Koreana Autumn 2002 (English) by The Korea Foundation

[bokjumoney] A Korean traditional pouch which is supposed to bring fmtune and wealth.

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BEAUTY OF KOREA

Spoons and Their Wrapping Cloths

A spoon, Korea's traditional eating utensil, is placed together with chopsticks on the dining table. Koreans use spoons to eat rice and soup and chopsticks mostly for picking up morsels from side dishes. Although the Chinese and Japanese use mainly chopsticks for eating, Koreans use spoons more than chopsticks. This custom is associated with the Korean dietary culture of soup and stew dishes being typically served at mealtime, which of course requires the use of a spoon. From the past, a variety of materials has been used to make spoons. The first spoons are likely to have been made of seashells or wood. Follow-

ing the production of cast iron, nickel, and brass, even gold and silver came to be used to make spoons. Because spoons and chopsticks made of golg and silver are valuable, they were treasured and kept wrapped in silkÂˇ cloth. The wrapping cloth was embroidered with auspicious designs such as the ten symbols of longevity or with various motifs and Chinese characters symbolizing good fortune. Such wrapping cloths are exquisite indeed. Spoons and spoon wrapping cloths attest to the aesthetic sensibility of Koreans, who sublimated everyday articles into art objects. â&#x20AC;˘

KOREAN ART & CULTURE Co ver: G y uj an gga k is both a treasure trove of national culture and a vivid reflection of the political philosophy and cultural consciousness of the Joseon D y nasty . On th e cover is Yeongjojeongsunh1.1-garyedoga111uigwe, an exquisite painting that d epi cts the marriage of King Y eongjo and Queen Jeongstmhu

in 1759. The Autumn 2002 issue of KOREANA fo c u ses on Gyujanggak for a glimpse into Jo seo n D ynasty c ulture and identity, in particular its extraordinary recordkeeping tradition.

GYUJANGGAK

0 N

Gyujanggak: Heart ofJoseon Dynasty Learning and Ideology Jeong Ok-ja

E N

12 Rare Treasures of the Gyujanggak Collection Kim Moon-sik

18 Korea's Unrivaled Recordkeeping Culture Shin Byung-ju

24 Ancient Maps Reflect the Currents of the Middle Ages Oh Sang-hak

KOREANA Internet Website

Uigwe: Detailed Records of Special Events Han Young-woo

http://www.kf.or.kr/koreana

38 ÂŠ The Korea Foundation 2002 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the prior permission of the Korea Foundation. The opinions expressed by the authors do nor necessarily represent d10se of d1e editors of KOREANA or the Korea Foundation. KOREANA, registered as a quarterly magazine with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (Registration No. Ba-i033, dared Aug. 8, 1987), is also published in Chinese and Spanish.

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Environment-friendly Housing Alternative: Earth Architecture Jeong Hyo-jeong

44 INTERVIEW

Architect Seung Hyo-sang Choi Tae-won

50 ARTISAN

Maker of Traditional Hanji Jang Yong-hun Lee Hyoung-kwon

Vol. 16, No 3 Autumn 2002

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The Wall

Translated by Lee Sang-ok

SPECIAL ISSUE: GYUJANGGAK

he Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) survived for more than 500 years, an unprecedented feat in world history. The adoption of neo-Confucianism as the state ideology is one of the secrets to Joseon' s five-century existence. The neoConfucian philosophy of governance emphasized not rule by force but persuasion of the people through moral conduct and equitable justice. In addition, it aspired to politics based not on rule of law and power but ethical leadership while regarding morality above all else. Righteous government and morality served to suppress abuse of authority, while stressing cultural development and enlightenment in order to promote the selfregulation of individuals. Therefore, it was inevitable that those who specialized in the study of neo-Confucianism would assume leading roles in government affairs. Members of the sadaebu, the literati class, participated actively in government as scholar-officials who adopted the principle of sugichiin as their ideal. As such, they

Mokpae (set of woodblocks used as book indexes) of the Gyujanggak Archives

believed that one must first become a whole person through personal discipline and academic training (sugz) before being deemed fit to rule (chiin). The required study subjects included literature, history and philosophy, along with liberal arts instruction in poetry, calligraphy and painting. The former focused on cultivation of critical thinking and the latter aesthetic development, such that the objective of their studies was to become well-balanced individuals with a good combination of morality and compassion. Such pursuit of learning and cultivation of the mind and personal character were also very much required of the highest ruler of the land, the king. Therefore, neither the crown prince nor the king could be negligent in their efforts to become an ideal ruler, through scholarly Confucian teaching, known as seoyeon for the crown prince and gyeongyeon for the king. In particular, the king was obligated to undergo special instruction in the teachings of sages, as a king who neglected this duty could become a target of criticism and even ouster. Accordingly, this emphasis on learning produced leaders with a strong academic background and gift for effective rule, among whom King Jeongjo (r. 1776-1800, the 22nd king of the Joseon Dynasty) is a representative example. The 17th century was marked by transition with China's Ming Dynasty giving way to its Qing Dynasty, related to which the Joseon Dynasty prided itself on being a cultured nation that succeeded the collapsed Ming. As such, entering the 18th century the people of Joseon achieved what is known as jingyeong culture, a unique cultural movement that promoted a concept of cultural self-esteem and a belief that one's own culture is superior. King Jeongjo, who personified the peak of jingyeong culture, was known for his distinguished academic achievements

A schedule indicating the working hours of Gyujanggak officials (left), and a manuscript copy of Hongjaejeonseo

and high level of self-attainment. He encouraged his vassals through example, while concentrating on the maintenance of social order and discipline through enlightenment. Despite his position as the supreme leader responsible for maintaining social stability, he personally dealt with changes in practical ways and created a new theory of governance for a new age, while steadily implementing his policy measures. As for the Joseon Dynasty, the two major influences of change included Qing Chinese culture, and Joseon's transformation from an agriCultural society to a commercial-industrial one. Consequently, the Confucian community that was the foundation of its agricultural system was evolving into a commercial-industrial society, thus calling for change in social management principles. As a result, a movement arose that actively promoted the School of Northern Learning, which reflected the advanced civilization of Qing China. ]eongjo readily embraced these changes. He continued the non-discriminatory policy adopted by his grandfather King Yeongjo (r. 1724-1776, the 21st king of Joseon) and overcame factionalism. By strengthening royal authority he created an effective system of rule. He also sought to consolidate the academic circle led by the intellectuals. In order to promote cultural policy, he devel-

oped support bases in various fields. Jeongjo established royal guards called jangyongyeong, assumed command of the military, and constructed the new city of Hwaseong, thus developing a new regional foundation. Also, by reinstating the title of crown prince to his deceased father Crown Prince Sado, he reinforced the legitimacy of his rule. Though official positions were limited to the yangban, or noble class, he allowed the children of concubines to also hold public office, and abolished the monopoly of privileged merchants, thereby advancing libe1:alization and commercial reform. ]eongjo also established Gyujanggak, a research institute and royal organization that performed all the functions needed to form a foundation for his authority. As the royal library and organization in charge of formulating cultural policies, Gyujanggak was indispensable for implementing the cultural initiatives devised by ]eongjo. ]eongjo possessed an academic background equal to any leading intellectual of the day which enabled him to expeditiously carry out any task required with much confidence. The emphasis on learning and morality that characterized the Joseon Dynasty flourished in his time amid a highly intellectual environment, such that a king not well versed in cultural disciplines or with 7

â&#x20AC;˘ 0

Aside from records of major national events, Gyujanggak houses many ancient maps. These vividly illustrated maps, which attest to the high level of anthropogeography reached during the Joseon Dynasty, were produced in earnest in the 18th century, a period of cultural renaissance. Maps created in the realistic landscape painting style depict the land as where people go about their everyday lives.

mediocre academic ability would have been deemed unqualified to govern his subjects and thus be unable to command respect. While maintaining the pride of a culture-oriented nation, he also introduced the advanced culture of Qing China, while succeeding in his self-appointed task of ensuring the complementarity of these influences. Of the 27 kings of the ]oseon Dynasty, only Jeongjo produced such an extensive collection of literary works. Titled Hongjaejeonseo, it comprises 180 volumes bound in 100 books in 10 cases, which even exceeds the scale of works produced by members of the literati. The 18th century was a time of Joseon cultural revival when many men of talent produced prolific anthologies of excellent quality, but Hongjaejeonseo is said to be the best of them all. While the contents of the anthology are diverse, Ildeungnok, a kind of diary, is especially noteworthy for revealing the lofty thoughts of Jeongjo as he observed and mulled over political affairs. In this portrayal of Jeongjo in deep contemplation after concluding sundry matters and rendering political decisions, one can appreciate the ideals of one of Korea's most outstanding rulers. Gyujanggak was originally established during the reign of King Sukjong (r. 1674-1720, the 19th king of Joseon) as an organization responsible for preserving the writings and calligraphy of kings. From the early days of the Joseon Dynasty, there was much discussion, led by Yang Seong-ji during the reign of King Sejo (r. 1455-1468, 7th king of Joseon), about building a central facility to store the portraits, writings and calligraphy of kings.

Âˇ'

Despite an obvious need, such an archives was not actually built until the reign of Sukjong. During the reign of Jeongjo, Gyujanggak was expanded and renovated to be reborn as the organization that established and executed national cultural policy. King Jeongjo was the son of Crown Prince Sado (1735-1762, son of Yeongjo) who met a tt:agic death. Having ascended to the throne under difficult circumstances marked by fierce factional strife and violent clashes over vested interests, he established a new royal security force centered on a new political organization. Hongmungwan and Yemungwan were offices of cbeongjik, bureaucrats who had gained appointment through their writing talent and were regarded as the elite of Joseon Dynasty government officials. Aside from the functions of these two offices, Gyujanggak also assumed the royal secretariat function of Seungjeongwon, historical recording function of Chunchugwan, public relations function of Saganwon, and royal court-related activities of Jongbusi. It was thus a highly centralized bureaucratic organization. In assuming the functions of Hongmungwan, Gyujanggak provided a forum for academic discourse led by Jeongjo. Therefore, it not only formulated policies, but also collected and maintained reference materials needed for the policy-making process. However, of utmost significance was the fact that the officials of Gyujanggak served as King Jeongjo's inner circle. And through an institutionalized training program for young officials, Gyujanggak also played a critical role in keeping this inner circle fully staffed. Young officials under the

Aside from records of major national events, age of 37 who had distinguished themselves Gyujanggak houses many ancient maps. These would be assigned to Gyujanggak, where they underwent specialized training. Of Gyujanggak's vividly illustrated maps, which attest to the high two primary goals, the promotion of culturally level of anthropogeography reached during the ]oseon Dynasty, were produced in earnest in the oriented policy and the cultivation of talented officials, this training program did much to 18th century, a period of cultural renaissance. enhance the effectiveness of ]oseon's decisionMaps created in the realistic landscape painting making and governance. style depict the land as where people go about their everyday lives. However, they are not overly Gyujanggak was situated in the rear garden of realistic, being more conceptual maps that focus Changdeokgung Palace, called Huwon or the Secret Garden. On a small hill overlooking the garon residential communities and government offices. den beside Yeonghwadang, a two-story pavilion Besides documentary records and maps and named Juhamnu was built that served as the cenother visual materials, the majority of the Gyutral building of Gyujanggak. Several storage facilijanggak collection conties were built nearby sists of books and docuto house materials and ments. Despite the pasbooks from the royal household. Juhamnu, sage of 200 years, th~ quality of the paper, luswhich has a signboard ter of the ink, and clarireading "Gyujanggak," ty of the printed charwas where Jeongjo's acters remain in excelportrait, writings, calliglent condition. The raphy, and seal were typefaces, including stored. Bongmodang to Jeongyuja, Saengsaengja the southwest was used and Jeongnija are also for storing the writings, beautiful, from which it paintings, wills, admonican be seen that the tions, secret orders and pride which ancient geneaologies of previMt. Jeongjoksan Archives Koreans took in calling ous kings. To the south ]oseon culture the best in the world was not mere was Yeolgogwan, and to the north Gaeyuwa where Chinese books were stored, while to the bluster. As of 1781, Gyujanggak's collection included northwest was a library for ]oseon Dynasty some 30,000 books-20,000 Chinese and 10,000 books. Korean-for reference and research purposes, _and Built to the west of Juhamnu was a study called it has since continued to publish and store books. Seohyanggak, which was later renamed Iangak It In 1781, upon the completion of Oegyujanggak on was used to air out the items stored in Juhamnu Ganghwado Island, Gyujanggak's precious books and Bongmodang to prevent their rotting. and royal documents were relocated there for Imunwon, the office of Gyujanggak officials, was safekeeping. However, due to the "French moved to the Owidochongbu building west of the Incursion" of 1866, some 6,000 volumes were lost throne hall and thus maintained within close proxalong with some 300 books containing records imity of the king. The signboard of this building and paintings of national ceremonies being plunnow hangs from the current Gyujanggak There was also a directive written by the king: 'Do not dered. These books are now housed in the French get up even for a visitor." This is evidence of both National Library as the French government has resisted their return to Korea. the strict rules and special privileges of Gyujanggak 9

Map of Ganghwado Island depicting Jeongjoksanseong Fortress

To bolster its publishing function, Jeongjo placed the national office for publication, Gyoseogwan, under Gyujanggak and renamed it Oegak. Some 17,000 wooden printing blocks used by Oegak were transferred to Oegyujanggak along with some books from Gyujanggak after reconstruction of the Gyeongbokgung palace during the reign of King Gojong (r. 1863-1907). In 1975

they were moved to the library of Seoul National University. Because these wooden printing blocks were neglected while being stored in the corridors of Gyeongbokgung's main throne hall, they are not in good condition today. In the spring of 2000, a major restoration effort was thus undertaken. Following Japan's annexation of Korea in 1910, Gyujanggak was closed down and the books moved to the headquarters of the Japanese Government-General. At this time, Changgyeonggung Palace was turned into a zoo called Changyeongwon while the materials from Bongmodang were divided up to establish the library, Jangseogak. These materials included many important items of the royal household, such as the artifacts of kings, which are now stored in the library of the Academy of Korean Studies, also called Jangseogak. The books of the Gyujangak were again moved to the library of Gyeongseong Imperial University and after liberation they were relocated in 1946 to the annex of the library of Seoul National University (SNU). Gyujanggak long remained an annex of the university library until 1992 when the books were moved to a building of its own. Now, after ten years, due to lack of space, expansion work is about to begin. The books of Gyujanggak, which on several occasions were moved about and for long had no home, are now permanently housed at the SNU Gyujanggak. The SNU Gyujanggak collection includes some 270,000 ancient books, documents, maps, and printing blocks and plates. There are 175,000 books, 50,000 ancient documents and 18,000 printing blocks and plates as well as other materials. Of these, 6 titles consisting of 7,076 volumes, including joseonwangjosillok

Entering the 18th century the people of Joseon achieved what is known as jingyeong culture, a unique cultural movement that promoted a concept of cultural self-esteem and a belief that one's own culture is superior. As the royal library and organization in charge of formulating cultural policies, Gyujanggak was indispensable for implementing the cultural initiatives devised by Jeongjo.

