; vice-head of the Universal Ballet Moon Hoon-sook, passed the audition for the Royal Ballet of London, which was touring Korea while she was attending Sunwha Arts Junior High School. Choi Min-wha, a member of the Universal Ballet, and Ahn Eun-sook also passed the audition at that time.

Afterwards, Moon studied under Soba at the Monaco Royal Ballet Academy and went on to become a soloist with the Washi!'lgton Ballet in America. Since the Universal Ballet was established in 1984, Moon has gained a solid reputation for herself as a principal dancer. In 1989, at the invitation of the Kirov Ballet, she appeared in "Giselle" with world-renowned Russian dancer Andris Liepa, marking an important event in our nation's ballet history. After "Giselle," Moon was again invited to perform in "Don Quixote" and in August this year will appear in the principal role of Odette Odile in "Swan Lake" choreographed by Oleg Vinogradov Moon Hoon-sook and Kang Su-jin are considered to be Korea's rising stars on the international stage of the '90s.

Among the male dancers, Yu Young-ha, a student of Hanyang University profes-

Korean dancers, both male and female, in fields as diverse as classical ballet and contemporary dance, are making their mark abroad.

a student of Hanyang University professor Kim Bok-hee, went to the United States in 1983 and joined the Martha Graham Dance Co. 'rn 1988, Yu returned to Korea with the company and played the lead role in "Messenger in the Maze."

With Terese Capucile, he boldly executed a work of high intensity.

James Jun, who was at one time with the 20th Century Ballet Co. led by Maurice Bejart in New York, is now a soloist in the Universal Ballet Usually cast in strong character roles, he appeared in "La Traviata" as the father of Armand, a role which highlighted his individuality.

In the same year,Jun also appeared in the principal role of "Pucinella." He showed off his strength in Chun Heung-cho's "Marriage Under the Table" based on the work of Japanese writer Ikeda Masao and last year gave a performance with his wife Kim In-hee at Ho-Am Art Hall.

Some prominent dancers in their 30s based in New York are Kim Young-sun, head of the White Wave Rising Dance Co, Kim Young-soon, Lee Sang-man, Kim Sunhee and in modern dance Park Il-kyu and Cho Kyu-nam. Lee has his own dance troupe, while actor-turned-dancer Cho is based at the La Mama Theater in New York and has toured Europe with his work ''Panama" Nam Jong-ho, currently a professor at Kyungsung University and choreographer of lyric and playful works, studied in France and was active in the Jan Gordon Modern Dance Co. from 1980 to 1981. In 1992, Nam choreographed "Conversation," which was presented at Aliena Hall in

KimBok¡hee 77

Japan. Her younger brother Nam Yongho is currently with a provincial ballet troupe in France.

Last year when the St. Petersburg Ballet performed in Korea, Paek Young-tae (formerly of the National Ballet) choreographed "Romeo and Juliet" and showed off skills he had acquired during his three years of study abroad. Paek is the only Asian in the famous 50-member modern dance troupe. While in Seoul, the St. Petersburg Ballet performed Dostoyevski's "The Idiot" in 1991. In 1992, Paek acted as guest choreographer on two works for the National Ballet, "Requiem" and "Figaro.

Park Jae-geun is another dancer currently studying overseas. Kim Sun-hee has gained her diploma and is currently working in Brussels, and former National Ballet Member Min Byung-su is working in St Petersburg.

Hong Shin-ja is well known as a pioneer in avant-garde dance. She moved to the United States in 1966 and headed the Laughing Stones Dance Co. until the late '70s. She then went to India and immersed herself in Zen Buddhism and meditation. The unique world of Hong Shin-ja is a fusion of meditation and dance.

Last year, however, once again leading the Laughing Stones, she returned to ¡Korea to perform such works from the '70s as "Spiral Stairway" with David Simmons (electronic music) and Jason Hwang (violin) as well as "Doors" with Korea's Samul-Nori and Hwang Byung-ki's composition "The Maze of the Kayagum and Human Nature." Audiences first met with the work of Hong in 1973 with ')aerye" (Memorial Rites). Hong has said she may settle down again in Korea, but has not made any firm plans yet Before the Iron Curtain fell, Kim Sunhee was the first foreign student to graduate from the Vaganova Ballet Academy in Russia. During her two years there, she received private guidance from Valentina 78

Vasilev and graduated from the ballet instructor's course.