(Annals of the joseon Dynasty), Bibyeonsadeungnok, Ilseongnok, and Seungjeongwonilgi (Diary of the Royal Secretariat) have been designated national treasures. In addition, another 8 titles comprising 28 books have been designated treasures. Currently, many of the books have been copied and are readily accessible to scholars and students, while a long-term project is under way to develop a database of their contents. For future generations, an integrated and farsighted research system will be available. The SNU Gyujanggak is now at a stage of moving beyond its basic role of preserving materials by distinguishing itself as a research institute. Indeed, it is one of Korea's leading Korean studies research organizations, capitalizing on its expertise as library, museum, and research institute. Through Gyujanggak, the culture and politics of the Joseon Dynasty can be researched in-depth and used to create a blueprint for an advanced cultural nation. In the future, Gyujanggak will be the center of

a cultural resurgence in the 21st century, the age of culture. As a treasure house of royal court culture, ancient maps and documentary books with masterful illustrations (publications featuring fine art and detailed information), it is expected to provide a catalyst for the promotion of cultural activities in the future. As such, Gyujanggak offers abundant evidence of the truly unique cultural achievements of the Joseon Dynasty and the discriminating lifestyle of Joseon society. At this time when we are striving to restore our wounded national pride and national identity by reviving our traditional culture, which was trampled upon during a century of imperialism, Gyujanggak is a treasure house that holds the key to resolving many of today's problem areas. Furthermore, Gyujanggak, where the intellectual and spiritual fruits of our Joseon . Dynasty ancestors are stored, holds the secrets to finding the right direction for Korean society in the 21st century. â&#x20AC;˘

SPECIAL ISSUE: GYUJANGGAK

Rare Treasures of the Gyujanggak Collection Kim Moon-sik Curator, Gyujanggak Archives

Gyujanggak is undoubtedly the ultimate library when it comes to ancient books and materials related to Korean studies. Its vast collection of ancient books, documents, and printing blocks reveals the unique culture of the Joseon Dynasty, which placed utmost importance on recordkeeping. 12

urrently, the Gyujanggak Archives at Seoul National University maintains a collection of some 270,000 ancient books, documents, and printing blocks and plates. Of these ancient books, 6 titles comprising 7,000 volumes have been designated national treasures, with another 8 titles consisting of 28 volumes being designated treasures. As such, Gyujanggak can be called the consummate library in terms of ancient books and materials related to Korean studies. Because it is home to such an abundance of invaluable Korean studies resources, Gyujanggak continues to attract the

attention and interest of scholars of Korean studies both in the country and abroad. The following is an overview of the materials of the Gyujanggak collection. The ancient books of the Gyujanggak collection can be categorized into books from the original Gyujanggak, regular ancient books, and small-size ancient books produced for public distribution. The most significant materials of the Gyujanggak collection are its original ancient books. The books came from various Joseon Dynasty repositories-the original Gyujanggak library, the royal court library, and four history libraries. These history libraries were located on Mt. Jeongjoksan in Ganghwado Island, Mt. Taebaeksan in Bonghwa, Mt. Jeoksangsan in Muju, and Mt. Odaesan in Pyeongchang. The original Gyujanggak books, which include Korean bo~s published by the royal court and individual government offices, as well as Chinese books introduced from China. The Korean books, which include many that absolutely must be read to gain a proper understanding of KoreaÂˇs culture, are identified with the Chinese character gyu. The regular ancient books are those acquired by the office of the Japanese Government-General through 1945, and by the Gyeongseong Imperial University and Seoul National University following liberation from Japanese colonial rule. Most of these books were privately published during the Joseon Dynasty and incltJde purchases of the most significant ancient books available on the market. The regular ancient books are identified with the Chinese character go.

llseongnok. National

Taejosillok (left), and Sipchilsachangvgeumtongyo (right)

Currently, the Gyujanggak Archives houses some 148,000 books from the original Gyujanggak, 19,000 regular ancient books, and about 6,000 small-size ancient books, a total of some 175,000 ancient books. The Joseon Dynasty, which adhered to Confucian ideology, Neo-Confucianism in particular, placed utmost importance on the maintenance of written records. The kings of the Joseon Dynasty wielded absolute power while on the throne and until their death. The education of the king and the practice of maintaining extensive documentation were means of helping to check the kingÂˇs vast powers. The former enabled the king to develop his acumen while emphasizing the cultivation of moral and ethical conduct, whereas the latter recorded and publicized all the goings-on of the king. Gyujanggak is the product of this culture of extraordinary recordkeeping that distinguishes the Joseon Dynasty. The most noteworthy materials of the Gyujanggak collection have been designated as national treasures or treasures and are preserved with great care. Several of Gyujanggak's national treasures are worthy of note. For example, joseonwangjosillok (Annals of the joseon Dynasty) is a daily record that had been maintained for 472 years of the 14

Joseon Dynasty, covering the reign of 25 kings from Taejo to Cheoljong. Aside from Joseon, other Confucian societies like those of China, Japan, and Vietnam also maintained similar types of records. But none can compare to the Joseon records in terms of their continuous period of time covered, comprehensiveness and extreme attention to detail. Recently, a translation of these books from Chinese characters into Korean has been completed, including a CD-ROM version which is now available, such that this material is widely utilized not only by researchers and scholars but non-academicians as well. Since 1945, Gyujanggak has housed the complete set of the annals from the Mt. Jeongjoksan and Mt. Taebaeksan repositories, and an incomplete set of the annals from the Mt. Odaesan In repository, comprising a total of 2,077 volum~s. March 1985, 848 books of the annals that were stored at Mt. Taebaeksan were transferred to the Government Archives and Records Service, in accordance with the Joseon Dynasty practice of separating important materials and having them stored at different places. In 1973, joseonwangjosillok was designated National Treasure No. 151, while in 1997, UNESCO recognized it as a significant world cultural property by listing it on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register, which promotes the preservation of noteworthy written materials. Whereas the joseonwangjosillok is a secondary record compiled after the death of a king based on available records, Bibyeonsadeungnok, Jlseongnok and Seungjeongwonilgi (Diary of the Royal Secretariat) are primary records written by the respective government offices as current accounts of recent events. As such, these records served as the source materials for compilation of the chronicles comprising the joseonwangjosillok Bibyeonsadeungnok is a record of the daily meetings of the officials of Bibyeonsa, a state organization that from the 16th century was responsible for overseeing military affairs as well as important economic matters. As such Bibyeonsadeungnok provides a glimpse into the social and economic conditions of the times. However, all the records

prepared prior to 1592 were lost during the 15921598 Japanese invasions of Korea. Accordingly, the remaining 273 volumes cover a period of some 250 years and the reign of 11 kings from 1617, the ninth year of Gwanghaegun, to King Cheoljong. In 1973, Bibyeonsadeungnok was designated National Treasure No. 152. Ilseongnok originated from a diary maintained by King Jeongjo, who built the original Gyujanggak, which recorded his words, deeds and studies from the time he was designated heir to the throne. After Jeongjo ascended to the throne, his diaries were organized and compiled into books by a Gyujanggak official. The diaries contain detailed accounts of political events and social conditions that cannot be found in other chronicles as well as a comprehensive listing of books published by the royal court. Ilseongnok covers the period from 176o (the 36th year of the reign of Yeongjo) through 1910 (the 4th year of the reign of Sunjong), consisting of 2329 volumes. It was designated National Treasure No. 153 in 1973. Seungjeongwonilgi are records maintained by the royal secretariat, Seungjeongwon, related to receiving and issuing king's orders, and the organization of national ceremonies. Therefore, the diaries contain detailed information ÂˇOf various

events held by the royal court, in addition to the petitions to the king written by Confucian scholars. Although the records were prepared from the beginning of the Joseon Dynasty, most were lost during the Japanese invasions of Korea with the exception of 3,243 volumes that cover the period from 1623 (the 1st year of the reign of Injo) to 1894 (the 31st year of the reign of Gojong). In 1999, the diaries were designated National Treasure No. 303, and then included on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2001. Sipchilsachangogeumtongyo is a book published by Joseon that contains notable excerpts from Chinese history books complied by Hu Tingpang of the Yuan Dynasty. The book was printed in 1403 (the 3rd year of the reign of Taejong) with Joseon's first movable metal type known as gyemija. The printing of this book i? especially significant in that it predated the Gutenberg Bible, which was printed in Germany in 1453. It was designated National Treasure No. 148 in 1973. Songjopyojeonchongnyu is a publication that includes a collection of writings presented to the emperor of Song China. Like Sipchilsachang;geumtongyo, it was printed with gyemija type in 1403. It was designated National Treasure No. 150 in 1973.

Gonyeojeondo printing block, Treasure No. 882

Of the eight Gyujanggak materials that have been designated treasures, four are Buddhist sutras, one written by the Goryeo Dynasty (9181392) monk Jinul, and two are medical texts written by the renowned 17th century medical specialist Heo Jun. The other treasure is the woodblocks used for printing a map of the world called

Gonyeojeondo. The Gyujanggak collection also contains ancient books that were published in China. One of the duties of envoys dispatched by ]oseon to China included the purchase of Chinese books. The envoys took silver with them for buying books from the palace, government offices and bookstores in Beijing. The Chinese authorities strictly prohibited Joseon from purchasing books but most of the major books published by the Ming and Qing Dynasties were nonetheless acquired by ]oseon.

Gyujanggak maintains some 67,000 Chinese books, most of which were acquired by ]oseon envoys to Beijing. Some are extremely rare books that can no longer be found in China or anywhere else in the world.

Gogeumdoseojipseong, consisting of 5,022 volumes, is Gyujanggak's most notable Chinese book It is a kind of bibliography published in 1725 that categorizes by subject all the books published in China up to that time. Originally, it was a vast work of 10,000 volumes with the index alone comprising 40 volumes. The books were purchased by ]oseon envoys in Beijing for 2,150 silver nyang in 1777 right after Jeongjo took the throne, and thereafter greatly influenced ]oseon studies of science and technology. The complete set housed at Gyujanggak is priceless, the likes of which is rarely found even in China. Especially noteworthy among the ancient materials of Gyujanggak are the records of state events and ancient maps. These are detailed accounts of major comt or national events of the Joseon Dynasty that were prepared for the benefit of future generations. They include detailed information on the specifics of events, such as the costs involved, number of people attending, and ceremonial procedures. The books also feature exceptional paintings of the events and proceedings. Nowadays, with ever-growing attention being focused on

Tongyeongjido, map of naval 16

The materials in the collection of Gyujanggak are truly invaluable academic and artistic resources, including books with the exquisite calligraphy of the most accomplished i

literary figures of the day, while the records of state events have been duly recognized by UNESCO as ranking among the world's most treasured written materials.

traditional culture, the reenactment of national events of the ]oseon Dynasty has gained considerable popularity. In these cases, the records of state events of Gyujanggak have been an invaluable reference for assuring their authenticity. Similarly, Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe (Hwaseong Fortress Manua[) and Wonhaengeu!Jnyojeongniuigwe (Procession to the Royal Towtb Manual) were indispensable references for the restoration of Hwaseong Fortress and reenactment of King Jeongjo's procession to Suwon, respectively. For each record of a state event, a special set was prepared for the king, known as "manual for royal use." These are extraordinary books with elaborate binding and covers, with the main text being written with great care by special officials. Most of the records were handwritten but some were printed. Some 500 kinds of these records comprising 2,000 volumes are housed at Gyujanggak Often created pursuant to government order, ancient maps provide a comprehensive pictUre of Korean culture and territory of the past, as well as the Korean people's unique perception of land. Gyujanggak is home to a diverse variety of ancient maps ranging from large maps in full color to small maps printed with woodblocks. A regional map produced in 1872 delineates all the counties and provinces of Korea, encompassing a total of 458 pages. The majority of the maps feature exceptional artistry and are thus appreciated as fine works of art. Currently, Gyujanggak maintains 200 kinds of maps comprising over 6,000 pages. Other notable materials in Gyujanggak are the official documents sent between the king and government offices, between government offices, and between government offices and individuals. They reveal in detail such matters as the transport of

items between government offices, citations for filial sons, real estate transactions, conveyance of serfs, and census information, which serve as valuable resources for understanding the everyday life of ]oseon society. Some 50,000 of these original documents are preserved at Gyujanggak Although printing with metal type was highly developed during the ]oseon Dynasty, whenever a large number of books were printed, wodbl~k printing was used. The printing plates housed at Gyujanggak were produced by government offices, in particular Gyoseogwan, the office in charge of printing the Confucian classics. By the 18th century, Korean printing was highly advanced and widely admired for its exquisite craftsmanship. Of the Gyujanggak printing plates, many were produced to print books that the king needed for his study or reference, including the Confucian classics such as the Four Books and Three Classics, history books, codes of conduct, and books featuring the writings of renowned calligraphers. Of note, the printing plate engraved from th ~ handwriting of Sukjong was created to publicize his outstanding calligraphy. Gyujanggak maintains some 17,000 printing blocks and plates. Gyujanggak also houses handwritten tablets of kings Sukjong and Yeongjo as well as tablets recording the king's orders regarding the operation of Gyujanggak Also preserved in Gyujanggak are a variety of metal type used to print books, paintings, rubbings of tombstone engravings, and photographs. As such, Gyujanggak is indeed a treasure trove of rich and diverse materials. To fully utilize these materials for the exploration of the essence of Korean culture is the challenging task of scholars of Korean studies and Asian studies from around the world. â&#x20AC;˘

SPECIAL ISSUE: GYUJANGGAK

Korea's Unrivaled Recordkeeping Culture Shin Byung-ju Curator, Gyujanggak Archives

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llseongnok, journal of the king's activities

Recordkeeping during the Joseon period can be taken in at a glance of the chronicles compiled by the government. In particular, the Joseonwangjosillok and the Seungjeongwonilgi have been recognized for their truly remarkable value by being included on UNESCO's Memory of the World Register.