Ewha graduate Yu Jong-ok came into the spotlight for her choreography of "Tar Babies" for the Year of Dance in 1992. On a black and white stage, male-female relations were expressed in none too subtle movements. Theatrical elements, fast movements and variations demonstrated the imaginative power and originality of Yu's ideas in an exceptional work of unconventional distribution of body energy.

From 1972 to 1984, Yu was a member of the Alvin Ailey Dance Co. in America.

In 1985, she moved to the European stage and danced with the Wuppertal Dance Co. in KO!n, Germany where Pina Bausch

Hong Shin-ja

is artistic director. The troupe has visited Korea and performed such works as "Wedding Anniversary."

Rather than emphasizing technical skill, Yu has earned affection for works that portray everyday life. Experienced on the stages of both Europe and America, she has found that the Europeans attach greater weight to the portrayal of people's lives.

In the early '80s, Kim Hyun-ok went to France to study modern dance and aesthetics. In 1987, she presented "Hidden Memory" at La Mama Theater in New York, and opened up a new field in a 1992 Seoul performance of "Video Dance." Lee Jong-hee is another dancer experimenting

video dance. She has been doing so since her return to Korea from New York in 1980 and has held over nine performances in her "Exorcism Series."

Dancer-turned-dance critic Moon Aeryong is at the forefront of specialization in this field, having studied in Paris and finished a Ph.D. Others in the process of gaining their doctorate degrees include Han Hye-ri and Ewha graduate In Myungju.

In 1992, Hong Seung-y6p auditioned for the Birgit Cullberg Ballet in Sweden, dancing a solo from Kim Young-tae's "Faraway Tomb." The spotlight fell on Hong, leading the newspaper Tagens Nyheter to comment, "Hong made even simple movements shine with magic " Despite the raving reviews, however, he was not asked to join the troupe. Hong has appeared in works choreographed by Cullberg and Marin Skorg with the prospect of joining the troupe this year.

Choi Tae-ji, principal dancer in the National Ballet since 1987, originally studied at the Kaitani Ballet School in Japan.

From there he went on to the Franchetti Ballet School in France and then the Joffrey Ballet School in America. An eminent dancer, Choi is expected to be invited to perform with the Kirov this year following in the footsteps of Moon Hoonsook.

In terms of cultural exchange, the Seoul City Ballet toured France in 1992 giving 19 performances. The Kim Bokhee Dance Co. has set up exchanges with Mexico and held a performance in Tokyo in January this year. In June, the Japanese came to Seoul for a Korea-Japan dance festival.

Young artists who won prizes in the Year of Dance in 1992 include Park Haejun and Yook Mi-young for "Forbidden Play" and Chang Ae-sook for "Perfume."

Both these works have debuted on the New York stage and Sohn In-young, who is currently studying there, has appeared in such works as "Exorcism." +

SEOUL ARTS CENTER: ASIA'S BIGGEST ARTS COMPLEX LOOKS FOR LARGER CROWDS, MORE FUNDS Choi Sung-ja Assistant editor, Hankook Ilbo

ULTURE is the reflection of an age. Industrial and technological development bring changes to all sectors of society; but it is only when this material advancement is accompanied by the conscious fostering of the arts that a healthy and balanced culture can emerge.

Artistic development, in turn, does not occur in a vacuum, but requires the support of cultural facilities, among other things. With this in mind, we have recently completed an outstanding multidisciplinary arts complex, the Seoul Arts

Center. Headed by Kim Sang-shik, this facility will be the flagship leading the arts and culture of Korea into the 21st century.

The Seoul Arts Center is the biggest arts complex of its kind in Asia. The biggest does not necessarily mean the best, but such a grand cultural facility naturally inspires us to aim for the highest artistic standards. Furthermore, the National Institute of the Arts has now set sail with the nation's first music conservatory; which is currently housed in the Opera House and Concert Hall facilities

at the Seoul Arts Center. With the opening of the school March 8 this year, the Seoul Arts Center can truly be called the heart of Korean arts and culture.

Located at the foot of Mt. Woomy6n in S6ch'o-dong, southern Seoul, it took two years to plan and eight years to build the center, ten years altogether to complete. With five special purpose buildings and four open-air spaces o~cu­ pying a vast site of 71,000 pyong (one pyong equals 3.3 square meters), total floor space amounts to 36,000 pyong.

These fine facilities ensure that from

Seoul Arts Center 79

Seoul Opera House

now on, the Seoul Arts Center will play an important role as the center of Korea's arts creation, education, promotion and international exchange.