uring the Joseon period (1392-1910), a variety of comprehensive records were compiled and stored for safekeeping. Among these, the joseon-

wangjosillok (Annals of the joseon Dynasty), Ilseongnok, Bibyeonsadeungnok, and Seungjeongwonilgi (Diary of the Royal Secretariat)

attract much attention because they systematically document massive amounts of detailed information on significant political, social, and economic matters of the nation in chronological order. Gyujanggak houses a variety of materials, but the chronicles are the most noteworthy in that they are the formal records prepared by official national agencies. Regarding his invasion of Ganghwado in 1866, French naval officer Henry Joubert noted: "What must be looked upon with admiration here and what injures our pride is that every house, no matter how poor, has books everywhere:" The people of Joseon were always around books. There was a tradition of placing great importance on the maintenance of records, with the government playing the leading role. To appreciate the significance of this for us today, it is necessary to examine the historical traditions of the Joseon period, when systematic recordkeeping was of such paramount importance. The most noteworthy historical record of the Joseon period is the joseonwangjosillok, an official national chronicle covering 472 years (1392-1863) of the Joseon Dynasty from King Taejo, the founder of the Joseon Dynasty, to King Cheoljong, its 25th ruler. The records of the 26th and 27th rulers, Gojong and Sunjong, are compiled separately as Gojongsillok and Sunjongsillok. The joseon-

wangjosillok, a massive compilation consisting of 1,187 books (approximately 64 million characters), includes information on all fields, such as politics, diplomacy, economics, the military, law, thought, and lifestyle. No example comparable to the joseonwangjosillok, which systematically and continuously records the history of a dynasty without interruption, can be found anywhere else in the world, and because of its unprecedented nature, UNESCO added it to its Memory of the World Register in 1997. The annals were compiled after a king's death. This is because of their concern that there would be political pressure if the annals were compiled during the king's reign. Upon a ldng's death, Sillokcheong, a temporary government office, was created with officials assigned to it full-time who would compile the annals based on saclJO, which had already been prepared and sijeonggi, the daily records of various government offices. Sacho refers to the records of sagu;an officials; records prepared on the spot were called chocho, with revisions of these being jung:;bo, and what was finally recorded in the annals were called jeong:;ho. Completed annals were stored in Chunchugwan, a repository where historical records were stored, and in repositories for historical documents built in the provinces. In the early Joseon period, in addition to Chunchugwan, the annals were housed in repositories located in provincial centers, such as Chungju, Seongju, and Jeonju, but there was constant anxiety about damage from fire or war. Such a crisis did occur during the Japanese invasion of 1592, when all of the annals except for those in the Jeonju storehouse were destroyed. The sole remaining annals barely 19

Bibyeonsadeungnok, a record of the daily meetings of the Bibyeonsa, the highest-rnrlking national agency

escaped destruction through the efforts of An Ui and Son Hong-nok. After the war, there were those of the opinion that the annals would be safer if stored in mountainous regions. Accordingly, four storehouses were built on the Odaesan, Jeongjoksan, Jeoksangsan and Taebaeksan mountains during the late ]oseon period, where the annals were distributed for safekeeping. Every third year, the stored annals were dried in the open air to help keep them free from insects and moisture. The annals were periodically inspected to determine their physical condition, for which an inspection record, or sillokhyeongjian, was prepared. These records confirm that the people of the time maintained the annals with meticulous care. The people of Joseon gladly endured the inconveniences that accompanied preservation of the annals while the officials charged with storing or 20

drying out the annals considered this duty to be a great honor. Because of the tradition of preserving these records, the annals have remained in perfect condition until this day. Currently, there are two original copies of the joseonwangjosillok in Korea. In keeping with the tradition of storing them separately, one copy is stored by the Government Archives and Records Services, while the other copy is housed in the second floor national treasure storeroom of Seoul National University's Gyujanggak. As the annals were based on the sacho records of the sagwan who were constantly around the king, they were primarily a political history recounting the king's activities. However, since the

sijeonggi of each government office were also used as materials for compiling the annals, information on natural disasters such as floods and droughts, and events such as the outbreak of epidemics and the appearance of comets and meteors were also recorded in detail. In particular, in the case of floods and droughts, the loss of livestock such as cows and horses was recorded along with the number of human casualties. In addition, it is noteworthy that extensive information about the lifestyle of the common people is included in the annals. For example, in the Taejongsillok (Annals of King Taejong), it is recorded that the Japanese king gave Taejong an elephant as a gift, which the royal court entrusted to the Saboksi, the government office in charge of the palace's horses and palanquins. However, some people who came to look at the elephant were trampled and killed, while it ate so much grain that it was eventually exiled to an island in Jeolla-do province. Thereafter, it is recorded that reports were received saying that the elephant had become emaciated, but there is no further mention of the elephant in the annals. Besides an account of the first elephant to enter Korea, the annals also offer a diverse variety of information related to people's lifestyle, such as details on cigarettes, glasses, and clothing. With the changes in political power in late Joseon, revised editions of the royal annals were

Seungjeongwonilgi (Diary of the Royal Secretatiat)

prepared: the Seonjosillole (Annals of King Seonjo), Seonjosujeongsillok (Revised Annals of King Seonjo), Hyeonjongsillok (Annals of King Hyeonjong), Hyeonjonggaesusillok (Revised Annals of King Hyeonjong), Gyeongjongsillole (Annals of King Gyeongjong), and Gyeongjongsujeongsillok (Revised Annals of King Gyeongjong). Due to factional strife, when a new political group came to power, it prepared new annals with revised contents to supersede the annals compiled by the opposing party. However, the fact that the existing annals were maintained without change, to be judged independently by later generations, is praiseworthy. The Seungjeongwonilgi (Diary of the Royal Secretariat) is a daily record of the everyday documents and matters that were dealt with by Seungjeongwon, the Royal Secretariat, the agency charged with promulgating royal orders. Seungjeongwonilgi is thought to have been commenced from the founding of the dynasty, but today only 3,243 books covering the 288 years from 1623 to 1910 remain. The original, written in cursive calligraphy, is housed at Seoul National University's Gyujanggak, while the National Institute of Korean History has published an edition written in standard characters. The Seungjeongwonilgi can be called the world's greatest historical record, in that it spans 288 consecutive years an~ comprises an incredible 3,243 books with a total of 240 million characters. Recognized for its truly unique value and excellence, the Seungjeongwonilgi was designated National Treasure No. 303 on April 9, 1999, and included on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in September 2001. However, during the evaluation process, the international advisory committee questioned the inclusion of the Seungjeongwonilgi on the Memory of the World Register. With the joseonwangjosillok already on the Memory of the World Register, the members of the committee wondered why the Seungjeonwonilgi should be designated as well. This is likely because the people of other nations, which did not maintain national records in this manner, could not fully appreciate that separate national 21

]ungjongsillok (left) Seonjosillok (right)

been put forth to record the king's every mood, not missing a single nuance. In fact, there is even mention of when the king laughed or became angry while talking with court officials. Once the annals were completely compiled and placed in storehouses, they could not be viewed without a specific reason. In contrast, whenever facing an important national ceremony or an issue of national security or diplomacy, previous Seungjeongwonilgi were readily referred to for guidance. Though it was a historical record, the Seungjeongwonilgi was always used as a reference source for dealing with current political issues. In this way, the Seungjeongwonilgi and the joseonwangjosillol? complement each other, and are more essential than any other reference material for researching the history of the late Joseon period. In particular, the detailed records of the weath-

The people of Joseon gladly endured the inconveniences that accompanied preservation of the annals while the officials charged with storing or drying out the annals considered this duty to be a great honor. Because of the tradition of preserving these records, the annals have remained in perfect condition until this day.

records were compiled by various agencies. The fact that two separate national chronicles have been listed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register attests to the unrivaled excellence of recordkeeping during the ]oseon period. The Seungjeongwonilgi was used as a primary source for compiling the annals, and having been prepared by the Secretariat, the agency closest to the king, even the king's slightest movement and minor political details were recorded in full. During the ]oseon period, when the eojin, the king's portrait, was painted, it was called jeonsin, indicating that along with the king's physical appearance his spirit was to be conveyed as well, thus requiring every effort to be exerted in this endeavor. As this record was prepared by the Seungjeongwon, which was the closest agency attending to the king, utmost effort would have 22

er are invaluable to the study of astronomy and weather conditions. In addition, the names of the officials who prepared the diary entries were recorded daily, as well as when they were on leave or sick, indicating the attention to detail of these records. The original copy of the Seungjeongwonilgi is housed at Seoul National University's Gyujanggak. It is written in cursive calligraphy and thus difficult to read. In order to overcome this difficulty, beginning in 1961, the National Institute of Korean History rewrote the Seungjeongzwnilgi in standard characters for its easier readability, in addition to launching a reproduction project. Also, since 1994 the Korean Classics Research Institute has been working to translate the Seungjeongwonilgi into hangeul in phases, beginning with the diary from the time of Gojong's reign. When the hangeul

translation is completed, it will be an invaluable greatest importance to the agency. However, in resource for the study of Korean history. response to the Japanese invasion it was expandBy no means inferior to the ]oseonwangjosillok ed and strengthened into the highest decisionmaking agency, which addressed issues of nationand the Seungjeongwonilgi, the Ilseongnok and al defense, diplomacy, and the whole of national Bibyeongsadeungnok chronicles are examples of the comprehensiveness of Joseon recordkeeping. administration. Accordingly, Bibyeonsadeungnok records in Ilseongnok, as the title implies, is the king's "record detail the decisions made by the nation's highestwritten while reflecting on the day.'' It records in ranking organization, and is a valuable reference diary form various matters related to affairs of the state over a period of 150 years from 1760 to 1910. for understanding prominent social and economic issues of the time. It was designated National It was initiated in 1760, when King Jeongjo, who Treasure No. 152 on led a cultural revival December 31, 1973. of late Joseon from Together with the the time his grandfather named him Seu ngjeongwon ilgi and 1/seongnok. BiCrown Prince, heir to byeonsadeu ngnok his throne, started to was used as a prirecord his activities and mary source when studies in diary form. compiling the annals, WhenJeongjo ascended the throne, the memas these separate historical records combers of Gyujanggak plement each other prepared Ilseongnok and demonstrate which Jeongjo personalthe unprecedented ly read and revised. efforts that went Following Jeongjo, Ilinto the historical seongnok focused on .... ..:.~ :I the activities of the king records of the Joseon 1 centered on events relatr-1 period. ...__ _ _ _ _ _..__ ____._ More than anyed to significant politithing else, peo p 1e Sejongsujeongsillok (Revised Aimals ofKing Sejong) cal matters, or reports had a profound reon the performance of provincial officials. Ilseongnok was designated spect for history during the Joseon period. They thoroughly recorded the actions of the people of National Treasure No. 153 on December 31, 1973. Bibyeonsadeungnok records the details of the the time, including the king as well as the masses. daily meetings of the Bibyeonsa, the highestThis is because there was an established tradition of accurately recording the rights and wrongs of ranking national agency from the mid-:Joseon period. It is similar to today's records of Cabinet meetsociety for judgment by future generations. This mindset of such attention to detail in ings. The abbreviated designation for Bibyeonsa was Biguk, so it is also called Bigukdeungnok The maintaining records is not only invaluable in more clearly understanding the various aspects of the Bibyeonsadeungnok prepared prior to the Japanese invasion of 1592 have all been lost. What politics, society, economy, and culture of the does exist covers the reigns of 11 kings spanning Joseon period, but also highlights the need for the records of today to be more accurate and systemapproximately 250 years from 1617. When the Bibyeonsa was established, the national issue of atic in order to benefit future generations. â&#x20AC;˘ ensuring the security of frontier areas was of ~Âˇ

SPECIAL ISSUE: GYUJANGGAK

OhSang-hak Curator, National Museum of Korea

ncient maps are invaluable reference sources of the world of the past. They reflect not only the geographical knowledge of a given era, but also the level of scientific technology and artistry. Moreover, they reveal the prevailing ideology, conceptual thought, and religious beliefs of the society. Ancient maps can also be used to measure the extent of cultural exchanges among regions, since they were created within a unique culture merging science and art. The Gyujanggak Archives at Seoul National University houses Korea's largest collection of ancient maps. The maps are mostly one of a kind and are distinctive for their elaborate style and exceptional pictorial beauty. There are about 6,000 maps of 220 kinds contained in some 1,100 books, all preserved separately. The majority are in color while some are woodblock prints. Their production dates range from the 16th century to the 19th century, with their creation being undertaken not only by state institutions but private concerns as 25

The ancient maps preserved at Gyujanggak are like a time machine that can transport you back to the Middle Ages. Embodied in the ancient maps are concepts about the world, universe, and geography held by the people who lived at the time of their production. The techniques utilized to depict the mountains and rivers are highly artistic and vividly demonstrate a concept of cartography unique to the Joseon Dynasty.

well. By type, there are 24 kinds of world maps, 53 kinds of Korea, 20 kinds of provinces, 53 kinds of local administrative units, 32 kinds of foreign countries, 13 kinds of border areas, and 26 kinds of other areas. Of the various ancient maps, those of the wqrld are a particularly important reference source which provide a glimpse into the world concepts held by the people of the past and the extent of cultural interaction. The East Asian countries of the Chinese cultural sphere used to draw the world as a flat, rectangular shape, based on a concept that ''the heaven is full and the land is linear." The Joseon Dynasty also produced world maps based on this concept, of which the oldest extant one is Honilgangniyeokdaegukdojido. This map was produced in a similar style as astronomical charts, or cbeomnundo. In 1395, just after the founding of the Joseon Dynasty by King Taejo (r. 1392-1398), an astronomical diagram carved on a stone slab, Cbeonsangyeolcbabunyajido, was created as an important state project. At the time, astronomy played such a prominent role in the well-being of the dynasty that it was designated an area of court study. The production of cheonmundo was also based on an objective of identifying a signal for the founding of a new 26

CheollSangyeolchab=yajido (above) Cheonhado (opposite page)

dynasty, in accordance with Heaven's decree. In 1402, the second year of the reign of King Taejong (r. 1400-1418), as a follow-up project to the production of cheonmundo, the court produced a map of the world, Honilgangniyeokdaegukdojido, by integrating a map imported from China, a map of Japan acquired from a Japanese envoy, and a map of Joseon Korea. This map depicts not only the Arabian Peninsula, but also Africa and Europe; it includes all of the Old World that people were aware of at the time. It is especially meaningful that Joseon, a country located at the eastern tip of Asia, was capable of producing such a map, as this

undertaking depended on the transfer of Islamic cartography to China during the Yuan Dynasty, when it ruled over a vast empire. Beginning in the 17th century, Joseon society, which continued to be influenced by the Zhu Xi school of neo-Confucianism, came in contact with Western culture through envoys dispatched to Beijing. Âˇ They were able to acquire Western astronomy and geography books and calendars, as well as Western maps of the world that had been translated into Chinese, through interaction with Western Âˇmissionaries who settled in Beijing. The Western versions of world maps were particularly shocking to Joseon's Confucian scholars. The world maps showing five continents were a radical departure from the Joseon scholars' concept of the world; they still adhered to the neoConfucian concept of China being the center of the world. Cheonhado, a map of the entire world, is one that Joseon scholars produced around the 18th century based on the Complete Map of All Nations from a world geography book titled An Illustrated Explanation of Geography, written by Giulio Aleni (1582-1649), a Jesuit. Like in the Great Map of Ten Thousand Countries, a world map produced in Chinese by Matteo Ricci, the first Jesuit missionary to become adept in Chinese, Aleni' s map also situated East Asia at the center of the world, with China at its center, by plaCing the meridian in the middle of the Pacific. At the time, most Joseon intellectuals sought to interpret this Western version of the world map based on their traditional concepts of the world. Until then, the world they were familiar with consisted of only China and its surrounding areas. Africa, the New World, and Oceania were a world of the unknown that they could not visit and whose actual existence was impossible to confirm. Joseon scholars attempted to understand this unknown world in their own way, by replacing the unknown continents with the strange and monstrous countries described in China's ancient book of geography, Shanhaijing (Book of Mountains and Seas). As such, the circular cheonhado could be called a world map that Joseon

scholars created by incorporating such strange nations as the Nation of One-eyed People and Nation of Three-bodied People mentioned in the Shanhaijing Circular Cheonhado is a representative example of circular maps of the world. The map's circular form is meant to symbolize Heaven. The inner continent is placed at the center, surrounded by inland seas, outer continents, and outer seas. The inner continent consists of China and its neighboring countries, whose existence was known at the time the map was produced. At the center is Mt. Kunlunshan, which was said to be the center of the universe. Pictured in the inland seas and outer continents are the imaginary countries from Shanhaijing At the outermost edges of the map are Busang, a sacred tree that supposedly stood in the East Sea where the sun rises, and

Bangyeoksong, a fabled land where the moon sets. Below Japan in the inner sea are Mt. Bongnaesan, Mt. Yeongjusan, and Mt. Bangjangsan-the three mountains believed to be the home of gods according to Chinese mythology, which reflects the influence of Taoism. Today, more than 10 kinds of cheonhado that reflect a blending of the real and imaginary world, including copies and woodblock prints, remain extant. These also constitute the largest number of a single type of map. Even through the late 19th century, many intellectuals thought that the circular cheonhado was an accurate representation of the world. As for maps of Korea, joseonjeondo is one of the most outstanding. This map reflects not only 27

the traditional concepts of national territory of the Korean people during the Middle Ages, but also the level of scientific knowledge, cartographic technology, and artistic aesthetics that allowed the production of such a map. ]oseonjeondo was undertaken as a state project by prominent scholars and bureaucrats, since a proper understanding of national territory was essential to managing the affairs of state. The major maps produced at this time include joseonbangyeokjido which depicts the provinces of Joseon Korea, and a scaled-down version Dongnamdo. During the late Joseon Dynasty, many accomplished cartographers from outside the government devoted painstaking efforts to mapmaking. Among these endeavors, Jeong Sang-gi, a scholar who lived in the mid-18th century, created an almost flawless depiction of the outline of the

Korean peninsula. His maps were continuously revised and copied, while serving as an indispensable reference not only for the government but the general populace as well. Agukcbongdo, a full map of Korea produced in the late 18th century, which is modeled after Donggukjido, a map of Korea by Jeong Sang-gi, is a magnificent rendering of national territory. The mountain ranges originating from Mt. Baekdusan- the spiritual mountain of Korea-extend continuously to all parts of the nation. This is thought to reflect a topographical representation rooted in traditional geomancy concepts. The islets densely dotting the coastline also reflect a profound knowledge of islands. The extensive mapmaking efforts of the government and private concerns during the late Joseon period culminated with the production of

Most of the ancient maps housed at Gyujanggak were produced after the 16th century. Accordingly, they include world maps that reflect the traditional Middle Age concepts of the world and circular maps of all nations that reflect the changes in perceptions of the world as a result of contact with Western influences.

Circular Cheonhado

Agukchongdo (left) Daedongnyeojido (above)

Kim Jeong-ho's woodblock print of Daedongnyeojido, a detailed map of Korea, in the 1860s. The most distinguished geographer of 19th-century Joseon Korea, Kim Jeong-ho contributed much to the advancement of cartography as well as topography. Through exchanges with such prominent scholars as Choe Han-gi (1803-1877), he adopted the most up-to-date knowledge and latest cartography techniques to produce the Joseon Dynasty:S finest and most detailed map Daedongnyeojido. Daedongnyeojido is drawn to a scale of roughly 1:160,000. The map is divided into 22 segments of 120-ri (1 ri = 0.4 kilometers) intervals from north to south, with each segment being divided at 80-ri intervals, resulting in an album resembling a folding screen. When laid out, the 22 album pages produce a large map measuring 660 centimeters in length and 410 centimeters wide. Of note, Daedongnyeojido is comparable to any map produced using today's surveying techniques. The unique cartographic techniques and methods of

illustration, along with the numerous symbols, woodblock printing technology, and artistic aesthetics featured in the map are unprecedented both in the East and West. The mountains in the map create an impression of a crawling dragon, while to distinguish 1:oads from streams, Kim Jeong-ho drew the roads with almost straight lines and also marked off 10-ri segments. The most unique aspect of Daedongnyeojido is its depiction of mountains. Instead of port~ying individual mountain peaks, the mountain ranges are joined togethe1' in a continuous network This technique, rarely seen in any part of the world, is thus regarded as a distinctive characteristic of Korean cartography. Such a representation of a mountain system is based on its correlation with a river system; every watershed, even if almost flat, is delineated at its relative altitude. This originated from a traditional concept of national territory that perceived mountains and rivers as the skeletal and circulatory systems of the human body, 29

thus reflecting a concept of nature unique to people of the joseon Dynasty. Apart from full maps of Korea, many maps of the capital and provincial administrative districts were also produced during the Joseon period. Special care was taken to produce elegant maps of the capital, as the center of sovereign authority. Seoul, the capital of joseon and home of the king and royal court, commanded absolute authority over other regions. From early on, much effort was devoted to beautifully portraying the capital as the symbol of sovereign authority, while developments in landscape painting contributed to a proliferation of maps of the capital. The map of Seoul shown in Doseongdo is thought to be the finest of its kind among the extant maps today. Overall, it splendidly illustrates the capital's authority, the home of the monarchy. In particular, the mountain peaks are drawn facing outward, like a flower in bloom, which draws attention to the inner space. By including a compass pointing south near the top of the map, this symbolizes the monarch"s southward rule of the co.untry. Gunhyeonjido refers to maps of the regional administrative units bu, mok, gun, and hyeon, which are presumed to have been used since long

ago. However, most of the existing Gunhyeonjido were produced after the 18th century. While a full map of the country had to be drawn at a greatly reduced scale, the maps of counties and prefectures- regional administrative units-were produced at a larger scale. Accordingly, maps of the entire country adopted a more abstract form of expression and used a variety of symbols, whereas maps of regional administrative units, in many instances, portrayed the local areas with greater pictorial detail. The administrative center was also enlarged, while the surrounding districts were shown at a reduced scale. Priority was focused on denoting the elements considered important for regional governance at the time, while minor elements were often deleted. Natnwonbujido, a map of Namwon produced in 1872, is rated as the finest of the existing maps of provincial areas. With beautiful colors, intricate brushwork, and rich detail, it vividly depicts Namwon Village. Mountains were arranged like a frame around the administrative center to highlight the central space. The villages in nearby areas were also rendered in detail and painted in various colors. The roads are marked with red lines that vary in thickness to distinguish between large and small roads. Also represented in detail are

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Gwanghallu, a pavilion made famous by the folktale "Story of Chunhyang," Ojakgyo Bridge, and Dongnim, a forest that was planted to prevent flooding and compensate for the village's geomantic shortcomings. Namwonbujido is indeed an exceptional map that ingeniously harmonizes geography and art. Cbeorongseongjeondo is a map of the administrative center of Yeongbyeon called Cheorongseong, which means impregnable fortress, produced with exquisite brushstrokes. Cheorongseong was so unassailable that it managed to fend off the persistent attacks of Manchurian invaders during their second invasion of ]oseon in 1636. The map realistically and vividly portrays the natural topographical features that enabled the fortress to withstand the assaults. In addition, maps for special purposes were also produced during the Joseon period, a notable example being the maps of mountain areas of royal family burial grounds. These maps uniquely highlighted the topography of the area surrounding a gravesite, based on the geomantic principles of the times. Such maps were frequently found among the genealogy or writings of senior government officials of the Joseon Dynasty. Wangneungsando is a map of the burial grounds of

Mokjo, the great-great-grandfather of Yi Seong-gye, King Taejo, the founder of the ]oseon Dynasty; and his wife. Royal tombs were built with elaborate care, and placed under constant maintenance. It was during this process that such maps as Wangneungsando came to be produced. In keeping with the traditional concepts of geomancy, the overall topography depicted in the map is rotund, while compass directions, based on the symbols of the Oriental zodiac, are inscribed on the contours of the surrounding are~ . As such, the ancient maps preserved at Gyujanggak, though they were not prepared through scientific surveys like today's maps, fully represent the distinct characteristics that defined geographical features at the time of their production. These ancient maps exude a quaint charm that cannot be found in modern maps devoid of artistic creativity. These maps from long ago, created as a work of art, portray life in a small universe where humans and nature lived in harmony by transcending the physical elements. The ancient maps are not like antiques. Rather, they are like a time machine for traveling back to the past. â&#x20AC;˘

SPECIAL ISSUE: GVUJANGGAK

Uigwe Detailed Records of Special Events Han Young-woo Professor of Korean History, Seoul National University

Uigwe are detailed records of special events such as royal weddings, funerals and birthday celebrations as well as large-scale construction projects during the Joseon Dynasty. With their splendidly colored and detailed illustrations, they are highly valued as treasured art works as well.

n 1997, when UNESCO added Suwon's Hwaseong Fortress to its World Heritage list, it was not only Hwaseong's architecture that impressed the evaluation committee .. ... members. The Hwaseong Fortress, built at the end of the 18th century to fulfill the dream of King Jeongjo (r. 1776-1800), is of course a beautiful and valuable cultural asset; however, the 1,500page Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe, a detailed account of the construction process, amazed the evaluators even more. This is because Russia's St. Petersburg and the U.S. capital of Washington, D.C., also developed at the end of the 18th century, do not have such detailed construction records. Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe is only one of the thousands of uigwe that were produced during the Joseon period. Prepared in the basic uigwe format, Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe features hundreds of illustrations at its front. These include an elevation plan of the fortress, as well as the rural palace and its four gates and buildings. Beneath the illustrations are explanations of the dimensions of each building. Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe is thus the equivalent of a modern-day architectural blueptint There are also scores of illustrations of various construction equipment used in the construction, including geojunpgi (a pulley machine used to lift 32

heavy materials) and lathes, along with illustrations of disassembled pieces of equipment with specifications of the different parts. Even the materials and costs required to build the equipment are recorded. A daily chronicle of the construction progress follows the illustrations as well as an accounting of the various materials and amounts required to construct each building, the cost of those materials and the wages paid to the construction workers. For example, the type and amount of lumber, stone and metal used to build the Janganmun Gate are recorded, as well as the number of roof tiles and bricks that were used and the location where the tiles and bricks were produced and how much each cost. The wages of the stonemasons, carpenters,. roofers, bricklayers and other technicians employed in the construction of the building are also documented. Even more incredible is that this uigwe includes a list of all the thousands of artisans who participated in the construction. From stonemaSOI).S to carpenters to plasterers and roofers, the name and address of every artisan and laborer, as well as the number of days they worked and on what they worked, are recorded. In recording the number of days each person worked, quarter-days

are noted, indicating that wages were calculated torical document as well, in that it documents the ruling style of King Jeongjo, who brought about a and paid for even quarter-days. renaissance of the Joseon Dynasty. Although the We tend to presume that since Joseon Korea recording process and contents of uigwe have was a feudal society, people were forcibly mobilized for various large-scale construction projects, been explained through a description of Hwaseongwhile not being paid and having their human seongyeokuigwe, there are other examples worthy of note. rights violated. However, HwaseongseongyeokIn 1795, King Jeongjo journeyed to Suwon's uigwe shows just how mistaken that supposition Hwaseong Fortress, accompanied by his mother, really is. In fact, it appears that not all of the artisans were commoners and while a large number Queen Hyegyeong, and 6,000 subjects to commemorate her 60th birthday, and visit the were apparently slaves, there is absolutely no trace of discrimination between commoner and gravesite of his father, Crown Prince Sa do. Jeongjo paid his respects at the tomb slave. As such, wages were of Crown Prince Sado south of paid according to the number Suwon, distributed rice and salt of days worked, regardless of to the poor of Suwon and sursocial status. rounding areas, and held a banIn addition to the materials quet for elderly residents. He and costs required for the conalso administered civil service struction, there is also a record of examinations for local scholars the building materials that were and appointed the high scorers left over, which makes it similar to government posts. About to an accounting ledger. That 6,000 troops were mobilized such detailed accounts of the for fortress defense exercises. construction were maintained is According to custom, a detailed indicative of just how thoroughaccount of the eight-day visit ly all those who participated in major public works were docuwas prepared under the title Wonbaengeulm.yojeongniuigwe. mented This clearly reveals just Comprising some 1,300 pages, how advanced national adminisWonbaengeulmyojeongniuigwe tration and bookkeeping were in records details of the visit and the Joseon period; even today such a comprehensive system is the various items used during Wonhaengeuhnyojeongniuigwe banchado the journey, such as palannot to be found quins. Haengcbado, which was collectively paintThe palace and fortress of present-day Suwon City, Gyeonggi-do province are being restored on ed by prominent painters of the time, including the basis of Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe, following Kim Hong-do, is an artistic masterpiece. This painting depicts the palanquin in which Jeongjo and the destruction of the original structures during Queen Hyegyeong rode, flanked by 1,800 subjects, the Japanese colonial period (1910-45), while variof which 800 were mounted on horses. This paintous agencies are now re-creating such construcing has recently been introduced to the Korean tion equipment as the geojunggi and lathes that are illustrated in the document. In addition, there people through the public media, while those who have viewed it are invariably awe-struck at is much enthusiam for a project launched to transits intricate detail. l~te Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe into Korean and then having it published since it is such a treaIn addition, this uigwe is particularly noteworthy for recording the menu of each meal that the sured cultural property. King Jeongjo, Queen Hyegyeong, and the 1,800 or Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe is invaluable as a his34

so participants ate during the eight-day trip to Hwaseong. Not only are the types of foods recorded, but also the types and amounts of ingreclients of each dish, the amount served, the cost of preparing the food, and even the types of dishes used to serve the food are all meticulously documented. Indeed, a similar record is not to be found in any other time or place. If you think about proclueing such a record of a president's visit today, the effort that went into this record is all the more amazing. Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe and Wonhaengeul-myojeongniuigwe are only two of the thousands of uigwe produced during the Joseon Dynasty. In addition to palace construction and public works projects, royal weddings, various banquets held for the royal family, state funerals, provincial tours by the king, various sacrificial rites, including those performed at the Jongmyo and Sajik shrines, agricultural demonstrations by the king, sericultural demonstrations by the queen, building of .stone monuments to store the placenta and umbilical cord of a member of the royal family, publication of catalogues such as the Sillok, reception of foreign emissaries, and other significant national events were all occasions for the publication of uigwe. The great detail of uigwe is impressive, but its exquisite illustrations, created by government painters to serve as visual records of the event, are truly masterful works that distinguish uigwe from all other types of records. These individually createel illustrations provided visual references much like today's photographs. Accomplished painters were retained by the state during the Joseon period to create portraits of the royal family as well as uigwe illustrations and maps. In fact, ancient maps of Korea are said to be unsurpassed in their technical and artistic quality. The publication of uigwe during the Joseon period was influenced by Confucian principles, which promoted the transparency of government. Of all the countries and people of the world, none revered Confucianism more than Joseon Korea. Confucianist politics strove to enhance the nation's integrity, thereby promoting public trust. To this end, recordkeeping was developed to an unprece-