Financial support for such a massive architectural work came from the Korea Broadcasting Advertising Corporation's public interest funds. Carried out by the Korean Culture and Arts Foundation, the project cost a total of 150 billion won.

The Seoul Concert Hall and Seoul Calligraphy Hall were the first to open in February 1988. In October 1990, the Hangaram Art Gallery and Seoul Arts Library were completed and finally, on February 15 this year the Seoul Opera House opened its doors. In terms of facilities and scale, the Seoul Arts Center ranks with the world's best, including the Lincoln Art Center in the United States, the Barbican in England and the Pompidou Center in France.

Following is a brief explanation of the sizes of the facilities and special features of each theater.

The Seoul Opera House, a cylindrical 80

building resembling a traditional Korean hat, has a total floor space of 13,200 pyong, including one floor below ground and six floors above. Boasting state-ofthe-art equipment and accoustics, it is Asia's only theater built exclusively for opera. The building contains three separate theaters: the Opera Theater, the Towol Theater for drama and the Chayou Theater for experimental productions.

Equipped with a rotating orchestra pit, the Opera Theater can seat guests on the ground floor and three balcony floors. Apart from opera, other performing arts such as ballet, modern dance and musicals can be accomodated. The Towol Theater was designed mainly for drama, dance and musicals, but thanks to its orchestra pit, small-scale operas can also be staged. The Chayou Theater's stage and seating arrangements are very flexible, enabling it to accomodate the needs of any kind of performance.

As the nation's largest facility of its type, the 2,600-seat Concert Hall, which

opened in 1988, is a popular venue for various musical events, including symphony orchestras, singing ensembles and large-scale concerts. The fan-shaped stage is conducive to fostering unity between the performers and the audience, but for a more intimate setting, there is also a smaller 400-seat recital hall for debut musie<ll performances and solo recitals.

The Seoul Calligraphy Hall is the only one of its kind in the world. With 12 rooms capable of hosting a wide range of exhibitions, the hall plays a central role in the nation's calligraphy circles.

Space-efficient Hangaram Art Gallery is characterized by the harmonious link between its indoor and outdoor venues.

Its five galleries host a full range of national and international exhibitions. In addition to these galleries, the Seoul Arts Library houses a wealth of information on concerts and exhibitions and all areas of art and culture. The library also offers visitors a children's room, information center, printed media room and audiovisual center.

From February 15 to March 22, the Seoul Arts Center played host to a 36-day festival commemorating the opening of the final facility; the Seoul Opera House.

Participating artists gave the Opera House rave reviews, noting that the-facilities were truly world class and the acoustics extremely satisfactory. But to turn the venue into a cradle of culture commensurate to its status as Asia's largest arts complex urgently requires the attraction of larger audiences through increased funding and program diversification.

The number of visitors to the festival totaled 101,331, but for concerts one-half of the audience was invited guests.

Extensive media coverage failed to generate a lot of interest in the mainstream public.

It was argued before the creation of the arts complex that there would be a limit to the number of regular concertgoers, but the situation turned out to be worse than anticipated.

It seems obvious that the Seoul Arts Center built with 150 billion won in taxpayers' money urgently needs a longterm strategy to prevent it from being isolated from the general public.

Audience figures for the commemorative festival in which 17 dance, drama and opera troupes participated showed that the Seoul Opera House drew 52,597 visitors.

The music festival and the symphony orchestra festival at the Concert Hall attracted 20;372 visitors. The exhibition of "100 Calligraphy Artists" at the Calligraphy Hall and the "Contemporary Art Exhibition" at Hangaram Gallery drew another 26,062 people.

Since this occasion marked the grand opening of the Seoul Opera House, it was naturally be expected to spark tremendous interest. But the paid occupancy rate was a disappointing 37 percent. Cultural figures' unsparing praises proclaiming that "a new page has been written in the history of Korean per-

forming arts" filled the newspaper columns day after day; but nonetheless visitors stayed away.

There were several reasons. Firs~ in spite of a vast expenditure of 600 million won to stage the festival, it lacked the diversity needed to attract wide-ranging audiiences.

Second,the center is hard to reach by public transit And third, the image persists that the deluxe facilities are only to serve an elite minority.