dented level. This can be appreciated through an understanding of the joseonwangjosillok (Annals of the joseon Dynasty), which was added to the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 1997. Whereas joseonwangjosillok is a comprehensive political record of the affairs of the state and various government offices, uigwe are microscopic accounts of individual events. Whenever there was a noteworthy national event, the Joseon Dynasty established a dogam, an ad hoc government organization to supervise the event activities: For example, upon the death of a king or queen, a State Funeral Dogam, Dogam of the Royal Coffin Hall and Royal Spirits Hall, and Dogam of the Royal Tomb were established to oversee preparations for the state funeral. Also, if there was a marriage in the royal family, a Celebration Dogam was established to supervise th~ wedding proceedings. Under these dogam, smaller groups called bang would be responsible for handling specific tasks. And after the event was over, each dogam compiled contents for an uigwe. Uigwe records were prepared in several parts. Each dogam prepared a part in advance of the event, which served as an event plan for coordinating the various activities. After the event's conelusion, the contents were revised and supplemented, then compiled into a final uigwe. Whenever a similar event came up, previous uigwe were referred to and used as a model for the upcoming occasion. The1:efore, because it was utilized as a model (gwebeom) for ceremonies (uisik), these records came to be called uigwe. Since the mid 17th century, a special copy of uigwe was produced for the king. Called eo1'a1nyonguigwe (literally, "uigwe for the reading of the king"), they were produced on chojuji, a highquality paper made from grass pulp, while for regular uigwe, jeofuji, a paper made from mulberry pulp was used. In addition, eoramyonguigwe included a cover of high-quality green silk and brass binding, as compared to a cotton-cloth cover and metal binding for regular uigwe. And each page of an eoramyonguigwe was bordered in red, while black was used for regular uigwe. Eoramyonguigwe were easily distinguishable from regu35

lar uigwe in exterior appearance, looking more like a refined work of art than a book Uigwe is an exceptional cultural treasure that is truly unique to Korea. It is a well-known fact that during the "French Incursion" of 1866, which France initiated to retaliate for the killing of French missionaries in Korea as part of the government's suppression of Catholicism, the French troops who invaded Ganghwado plundered only 297 volumes of 174 types of uigwe out of the 6,000 or so books stored at the Ganghwado repository, which were later presented to Napoleon III as spoils of war. Currently housed in the National Library of France in Paris, Korea has long requested the return of these cultural artifacts. Of the some 6,000 books at Gangh wado, the French invaders took only uigwe because of their attractive appearance. The uigwe stored at Ganghwado were eoramyonguigwe that had been kept at the palace but were relocated to Ganghwado because the government thought they would be safer there. It is indeed regrettable that these invaluable eoramyonguigwe remain in France. However, of the 297 volumes of 174 types of uigwe commandeered by the French troops, only about 31 are one of a kind originals; as for the remainder, duplicate copies are stored at Gyujanggak of Seoul National University and the Academy of Korean Studies. These are not eoramyonguigwe, but contain identical contents. Uigwe began to be produced upon the Joseon Dynasty's founding in 1392, and were continuously compiled through the end of the dynasty in 1910. Even during the Japanese colonial period, uigwe covering the deaths of kings Gojong and Sunjong as well as other royal offspring were prepared, but they were not comparable to the quality of those produced during the dynastic period. This is because, during the dynasty, uigwe were wholeheartedly undertaken as national endeavors, however, during the Japanese colonial period, amid the loss of national sovereignty, uigwe were produced on a limited scale by Iwangjik, a royal organization subordinate to the Japanese Government-General of Korea. As such, uigwe production 36

went from being a national project to a family effort of the Jeonju Yi clan. Many of the uigwe compiled during the Joseon period were destroyed or looted during wars. All the uigwe produced before the Japanese invasion of 1592 were lost, being destroyed or plundered by the invaders. However, it is known that numerous uigwe were compiled before the 1592 Japanese invasion because of the references in the

]oseonwangjosillok. The extant uigwe were produced after the Japanese invasion. However, not all of the copies (four to nine) that were prepared have survived. Even after the invasion, copies would be lost for one reason or another. The remaining uigwe are now stored at Seoul National University:S Gyujanggak and the Academy of Korean Studies' Jangseogak. The vast majority is found at Seoul National University's Gyujanggak, about 2,700 volumes of 520 types of uigwe, while the Academy of Korean Studies maintains about 356 volumes of 286 types. Among those remaining today, the oldest are three that were compiled in 1601 which document the funeral of King Seonjo's queen, Uiin. An interesting fact is that one of the uigwe looted by the French soldiers, Gisajinpyorijinchanuigwe was sold to a cheese shop in Paris and then in 1891 was acquired by the library of the British Museum in London, where it remains today. This uigwe records the celebration held at the palace in 1809 to commemorate the 60th year since the coming of age of King Jeongjo's mother, Queen Hyegyeong, and the 60th birthday of King Sunjo's mother, Subin Bak This uigwe is well-known for its exquisite illustrations of the palace celebrations. The uigwe in the Seoul National University collection are mostly those that were housed at Yejo, Chunchugwan, and Uijeongbu in Seoul, and archives at Mt. Odaesan, Mt. Taebaeksan, and Mt. Jeongjoksan in the provinces. The uigwe at the Academy of Korean Studies are mostly from the fortress at Mt Jeoksangsan The Mt Jeoksangsan uigwe were transferred to Jangseogak at Chan&,oyeonggung Palace during the Japanese colonial period and then relocated to the Academy of Korean Studies after liberation. Also, all the uigwe compiled during the

Japanese colonial period were stored at Changgyeonggung's Jangseogak and likewise transferred to the Academy of Korean Studies after liberation. Does this mean that there are no high-quality eoramyonguigwe remaining in Korea? Although most of the eoramyonguigwe compiled before the 1866 invasion were plundered by French troops from Ganghwado, about 40 eoramyonguigwe are preserved at Seoul National University and the Academy of Korean Studies. These had not yet been transferred to Ganghwado from the palace. In addition, most of the eoramyonguigwe compiled after the 1866 invasion are now housed at Seoul National University's Gyujanggak. In particular, the uigwe prepared for Gojong and the Crown Prince after Gojong proclaimed the Great Korean Empire and himself its emperor in 1897 are of excellent quality, with the covers of the Emperor's copies being made of yellow silk, while the Crown Prince's copies were covered with red silk Another thing to remember about Joseon period uigwe is that not all of the sets included four to nine handwritten copies. Some were mechanically printed with movable metal type and presented to the ordinary subjects who attended the event. jinchanuigwe or jinyeonuigwe, which recorded such festive occasions as palace celebrations, are two examples. The previously mentioned Hwaseongseongyeokuigwe and Won-

haengeulmyojeongniuigwe which also documented special events, were printed w ith movable metal ty pe, thus many copies remain today. However, since colored illustrations could not be included in uigwe printed with movable metal type, black-and-white woodblock prints were inserted, while both eoramyonguigwe and ordinary uigwe contained identical text. The detailed content and realistic illustrations of uigwe are so impressive that they have recently attracted the keen interest of both scholars and ordinary citizens. The number of uigwe researchers has increased steadily, as do the events which are based on uigwe records, such as re-creation of palace events. The amount of information contained in uigwe is so vast as to be unfathomable, encompassing such fields of study as art history, court life and the royal family, economic history, political history, handicrafts, and the Korean language. Because uigwe feature an attention to detail of documentation that can hardly be imagined, those who have seen uigwe can only seriously reflect upon how greatly we fail to appreciate the Joseon Dynasty's level of governance and culture of recordkeeping, and just how superficial toda y's recordkeeping culture really is. We need to acknowledge that the secret to the Joseon Dynasty's lengthy existence of 518 years is undoubtedly related to its incomparable recordkeeping. â&#x20AC;˘

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Eojindosadogamuigvve Q.eft),]eongjogukjangdogamuigwe (right)

Earth Architecture . Jeong Hyo-jeong Freelance Writer

Interest in environment-friendly and ecological architecture is on the rise, along with much attention being focused on using earth as a building material. Today, a new architectural trend is gaining momentum that brings together advanced architectural technology and traditional materials.

Sejindang features a combination of wood and earthen-brick construction.

house and the natural environment existing in tranquil harmony. Past the thick earthen walls that bear the passage of time there is a yard, modest kitchen, simple hall with wooden flooring joining the rooms and earthen floors that seem to be indoor spaces at times and outdoor spaces at others, bringing the indoors and outdoors into the house. Such a scene brings much comfort to Koreans. When ancient Koreans built houses, they took care not to disturb the natural surroundings while using materials that nature provided. Therefore, in olden times, nature, the house and its occupants were not unrelated elements but all part of a whole. Traditional Korean houses can be categorized in several ways. They can be classified according to their roofing material, such as saetjip, eulalia or other grasses; neowajip, pine-wood shingles; gulpijip, oak-tree bark; cbogajip, thatched straw; and giwajip, tiles. Then there are houses named after their roof style such as matbaejip, gabled roof, and palgakjip, hipped and gabled roof. Other houses take their name from the material used to build their walls, for example, gwiteuljip, wooden logs; todmnjip, earthen walls; and doldamjip, stone walls.

Yet others get their name from the shape of their layout such as iljajip, straight-line, and houses arranged in the shape of the Korean letters ",ÂˇÂˇ giyeokjajip, " c'' digeutjajip and "u" Jnieumjajip, as well as the Chinese character "EB" jeonjajip No matter what the type of house, earth and wood accounted for 80 percent of the materials used in building traditional Korean houses. The use of earth was especially widespread and diverse. Earth was the primary construction material used for the kitchen floor and furnace, floors of rooms with ondol (underfloor heating system), walls of the house and yard and roof. Sometimes earth alone was used to build structural elements of the house while at times it was mixed with other ingredients to make a filler material for walls and floors. Therefore, it can be said that earth was indispensable to the traditional Korean house. For comfort, most modern houses are constructed mostly of concrete while nowadays earthen houses seem to have vanished. But in recent years, earth has been attracting renewed attention as a utilitarian building material. As such, in recent years, growing attention has been focused on earth architecture. 39

Quite simply, earth architecture involves the building of architectural structures using earth as the primary building material. It has been less than ten years since earth architecture, which had been all but abandoned, started to be researched in earnest. There are several advantages to building a house with earth. Above all; earth is readily available. Function- ally, earth is an excellent conductor and insulator of heat and is thus an ideal material for Korea, where the temperatures and season conditions vary considerably. Earth is also effective in terms of humidity control, ventilation, and sound absorption. In addition, when earthen houses are razed, there is little waste material since the earth can revert to its original state. An earthen house comes from nature and returns to nature as a renewable resource. This environment-friendly characteristic of

earth is among the main reasons that modern Koreans have begun to seriously look into earthen houses in order to take advantage of the wisdom of their ancestors. There are three major methods for using earth as a material to build a house. The first is compacted-earth construction, which involves building a frame, compacting it with earth, and then allowing it to dry to produce the walls. In this case, the compacted earthen walls function as loadbearing elements, supporting the weight of the roof. Because the wall is made of earth that is not mixed with water, the high compaction produces a wall that is durable and sturdy. This method is known widely abroad as pise or compacted-earth construction. A second method is earthen-brick construction, which involves the use of bricks made of earth to build struc-

tures. Earthen-bricks were widely used in Korea during the Japanese colonial period (1910-45) to build tobacco-drying plants. This method of construction calls for much skill on the part of the construction workers. The third method is the earth-filler method in which branches, bamboo, or sugar cane are used to build a lattice frame that is filled with a mixture of earth, straw and water to create walls. However, these walls have to be fitted into a structural framework since they cannot serve as support elements. As for those who have been actively engaged in promoting earthenmaterial architecture recently, it has been found that the compacted-earth and earthen-brick constructi<:m methods offer the most potential for further development. At the forefront of earth architecture is architect Chung Gu-yon, who

has long been interested in this field and has built a number of earthen houses over the years. While long intrigued with the notion of modernizing this age-old technology, after he read Gourna: A Tale of Two Villages, his motivation intensified. He thus began to reflect upon such issues as modernity and tradition, technology and architect(uÂˇe, life and architecture, architecture and society, and architecture and ethical principles. More than anything else, during the 1960s while witnessing the wholesale demolition of old thatched-roof houses, which came to symbolize poverty and backwardness, Chung developed an attachment to the time-worn houses of the Korean countryside. At that time, farmhouses were overlooked in the academic research of traditional architecture.

Interior ofGuinheon in Yeongwol (left) A restaurant built with earthen-brick walls (above) Interior of Sejindang has the atmosphere of a traditional Korean house (right)

As a result, the remaining earthenwall houses, which had been the typical house of Korean commoners, were being ignored. The houses built by countless people who had lived on this earth over the centuries were being buried without a trace. Chung discovered the representative model of an ancient Korean earthen house in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do province.

He learned the methods of building earthen walls from an elderly man in Yesan, Chungcheongnam-do province. Of the various methods for building earthen houses, he took particular interest in compacted-earth construction, using wall frames. An earthenwall house takes full advantage of the benefits of using earth as a building material: it is warm in winter and 41

cool in summer, while the walls can function as load-bearing structural elements and are attractive as well. Chung's work with earthen structures has included the building of a community center with earth, and more recently two earthen houses which highlight the technology and construction methods he has acquired over t<ime. These houses are the Plum House in Chuncheon and Guinheon in Yeongwol, which have boosted Chung's confidence in the potential of earthen-wall construction. 42

Together with the efforts of others, Chung has been able to enhance the detailed finish of these houses and achieve a more natural design. With the Plum House, whose earthen walls stretch out harmoniously along a mountain path, he has sought to highlight the advantages of a traditional Korean house. "Korean houses of the past were a part of nature and therefore embodied the wisdom of nature," Chung said. "However, without any meaningful introspection into our lifestyle,

an 'ecological' house has no meaning. The important thing is not the shape or form of the house but having a proper understanding of the natural environment in which the house is situated. On the basis of the houses of our ancestors, this is the kind of meaning that we must revive once again." Chung mentions this as a warning so as not to overlook the things that really matter as we turn our attention back to houses built by Koreans of the past. The concept of ecological architecture emerged out of environmental concerns, which represent perhaps the most serious issues of contemporary society. Ecological architecture, wh ich adapts to the natural surroundings and climate, encompasses various facets of architecture, including environment-conscious architecture, sustainable architecture, low environmental impact architecture, and synergetic architecture. Environment-friendly architecture aims to minimize the architectural effects on the environment whi le seeking to create a system of recycling for sustainable development, in addition to maintaining a healthy and comfortable living environment, in harmony with nature. The three themes of ecological architecture are low impact, high contact with nature and high amenity. Architect Lee Yun-ha of Nodd .Architecture did not get into building earthen houses for the sake of simply re-creating tradition. Lee started thinking about architecture that could be compatible with the natural environment, an environment-conscio us architec tur e where humans and nature exist in harmony. In the process of considering what building material would best satisfy the conditions of ecological architec-

ture, Lee developed an interest in earth As a building material, earth features all the elements involved with ecological architecture. Lee began to search for ways to adapt earth to contemporary housing and in this process began to look at how ancient Koreans built earthen houses. He learned various methods of building houses with earth, but reached a conclusion that the technique most suitable to today's conditions was earthenbrick construction. Lee explains that earthen bricks complement the functions of an earthen house and have the advan-

A house made of earth and stone (opposite page, top) An earthen-brick house amid natural surroundings (opposite page, bottom) A compacted-earth house with an impressive circular roof (below)

tages of being environment friendly and suitable for mass production. Using earthen bricks to build a house solves the problem of high labor costs posed by compacted-earth and earth-fill construction, which are very labor intensive, thus opening the way for the promotion of earthen houses. However, securing skilled laborers capable of laying the bricks properly remains a major problem. Lee's earthen-brick buildings include Dongdaheon, a teahouse built with earthen-brick walls and Sejindang, a house whose major structural elements are made of wood with the walls being filled in with earthenbricks. From an environmental perspective, both these structures are alternative housing forms related to studies to develop a model for ecological housing. Earthen bricks, once a symbol of poverty, when seen from a fresh perspective can help to introduce the

advantages of earth into contemporary architecture. Based on this conviction, Lee continues to work with earthen bricks. Of course, to promote the wider spread of earthen house construction, further developments in construction methods and design will be required as well. That both Chung, who builds houses with compacted-earth walls, and Lee, who uses earthen bricks, are promoting earth architecture in this age when we are used to the convenience of concrete is a manifestation of their efforts to realize the essence of modernity and tradition. At the same time, it offers a solution for architecture that is sensitive to both nature and humans. Earthen houses resemble the life of humans .who come from the earth and eventually return to the earth. As such, efforts to build Korean houses in such a lifeenriching way will have to continue in the future. â&#x20AC;˘

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INTERVIEW

Seung Hyo-sang Re-creating the Tradition of Korean Architecture Choi Tae-won, Freelance Writer Choi Hang-young, Photographer

f Antonio Gaudi y Cornet's Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona had been built in a Korean city center, would it have been as impressive? No. Only when architecture is in harmony with its surroundings does it truly come to life. That is to say, whatever is built in Korea should be Korean in style. A Korean architect who holds firmly to this principle is Seung Hyosang, president of Irojae Architects & Planners. Asked point-blank, "What is Korean architecture?" he replies without hesitation: "Western architects try to fill space. We try to empty it." As a telling example, he cites the yard. A Western courtyard or garden serves as a foil to the building, while the Korean madang is an independent space with a natural life of its own. He adds that Korean architecture lays little stress on the separate functions of different living spaces. Whereas the rooms of a Western house are named after their function (living room, bedroom, bathroom), Korean rooms are designated only by position: inner room (anbang) or opposite room (geonneon bang). "Function," Seung insists, "was virtually ignored in traditional Korean architecture. You can see that best of

all in the empty madang. The yard was an open space that might just as well be used for a feast as for a funeral."' Historically, the Korean yard was quite unlike the Western or Japanese garden. It was used for all kinds of social gatherings, but it was also a place for pacing in solitary meditation. At other times it was an undefined space whose significance lay precisely in its emptiness. But there was another place that showed the special flavor of Korean architecture: the open hallway, daecheongmaru Âˇ- which provided both shade and breeze in the sultry summer. Glossing over the boundary between inside "\ and out, the hallway expressed the Korean sense of harmony with nature. So there is something very Korean about Seung Hyo-sang's architectural urge to empty a space rather than fill it up. But at first glance, his buildings have a strong feeling of Western modernism, probably due to their minimalist lines and heavy use of concrete. In this he has often been

Seung Hyo-sang at work on an architectural drawing (top left) Seungs work tools: a collection of drafting instruments (top right)

A traditional Korean architectural principle is not to fill space but to empty it. This aesthetics of abstinence, or "aesthetics of poverty," is reflected in the contemporary architecture of Seung Hyo-sang, whose focal point is not the building but the yard.

compared to Japanese architect Ando Tadao, but the analogy doesn't seem to please him. "There may be some similarity in form, but the aesthetic behind it is totally different." An architect's work is bound to be infused with his ideas and Seung's ideas bear a thick streak of folk tradition. Seung Hyo-sang has inherited the idea of the yard as an empty space like the voids in an Asian painting, where emptiness produces its own kind of repletion. But he also draws on another inheritance, as a lineal successor to the two great figures of modern Korean architecture, Kim Chung-up and Kim Swoo-geun. In

particular, he acknowledges his intellectual debt to Kim Swoo-geun as the teacher who imparted to him the whole sensibility of an architect. At Kim's Space Group of Korea, a mecca for Korean contemporary architects, Seung learned "the architect's eye, his stance and even his responsibility to society." He venerated Kim as a teacher of life as well as art and an incarnation of Korean architecture. The two first met in 1971 when Seung enrolled in the Department of Architecture at Seoul National University. As soon as he graduated, he apprenticed under Kim at the Space Group of Korea, where he remained until 1986. During those 15 long years Kim was his only textbook. But when Kim died in 1986, Seung had to close the covers of that well-thumbed book and the next few years were years of struggle. He felt compelled to transcend his teacher's legacy and find his own creativity and originality. Seung began to achieve self-sufficiency in 1986 when he founded his own architectural study center, Irojae. Before long he was designing superb buildings bearing his own unique stamp, such as the Nulwon Building (Busan, 1989), Seongbuk-dong House 45

(Seongbuk-dong, Seoul, 1990) and Sujoldang (Hak-dong, Seoul, 1992). His talents were recognized with the Korean Institute of Architects Award (1991 and 1992), the 4th Kim Swoogeun Architecture Prize (1993), and most recently, an invitation to the Venice Biennale. Seung Hyo-sang is fond of borrowing architectural motifs from Korean tradition for his compositions in bare concrete. As a result, he brings out the plain and robust quality of the unfinished that lies behind the architectural concepts of his ancestors. "From olden days, .. he comments, "Korean builders have seen a wall as

nothing more than a boundary between inside and out, with no need for excessive decoration. In a house with too much adornment, it's hard to see the inhabitants. Architecture is not for decoration, it's for people."' If traditional Korean architecture could realize the spirit of abstinence even in the walls of a building, Seung feels bound to do the same. In 1996, Seung laid out his architectural philosophy systematically in a book. The Aesthetics qf Poverty is sure to be mentioned whenever his name comes up. Its title, he explains, does not mean that we should live in poverty, but that we should have

the wisdom to be content with less. "Poor people don't knock down buildings in a hurry. When they need more space, they either add onto an existing building or they increase the amount of shared space at the expense of private space. The aesthetics of poverty is all about conservation and sharing." He firmly believes that this aesthetics of poverty was embraced by the Korean literati of old, who shunned displays of wealth and made their homes embody a philosophy of abstinence and emptiness. Besides expressing tradition in modern form, Seung lays great stress

on achieving harmony between humans and nature. This aspect of his work can be clearly seen in his current project at Paju Book City. As coordinator of this unusual 100 percent architect-designed development, he has mandated roads that restrict the traffic speed to 20 kilometers per hour, buildings no taller than 15 meters and strict conservation of the existing hills, streams and reed beds. In a word, he is aiming for a green city. An essential part of his architectural philosophy is that just as a building can only come to life when it is in harmony with its surroundings, people, too, must not lose their

ties with nature. "Architecture that preserves the natural environment upholds the value of sharing. When high-rise buildings hide the hills and forests, they deprive people of the right to share the beauty of nature:· "As an architect;· Seung once re-

Welcome City headquarters, with unfinished concrete exterior Qeft) Subaekdang building, whose name means 'house of white" (top) Sujoldang, designed in 1992 (above)

marked, "I would name three outstanding pieces of cultural heritage in Korea. The Jongmyo Royal Ancestral Shrine teaches us about our roots. The humble yard epitomizes the architecture of our lives. And the Demilitarized Zone stands as a doleful monument of our times:· National Treasure No. 227, the Jongmyo Ro yal Ancestral Shrine, where the memorial tablets of the Joseon Dynasty kings and queens are kept, was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995 for its sig47

Seung Hyo-sang is fond of borrowing architectural motifs from Korean tradition for his compositions in bare concrete. As a result, he brings out the plain and robust quality of the unfinished that lies behind the architectural concepts of his ancestors.

nificance in maintaining a 500-year tradition of Confucian memorial rites. But that is not what matters to Seung. Paying little attention to the stylistic and historical aspects of the building, Seung has his own reasons for considering it an emblem of Korean architecture. '}ongmyo expresses the Korean view of death, namely that the souls of the dead do not disappear but interact continually with the land of the living. That's why this austere 117meter-long rectangular building not only embodies the essence of Korean architecture, but has the power to plunge us living souls into a long and

reverent silence. It is both an immortal work of architecture in which form and content are fused as one, and an eternal hometown that gratifies the instinctive Korean desire to return from whence we came. Naturally, Jongmyo also shows the Korean architectural aesthetic of emptiness, for its core is a spacious yard." Seung strives to incorporate into his own designs the Korean architectural prototypes that he finds in old buildings with urban-style spatial configurations, such as the Buddhist temple Seonamsa and the Confucian academy Byeongsan Seowon. But when he turns to the present, his main feeling is sorrow. He finds it undeniable that the rigorous spirit of his ancestors, who imbued every building with a deep philosophy, has been sorely tarnished by their successors. Perhaps this is why he names the Demilitarized Zone, with its half century of untouched natural ecology, as a cultural heritage. "Four kilometers wide and 248 kilometers long, the DMZ's 1,000 square kilometers of natural wilderness is the only part of Korea that has escaped the rush of development." Although it is the product of a tragic era, he implies that our own best legacy is what we have left alone. How will he design buildings in the future? His reply is terse: "Before asking how, we should think .hard about why." He probably means that by focusing only on methods we lapse into an architecture circumscribed by technology. He earnestly believes that architecture can change the shape of human life. Accordingly, he argues that: "A true architect asks himself how he can use space to guide the lives of the people living inside." Currently, Seung is preparing for

an exhibition by building a little city. Named as Artist of the Year by the National Museum of Contemporary Art Korea, he has been allocated a generous space within the museum building in Gwacheon for a largescale display showing how architecture affects our lives. The Aesthetics of Poverty Exhibition will run for two months from August 28, offering much insight into the work of Seung Hyo-sang. In the midst of his busy schedule of preparations fot.. this year's exhibition and his work as coordinator of Paju Book City, Seung recently received some welcome news. On May 11, he was awarded honorary membership in the American Institute of Architects. At the award ceremony in Charlotte, North Carolina, he remarked: "Above and beyond the individual honor, I hope this will become an occasion for Korean archi1 tecture to transcend its parochial condition and become known to the world." His unique architectural aesthetic with its modern application of traditional principles had at last won _ international recognition. The award must have been all the more meaningful to Seung since in 1985 it had "' been bestowed on his teacher, Kim Swoo-geun. From early September, Seung will also be showing his work at the Venice Biennale, where he will represent Korea in an exhibition entitled

Chinese Literary Culture and Architecture, featuring architects from four countries that traditionally shared that culture: China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam. "It will be a good opportunity," says Seung, "to restore the beauty of traditional Korean architec-

ture that has been distorted by the influx of modern ideas from abroad, and to display it in a storybook setting. With European architects getting more interested in East Asian styles, it will also be a perfect chance to show them what we've got." â&#x20AC;˘

The Aesthetics ofPoverty Exhibition, 2002 (opposite page, top) Architectual model ofPaju Book City (opposite page, bottom) A Stai.tway of Senng's studio, lrojae (right)

'·

, ..

Jang ·Yong-haQ· A Lifetime Dedicated to· Paperniaking •.

" Lee Hyoung-kwon, Head, National Research Institute of-Cultural Properties • Cboi Hang-young, Photographer ,

··"

.. /

ncient people used to say, "Paper a thousand years, fabric five hundred years," meaning that paper lasts, twic-e as long as cloth. The quality of Korean paper was so outstanding that the renowned Chinese po_et Su Dong-po sought tc: h ~ ve collections of ~is writings printed on hanji, Korean mul. berry" paper.· . It is believed that tne first pape_r was made about 4,000 years ago from papyrus, a plant of the sedge family, that grew alongside the Nile River. Egyptians soaked strips of its fibrous pith, which were pressed and dried to make paper. In Asia, Cai Lun of Latter Han is credited with having first made paper from vegetable fibers. His paper made its way to Ko ea together with Buddhism. The paper we use today tears easi· ly because it is made from v.:ood pulp whereas ha~ji is light' yet durable becaus.e it is made. from fibers fr:.om the inner skin of pulp from the paper mulberry tree (dcmg. namz:). The best hanji is soft as silk .and durable as rope, while t)ften .• being compared ·t~ the character of the Korean people who take pride in their resilience and perseverance. 50

Looking as natural and resilient as the hanji he makes, the 69-year-old Jang comes from a family ·that was engageq in· the p ~ permaking trade for three generations in Jangseong, .. Jeollanarri-do proyince. His hometown :vas wel1-k~on for papermaking thanks to the abundance of paper mulberry trees in tqe nearby Noryeongsan Mountains. Jang's father learned t ~ skill from his grandfather who used· to make hanji for extra income during the slack farming season. Jang apprenticed under his father fro ~ age 17. The · father anq son reaped quite a fortune operating a factory in the aftermath of the Korean W~r when paper was in· great demand for government docucarrym'gonthetraditionofKorean papennaking,JangYong-hrmstickstotheold ments. methodsratherthanoptingforconvenience: "That .was a really good time. Customers ,even supplied the mulber. ry pulp themselves and paid us in - ~With the advent of low-priced, advance. We just couldn't make the paper fast enough. We didn't need mill-produced paper from the West, · howevei·, the .mulberry money; it just poured in. We kept . paper indussacks of money piled in our close~. try has decl~n . noticeably' since its It • / labor-int~sve processing of mulbercertainly was a good time." Their good time ende@ rather · ry pulp fs so costly. Only a handful · ~ bruptly w [th the spread of maof artisans strive to keep the tra~ion alive, among whom Jang Yang-hun, a c.Rine-mad~ paper tqat reduced .mulresident of q-apyeong, Gyeonggi-do berry pa~r to an essentially useless relic of the. past ex ~ ept for papering province, may be the best.lmown.