Filling the five theaters and two galleries requires that new and diverse programs be planned and developed to appeal to the general public. But so far it has been impossible to secure the funds to meet such requirements This year's budget for the Seoul Arts Center has been earmarked at 12 billion won, including 5 billion from the state coffers, 5 billion from public interest funds, and 2 billion in self-financing.

However, without any guarantee of continued support from the state and public funds, it is difficult to set up any longterm management plans.

Moreover, the budget must cover 3 billion won in wages and 2.7 billion won for maintenance. Other costs aside, this leaves less than 1 billion won for the planning and production of concerts, making the job of developing diverse programs easier said than done.

Apart from financial constraints, a number of other problems must be tackled. These include the creation of a strong image for the center, smooth operation of the five theaters and two galleries by ensuring an adequate working staff, training of guides and security workers, and easing of transportation problems.

Center President Kim Sang-shik emphasized at his inauguration February 23 that "the success or failure of our world class arts complex depends more than anything else on guaranteed funding. Until our financial resources are secured, we cannot help but rely on state and public funds. The Ministry of Culture and Sports and the Korea Broadcasting Advertising Co. must work in close cooperation to solve this problem."

Currently; separate organizing committees are responsible for the management of the different theaters.

In the long term, it is envisioned that resident troupes will move in and an artistic director will be appointed.

For the time being the center will operate without resident troupes, selecting only top-class works from various performing arts groups. Kim said, "We will strengthen the function of our selection committee so that only those performances which are up to our standards will be able to use our facilities. Our present selection, which is carried out twice a year, will be reduced to once a year to facilitate greater long-term planning." +

81

NEWS FROM THE KOREA FOUNDATION

KOREA FOCUS ABIMONTHLY ON KOREAN CURRENT AFFAIRS In addition to KOREANA, the Korea Foundation publishes KOREA FOCUS as part of its effort to inform the world community about Korea and to enhance international understanding in this era of increasing globalization We believe KOREA FOCUS will serve as an important and timely reference for the world community.

KOREA FOCUS offers a comprehensive view of contemporary Korea in a wide- ranging selection of informative articles on Korean current affairs. In this new bimonthly, you will find timely reports on Korea's politics, economy; social environment and culture, a chronology of recent events in Korea, and opinions on world affairs.

Published in English and Japanese, its articles come from leading publications in Korea, including major daily newspapers, newsmagazines and academic journals.

KOREA FOCUS is distributed to libraries, research centers and individuals throughout the world

Fellowship Programs THE KOREA FOUNDATION FEllOWSHIP FOR KOREAN STUDIFS The Korea Foundation offers fellowships for Korean studies in the fields of humanities, social sciences, and arts. The program is intended to provide scholars and other qualified professionals overseas with an opportunity to carry out in-depth research in Korea for a period of two to ten months. Each successful applicant will be provided with round-trip air fare to Korea and a monthly stipend during the grant period Applicants should complete two copies of the Korea Foundation Fellowship for Korean Studies application form and submit their academic research proposals to the Korea Foundation

by July 31, and the results of the final selection will be announced at the end of January of the following year.

THE KOREA FOUNDATION FEllOWSHIP FOR KOREANLANGUAGETRAUaNG The Korea Foundation offers grants for Korean language training to university students, scholars and other qualified professionals overseas who wish to learn the Korean language at a Korean university language institute for a period of six to twelve months.

Each successful applicant will be assigned to a Korean language course at one of three major Korean universities, and will be pro82

vided with tuition and a monthly allowance during the grant period Applicants should complete and submit two copies of the Korea Foundation Fellowship for Korean Language Training application form to the Korea Foundation by July 31, and the results of the final selection will be announced by the end of January of the following year.

For application forms, program guidelines, or further information, please write to:

Personnel Exchange Department The Korea Follldation CFD. Box 2147 Seoul, !(area Te I: 82-2-753-6553

Support for Korean Studies Programs Abroad The Korea Foundation offers financial assistance to universities, research institutes and libraries abroad in their efforts to promote the study and understanding of subjects related to Korea Projects submitted for consideration q~.ust be in the fields of humanities, social sciences or arts and within the categories listed belcw: 1) Establishment and expansion of Korea-related courses and faculty 2) Fellcwship for graduate students or research grant for faculty Applications must be submitted to the Korea Foundation by July 31. The results of the final selection will be announced by the end of the following March..

For application forms, program guidelines or further information please write to:

International Cooperation Department The Korea Foundation C.FD. Box 2147 Seoul, !(area Te I:82-2-753-6465

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