which can produce· a 1 strous, finely lattice doors and windows or as textured paper of exceptional duraondol (heated) floor covering. Ondol bility .. Papermakers were naturally flooring usage began to dwindle drawn to this area, f~r1in rapidly as well with the emergence g villages of their own. Nowadays, these vil1 of vinyl and linoleum flooring. About this time, when his· hanji business . lages, which used to bustle in the winte.r when farming was slack, have · was declining, Jang moved to Galong quieted down with all the paper pyeong, eonggi-do with a hope that its pro Mlity to Seoul would artisans except Jang having moved on. Jang first settled in Gapyeong's help boost orders. Oeseo-myeon but set up his shop in He wa? no stranger to Gapyeong Sangcheon:ri after a major flood in i:{ecause his father us~d to procure quality mulberry pulp from there. 1984 ?Wept away most of the village. . jang persevered while most paperGapyeong's rugged mountains, ablfnmakers closed down and was evendance of water and har.sh climate tually ,designated a "human treasure" make it an ideal site for paper mulin the-craft of mulberry papefrriakberry trees to thrive. Whereas the mulberry pulp· from the southern ing. His ·busir:ess was also selected as a "promising ·small and mids ~ e enterregions can be so pithy that the resulting paper will contain imperfec- • prise" by th ~ government. Jang's success.. was the result of not only his tions, Ga~yeong pulp is smooth,

outstanding skill but his foresight as well. When hanji was reduced to wallpaper, he was forced to produce lowcost, chemical-treated paper to get by, but he never stopped making highquality hanji using the traditional production process. The popularity of his paper spread among calligraphers and traditional painters who were .looking for a steady source of fine quality hanji. His reputation so flourished that he was asked to produce the hanji needed to restore ancient publications and cultural relics. His papermaking expertise was widely recognized by scholars of the field such that he was designated master artisan and "Gyeonggi-do Intangible Cultural Property No. 1'6." After this designation, a great honor for an arti-

,. 51 .,

•

·~

·-

Hanji is popular at home and abroad among calligraphers and traditional printers. Colored thread made ofhanji (left) and printed hanji for gift wrapping (right)

san, Jang decided to ,terminate his low-quality hanji operations, and d,evote himself to making only tradi ~ tiona! hanji, while operating . tl!le workshop with his wife and Jin-u, his eldest son. The paper from Jangjibang J ~ ng's Paper Shop, as his workshop 'came to be called, 'is extremely popular among artists, especially calligraphers, ink painters and artists who work with dyes, because it)s thi!il but durable and so finely textured that irik can be evenly applied. Jang's paper .is_also highly sought·abroad,

with many prominenf Japanese -· Jang's hanji-making process bc;gins artists ordering large quantities. with harvesting dry mulberry bark Ja . hgji~an hanji ·evokes wistful after the first frost. The bark is · memories of the old days-that long steamed and pe(ded to get to the lost time when we eagerly listem;d to · inner skin, m bast. The darker outer layer can be used to make paper for our grandmothers telling• us, fairy tales in those little thatched cottages, flooring, but Jang uses only the w'hite inner skin, The basi: is dried in the m ~ onlight seeping through the papered doors. It is a warmth that sun, then.soaked in streat? water for a d~ y , anc! boiled in water mixed emanates from ~he wood, water, wind and· heart of the aFtisan. Jang with lye for bleaching and to extract impurities. The bast is then pounded never uses import ed mulbe'rry pulp with a wooden stick to separate the or chemical additives, <}espite their . convenien,ce, .because .he believes _in fibers, which ar~ placed in a fine mesh sack and rinsed in run~g preser-vatio_n of the tradition of water for further purifcaton ~ The • / ]oseon hanji . that is famed for endur· ing a thousand years. He. believes that · refined fibers are then placeGi in . a vat of water and mixed witli abelmosk by creatiag a medium which incorposap, a kind of natur ~ l plant adhesive rates his soul as an artist, the paper that facili_tates th e softening and will also keep something of himself adhesion of the f.ibers. The solution is alive. ~

)

.· .

.. ~

·Hanji, _the tim~hored

•.

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mulberry paper, h~s

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been popular at hom~ .

and abroad for

its exceptional -quality and durability. It is fast falling out of favor, however;due to the ready

machine-produ~

availabilitY of low-cost, . .

paP.er. Jan9 vong-hun is one ~f .,. .

only a tew individuals .

~ t;red . th ~

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untH the is fully worked in. · Now the fibers are ready f~ be The artisan dips a ·made into' pa~r. bamboo screen into the mixture and . sifts it skillfully sidewise and to and fro to create an even;_thin layer of . fibers, which after .being -drained ontc5 ·a wood board and dried on a heated . steel mat or in the sun, becomes .hanji. rr is sometimes coated with rice starch. -· , ha.nji li~ s in The sectef of. g~uine its raw material -whiCh should come from Korean mulberry tref S·and the J ye, which is not commercially pro/ duced but m ~i de 'from the ash of rice _ . straw and stalks of beans, cotton, red . pepper,: buckwheat and oak wood. . · Aft~r 50 years of filte ~ ing mulber- _ .ry fibers onto a screen, Jarrg still finds - it fascinating to see the white suspen-

sion in the vat become paper. Sifting ~ the -screen rhythmically in the solu tio.n1 he envisC?~S the face of his father who made him hat he is today. "My father passed a ay when I was 33. He used 'to say: 'We die but paper lives a thousand years. Keep at it. Don't ever use chemical bleach, . . it will never do for our hanji.' I didn't understand him fully when he was with me but 'his word? now Jive in my heart" T~e childhood memory ·o f watching his father ' filtering the mulberry fibers and the work- ~ ers jqvially Brinking . wine in -the smoky workshop while ~to king the fire . to steam the mulberry bark remains so vivid

to Jang, who sighs wistfully that only he rem.ains. But then he takes satis-.facti-o n knowing that the _skill he inherited from his. father will be passed on, from his hand ~ to those ofhis. son and then to -his grandchildren. This 'thought inspires Japg to eagerly resume his work at the vat. •

.. -

-r

.. ,.

Seokbo5a11gjeol (Epis€Kles ~ m the Life ofBuddha) printed on hanji with movable ~etal type (left), ~d handicrafts made from hanji (right)

Â· g Island Aw kes:

Os Past an Futu e

he name says it all: A mnyeon means "sound sleep" and do means "island." Thus, Anmyeondo is "where one can have a good night's rest." Recently, however, the island seems to be waking up, playing host to a huge international flower exposition in spring 2002 and welcoming numerous city dwellers. Two factors have contributed to Anmyeondo's transformation: improved accessibility and increased leisure time. The completion of the West Coast Highway means that Seoulites can traverse the 200 kilometers to Anmyeondo in about two hours. Another major change that fueled the transformation of Anmyeondo was the recent introduction of a fiveday workweek system for employees in the financial and public sectors. /

Workers in other fields are also urging the adoption of the new system, which decreases the workweek by one day. As a result, ever more people set off on the weekend to the country to spend time with their family. The proximity and accessibility of Anmyeondo thus attracts many urbanites seeking a refuge from hectic city life. Anmyeondo is part of Taean-gun, Chungcheongnam-do province. Taean is a peninsula whose coast has been designated a marine national park. Anmyeondo, located at the southern tip of the marine park, is 6 kilometers wide, 32.8 kilometeiÂˇs long and 90.3 square kilometers in total area. Anmyeondo is Korea's sixthlargest island with a population of 13,570 residents. The island was originally part of the Taean peninsula. In 1638, during the ]oseon Dynasty

(1392-1910), a canal was constructed at the beginning point of the peninsula in order to provide easier access for ships transporting grain to Seoul. One side of the canal was left without a man-made bank The rise and fall of the tides over 400 years broadened the canal to considerable width, creating an island. The island was again linked to the land w ith the construction of the 200-meter-long Anmyeon Bridge in 1970. Korea's West Coast is a ria, or heavily indented coast, with numerous bays of varying size and a number of islands near the seashore. Anmyeondo is one such island, with many beaches on its western shore. The water depth along the beach is quite deep during high tide but drops sharply enough during low tide to reveal tidal flats at the estuary. Many Koreans enjoy going to Anmyeondo's

..._

Grandma and Grandpa Rocks nearby the Kkotji Beach Resort (opposite page) Tidal flats of Arunyeondo Island (above) Local residents bagging freshly harvested clams (right) Short-necked clams gathered from the tidal flats (fur right)

beaches as well as watching the sunset. Sunsets around October are particularly spectacular, attracting many visitors to the area. The highest mountain on Anmyeondo is the 109-meter-high Guksabong. Anmyeondo is home to many comparable mountains. Plains fill the gaps between the mountains, allowing the residents of Anmyeondo to make their livelihood from farming. Contrary to popular belief, ports and fishing in Anmyeondo are not well developed. Rice and chili peppers are the main crops. Shellfish

collected from tidal flats at low tide is the island's main fishery product. Hwangdo, a small island connected to Anmyeondo by a bridge, reveals vast tidal flats during low tide due to its shallow waters. As the water recedes

during low tide, village.residents follow the sea, collecting short-necked clams. The collection and sale of shellfish is managed on a collective system. The village is home to about 120 57

The completion of the West Coast Highway has brought an influx of visitors from Seoul and nearby cities. Along with the visitors has come commotion, disrupting the sleep Anmyeondo seemed to have been enjoying.

households, each of which collects 40 k-ilograms, or 5,000 kilograms daily. Three-year-old short-neck clams are usually collected, an activity which continues year-round. The shortnecked clams are mostly exported to Japan. Anmyeondo residents appear to have collected shellfish from ancient times. In Gonam, a village at the southern tip of Anmyeondo, is a "shell mound" museum. This small museum displays relics discovered at a shell mound near the village. A number of relics from the Bronze Age as well as the Neolithic Age were discovered in the shell mound, confirming the existence of human beings in Anmyeondo dating back at least to Neolithic times. However, not a single artifact from the Three Kingdoms period (Anmyeondo first belonged to Baekje and was later occupied by Silla)whose relics are found across the nation-has been discovered on the island. Also missing from the island are temples or significant relics from the more recent Goryeo Dynasty or ]oseon Dynasty, which reflect the fact that Anmyeondo was truly a peaceful dormant island, untouched by human influence.

Anmyeondo is known for its pine trees, which grow large and tall thanks to favorable climate and soil conditions. Pine trees from Anmyeondo were used for building palaces, temples and boats during the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392). Historic records show that pine trees from Anmyeondo were also used in the construction of Gyeongbokgung, a palace built at the beginning of the ]oseon Dynasty and later rebuilt in the 186os by the Prince Regent Daewongun, father of King Gojong (r.1863-1907). Pine trees were also used in salt production. However, reckless deforestation during the ]oseon Dynasty reached an excessive level as local salt farms used pine as firewood to produce salt, to the point where the royal court took action, instituting special measures to protect the forest.

Today, as pine trees are no longer used for industrial purposes, a vast pine tree forest has grown on Anmyeondo's low mountains. Koreans have always enjoyed looking at and walking in pine forests, thus a recreation area and promenade have been constructed inside the forest to attract visitors. In addition, in 1988, a 115-hectare forest of pine trees about 80 years old was designated as the Genetic Protection Forest, with an objective of conducting research on and preserving hongsong, or red pine, whose bark is red. Anmyeondo still has many salt farms, but they produce salt using the heat from the sun rather than from pinewood fires. The largest salt farm is about 990,000 square meters in area and owned by a large corporation. In Korea, the owner of a salt

Farming village in the interior of the island (opposite page, top) Newly buil.t "pensions" are popular with visitors (opposite page, bottom) Salt farm on Anmyeondo (right)

farm traditionally divides the salt with his employees according to a certain ratio instead of paying them wages. The tradition lives on today, with workers taking 65 percent of the salt, and the rest going to the company that owns the salt farm. This tradition means that the price of salt is low, although producing salt is hard work and there is a labor

shortage in the salt industry. One young salt farm worker joked that they too should be working five days a week. A 74-year-old man named Yu who has worked in the salt business for 43 years quickly retorted: "What are you talking about? We are off on rainy days!" Thin and darkly tanned, he looked as if he had been pickled in salt.

Small salt farms still exist, but are facing extinction in part because of cheap salt being imported from China. At Seungun-ri, on the coast of Anmyeondo, is a Chinese bladdernut grove. The grove, which was probably formed by seeds floating in from China, has been designated a natural treasure. Young trees raised from seeds collected from this group are being planted alongside the roads in Anmyeondo and it will not be long before these shade trees offer exotic scenery to visitors. Ever since Korea implemented a system of autonomous local government on May 1, 1988, local governments have held a variety of events and festivals to promote their areas and generate revenue. Many such events fail to make a profit due to a lack of creativity and financial support. However, Taean county, where Anmyeondo is located, managed to avoid this fate with a large-scale international flower exhibition in spring 2002 at Kkotji, a beach whose name means "land of flowers." The name originates from the numerous flowers blossoming on its sandy beach. Wild roses used to be the most common, but they have completely disappeared, wiped out by the newly built roads and the stone walls constructed at the edge of the beach. Who would have thought that an . international flower exhibition would be held in a land of flowers now completely devoid of any kind of flowers? The International Flower Exhibition, held from April 26 to May

Luxuriant pine forests (left) Sunset on Anmyeondo Island (opposite page)

-"\

19 last spring, was a smashing success, with 30 countries participating and 1.6 million visitors including 23,000 foreigners. Sales of entrance tickets alone amounted to 218 million won (about $181,670) while flower export agreements worth $4.18 million were concluded. As part of preparations for the event, Taean-gun constructed new roads and renovated old ones, thereby providing improved infrastructure for local residents . As the beauty of Anmyeondo has been promoted through the event, the residents are expecting more tourists and further development of the island. Development, however,

can also bring about destruction of the natural environment. The International Flower Exhibition venue will be scaled down, reorganized, and reopened to the public. Due to a lack of hotels, motels or other lodging, tourists visiting Anmyeondo are offered homestay. To attract more tourism, the residents of Anmyeondo are currently building large Western-style houses to provide accommodations for visitors instead of the old houses, which are small and inconvenient. The new rooms are equipped with a stove, refrigerator, television and shower facilities.

Although such houses do not carry a permit from the local office, the locals call them "pensions" because of their convenient facilities, a remarkable change from the existing homestay houses. At dusk, the sun sinks into the horizon, coloring the West a breathtakingly brilliant red. Anmyeondo residents are so used to such sights that they barely notice it. Such beautiful scenery elicits a different reaction from visitors from the city, however. The sun sinks into the sea, which in turn is soaked with the rays of the sun. Night falls. The fine line between light and darkness is truly amazing. â&#x20AC;˘ 61

s with so many things, the old and the new coexist in Korea's market culture. Traditional outdoor markets still bring an intense vitality to the streets at dawn. At the other end of the spectrum, ultramodern shopping malls rise hundreds of feet in the air and attract shoppers by the thousands. Because Korean markets are so diverse, they are proving to be a great tourist attraction for foreign visitors. One of the most popular markets is Techno Mart, Korea's leading electronics shopping center. Not only does it feature a wide variety of products at reasonable prices, it is also a comprehensive shopping mall with movie theaters, computer game arcades and restaurants. A Dual Role

Techno Mart is a key player in electronics distribution in Korea, which is rapidly growing into an information technology (IT) powerhouse. The market consists of two massive buildings: one is an enormous electronics shopping mall selling home electronics, computers, cell phones, game machines and game software, while the other building is teeming with IT ventures, housing some 150 companies. As such, the production and retail sales of software are integrated, ensuring Techno Mart's position as a driving force in Korea's IT development. In addition to its role as a vital electronics distribution network, Techno Mart also serves as a multifunctional shopping mall, boasting a huge game arcade covering 990 square meters, fashion mall, popular cinema complex, and food court. A variety of events and performances are regularly held at Techno Mart. 62

.. . .

Techno Mart also serves as a multifunctional shopping mall, boasting a huge game arcade covering 990 square meters, fashion mall, popular cinema complex and food court. A variety of events and performances are regularly held at Techno Mart.

Techno Mart is conveniently located nearby the Gangbyeon Station on Subway Line 2. Signs in the subway station provide directions to Techno Mart. For drivers, the two immense buildings at the northern end of Olympic Bridge areÂˇeasy to spot from the road.

Take a Techno Tour Upon entering Techno Mart, the intrepid consumer may see a teeming crowd of shoppers, attracted by the low prices and diversity of clothing and accessories on this floor. Up the escalator on the next floor is the wedding goods shopping center. Many of Techno Mart's customers are couples about to be married since most major Korean wedding presents are household appliances such as refrigerators, including special kimchi Âˇ- models, televisions, washing machines, and audio systems. Other stores in _.,. Techno Mart also sell items for engaged couples, including dishes, blankets and jewelry. Thus Techno Mart offers a kind of one-stop shopping service where all the goods to set up house can be purchased in the same place. Electronics goods and IT-related products, the most important products at Techno Mart, fill the second to eighth floors. A total of 1,700 individual electronics stores are housed in

the mall. At Techno Mart, brand name electronics are sold at about 2030 percent less than the regular market price. This is possible because a large number of stores join together to buy goops wholesa le in large quantities. This is undoubtedly part of the reason Techno Mart attracts 100,000 to 130,000 shoppers on weekdays and 150,000 to 200,000 on weekends. An additional pricing advantage is due to the fierce competition among outlets. With a little legwork, a customer may find a good quality product at an even lower price than expected.

A Different Kind of Mall Techno Mart opened in 1998 as Korea's first comprehensive shopping mall. Electronics markets such as the Yongsan Electronics Market and Sewun Arcade existed before Techno Mart, but in terms of scale and method of operation they resemble tra-

ditional markets in many respects. Like the famous Akiabara electronics market in Tokyo, Japan, these "horizontal" markets consisted of merchants who sold similar products, gathering together and operating independently. In contrast, Techno Mart was created with a theme in mind right from the beginning. A theme market is where one kind of business is conducted on a large scale and combined with diverse cultural and entertainment elements to create a comprehensive shopping mall. It is not just a market but also a cultural and leisure facility centered around shopping. So when people say, "Shall we go to Techno Mart?" they don' t necessarily mean they want to go and buy something. They might see a movie perhaps, sit down to eat, check out new products, and generally have a good time. This type of mall is possible because

Techno Mart houses some 1,700 stores (opposite page). Video and computer games are popular items (right).

unlike the "horizontal" arcades, Techno Mart is operated not by an association of merchants but by a management company that maintains all the facilities. The company, Prime Industries, has successfully managed Techno Mart to this day. Park Sanghoo, who is in charge of public relations for Techno Mart at Prime, says: "Korean markets originally had style and entertainment that went beyond the simple buying and selling of goods. It was our intention to make a new kind of market that combined the comforts of state-of-the-art facilities with the fun of a traditional market." In order to attract customers, Prime holds a variety of events according to season or theme. During the 2002 FIFA World Cup, for example, a special home appliance festival was held for the benefit of foreign customers. In honor of Guus Hiddink, the Dutch coach of the Korean national football team, Philips appliances were sold at

Âˇ-

special prices. Prime also has a range of its own private brand items and a selection of them are always sold at a 40 percent discount, as indicated on price tags. After Techno Mart, similar malls filled with fashion stores have opened in Korea and been very successful. At the traditional Dongdaemun market, for example, high-rise buildings have been constructed and filled with thousands of fashion stores and convenience facilities. The items have changed from electronics to fashion, but other than the items sold, the atmosphere and method of operation of these malls are similar to that of Techno Mart. Fashion malls such as Doosan Tower and Migliore are very popular with foreign tourists and together with Techno Mart are major stops on visitor tour courses.

Shopping at Techno Mart To get a sense of the Techno Mart experience, let's accompany Mrs. Kim

Mee-hee, who has come to buy an automatic camera. To buy something here, customers have to take the escalator to the floor selling the item they desire. Mrs. Kim gets off on the fourth floor and takes a quick look round at all the stores with signs indicating that they sell cameras. When a new customer gets off on their floor, merchants start hawking their goods, calling out to customers to get their attention. As soon as the customer walks inside a store, the merchant immediately begins to show a variety of products. Mrs. Kim chooses a small shop called Samhwa Electronics that has a sign indicating that it specializes in automatic cameras.

1. Seven-stoty computer megastore offers evety conceivable model. 2. A store specializing in portable cassette and CD players 3. PDA (personal digital assistant) shop 4. Digital camera shop 5. Where there's shopping, there's food.

The salesman shows her major brands such as Rollei, Canon, and Samsung, and explains the features and strong points of each one. When - Mrs. Kim says that she wants a camera that is not too complex but has __,_ all the basic features and a warranty, the salesman suggests a Samsung camera, which is. reliable, takes clear pictures, and comes with a one-year warranty. Mrs. Kim has compared prices at three other stores before coming here and is satisfied with the price offered. She buys the Samsung camera. Techno Mart takes pride in its fullservice consumer satisfaction program. If there is anything wrong with a product bought there, or if a store fails to honor any of the promises it made, then a complaint can be lodged at the customer service center operated by Techno Mart. The center han-

dies all complaints quickly in accordance with the Korean laws regulating distribution and retail sale to ensure that the customer is not cheated. This vast complex, which is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., does not reveal all its attractions at once. Those visiting the place for the first time may be surprised and even intimidated by its huge scale and dazzling facilities, but after a few visits, consumers begin to realize that the efficiency and hospitality with which it is operated makes for an enjoyable shopping experience. This massive building, soaring 39 stories high, is brightly lit at night, creating the illusion of a spaceship. Driving along the southern end of Olympic Bridge at night, this skyscraper can be seen from all directions, highlighting the night view of the Hangang River.

This kind of comprehensive shopping mall is distinctly Korean and not easily found overseas. It is possible in Korea because there is an abundant supply of high quality, low-priced Korean goods and an equally endless supply Âˇof customers who are eager to buy them. Techno Mart combines modern consumer culture with the virtues of Korean traditional markets, as customers can still experience the fun of bargaining with storekeepers. When fatigue hits, there are many places to sit down, rest or eat. Shopping is all the more enjoyable because the facilities are clean and the market is as efficiently operated as a department store. Techno Mart features diverse attractions that anyone coming to Korea will find hard to resist. â&#x20AC;˘

Dasik is a press-formed confectionery made of sesame, chestnut, mung bean flour, grain syrup and honey. The press used for making dasik is usually made of wood or porcelain, which is engraved with a design that forms an embossed pattern on each dasik piece. 68

Dasik molds carved in various designs

ewcomers to Korea are often surprised at the number of people who head off toward the mountains at daybreak, an everyday scene at mountains around Seoul. The crowd grows larger as time passes. What are they doing out and about so early in the morning? What could they be carrying in their backpacks? Such curiosity quickly turns to laughter upon learning that they are packing empty plastic bottles. Once these early risers reach their favorite spring on a mountain slope, they fill the empty bottles with spring water, then return home lugging their heavy bounty. The people who go through such trouble to collect spring water, or yaksu, believe that drinking it can help keep them healthy. They think nothing about trekking regularly to their favorite spring. Compared to people in other countries where natural water may

sometimes be unfit for consumption, Koreans take great pleasure in drinking yaksu. People of most regions in China and Europe either boil their drinking water or drink tea. In contrast, Koreans prefer drinking plain water instead of boiled water or some beverage. Buddhism, which was introduced to Korea some 1,600 years ago from India, inc! uded a tea culture along with its religious practices and teachings. Tea first influenced the culinary culture of Korean royalty and later spread to the upper classes, thus creating a cultural gap between. the teadrinking elite and the masses who drank water. Unfortunately, Korea's climate proved unsuitable for tea cultivation, which made it difficult even for the elite class to enjoy tea all the time. As a result, tea became a rare delicacy. Tea was usually prepared for Buddhist ceremonies, making Buddhist temples the center of Korea's tea culture. Tea culture in Korea flourished 69

during the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392) which promoted the virtues of Buddhism. During the ]oseon Dynasty (1392-1910), however, tea culture declined as the ruling class adopted Confucian doctrine. Korea's tea culture eventually reached Japan, which embraced cultural influences from the outside world. The haiÂˇdships of farming not only plagued men but also women who had to look after children and prepare meals after a long day of working in the fields. The government, in light of these difficult circumstances, designated one day each month when culinary delicacies were prepared as a way to promote a healthy family life and to free women from some of their daily burden. Of these monthly celebrations, the most important included Seollal, New Year's, the first day of the first lunar month, and Chuseok, Harvest Moon Festival,

Dasik is one of the most exquisite traditional Korean foods. It is not the kind of delicacy served on a daily basis, but at special family celebrations such as hwangap (60th birthday) or weddings. It also reflects the family's prestige by indicating that the family is aware of the tradition and refinement associated with dasik. the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, when the harvest begins, marking the most abundant time of the year. On these holidays, ancestors were honored with food offerings and

libations in a ceremony called charye, a name derived from the serving of tea, or cha, to ancestors. The food offerings included meat, fish, fruit and special delicacies often elaborately decorated. Rice cakes filled with honey, a rare treat, and nuts such as walnuts and pine nuts were also offered. Oftentimes, gokcha, a type of wine, was used instead of tea, though now wine is more often included instead of traditional tea. As part of these rituals, dasik was served with the tea. In addition to being offered to Buddha and ancestors, tea and dasik were served to guests by the upper class. Dasik is a patterned confectionery shaped with a wooden or porcelain press. The press is engraved with a design, which forms an embossed pattern on each dasik piece. The design would symbolize a family name, a particular purpose such as a

Ingredients for making dasik in five different colors (above) Round dasik molds (right top) Decorating molded dasik with a flower motif (right above)

wish for long life, or a special event like hwangap, or 60th birthday. In families that emphasize formality, even the color of dasik is carefully chosen. The desired taste, color and - texture are taken into consideration in the selection of ingredients and processing. The arrangement of dasik "\ by color on a serving plate reflects the artistic sense of the host, and sets the tone of the celebration.

Today, songhwa is mostly imported from North Korea. The pollen is mixed with honey or grain syrup and press-formed. (1) Mix 2 cups of songhwa powder and 1/3 cup honey (or 2 tablespoons of grain syrup). (2) Grease the press with sesame oil and pack the songhwa mixture in the press.

How to Prepare Dasik Dasik is generally prepared in five colors. A variety of ingredients are used to create the five colors, which involves different processing methods.

Heugimja, black sesame seed, can easily be found in Korean markets and most Asian markets. Roast and grind the heugimja before mixing with grain syrup or water. Pack the mixture into the press (The mixing ratio is the same as for songhwa).

Yellow (Songhwa Dasik) Songlnua, pine pollen, is hard to come by even at Korean markets these days. The pollen forms on pine trees in early summer. The pollen is collected and dried into powder.

e Black (Heugimja Dasik)

Red and Pink (Omija Dasik or Starch Dasik) Wash o1nija (Maxim.owiczia chinensis) and soak in cold water for

about a day to produce omija juice. Mix the juice with mung bean starch. Add honey and grain syrup and knead. Pack the mixture into the press.

e Green (Seungumcho Dasik) The leaves of seungum.cho (Angelica gigas), which grows in northern Korea, is dried and ground. Mix 2 cups of mung bean starch, 1 tablespoon of seungumcho powder, 2 tablespoons of grain syrup, 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, and 1/3 cup of honey.

0 White (Starch Dasik) Mung bean starch is used. The procedure is the same as omija dasik. The only difference is that it does not include omija juice. The dasik pieces are then arranged on a serving platter in a harmonious display of five colors. â&#x20AC;˘ 71

LIVING

Masterpieces of Daily Life Everyday Ceramics Shim Se-jung, Freelance Writer Seo Heun-kang, Photographer

hroughout their long history, Koreans have been fond of ceramics and used them extensively in daily life. Of all art forms, pottery has perhaps the closest ties with everyday life in Korea. Such a statement may seem trite. After all, it is hard to find a nation /

that does not admire the well-crafted products of a potter's wheel, while the usage of the English word "china" identifies the country that usually springs to mind as the motherland of ceramics. Moreover, ceramics are no longer restricted to the privileged few, as they were in Europe a century or two ago, but are widely used on a daily basis all over the world.

But in Korea today, ceramics are taking on a significance beyond the trite and conventional. This has to do with the growing popularity of handcrafted ceramics. After considerable thought, I am still not sure what to call this phenomenon. In Korea, these handmade articles are usually described rather vague ly as "everyday ceramics,"

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saenghwal dojagi. But when it comes to everyday use, Korea has an enormous market for mass-produced ceramics, from imported American Corning ware to various domestic brands. How many ceramic articles are not intended for daily use? Again, "everyday ceramics" are distinguished by being handmade, but this criterion is not completely reliable either. For instance, the ceramics painstakingly handmade by master craftsmen would not be classed as "everyday ceramics." Be that as it may, I believe a somewhat lengthy discussion of "everyday ceramics" will provide impressions of the trend that I would like to examine in this article, which is creating fresh impetus for the potter's craft in Korea. In one respect, these alternative ceramics fully satisfy the traditional definition of a "handicraft," since rather than being mass-produced mechanically, they are carefully handcrafted one by one. Although

some are made by renowned master potters, these craftsmen are often idealists who dream of a popularization of art like that envisaged by British writer and reformer John Ruskin. At least, they seek to keep their prices to a reasonable level, appropriate for art to be used in everyday life. Rather thaÂˇn pursuing self-expression as a creative artist, a ceramicist usually operates a small cottage industry out of a desire for producing household objects of beauty. Some are even amateurs who have learned to make their own ceramics at pottery workshops. To understand this trend more fully, we need to look at traditional

Korean ceramics. Best known among Korean Âˇceramics is the celadon of the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392) and the white porcelain of the ensuing Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). In the early Joseon period, as celadon was giving way to white porcelain, a third type became popular: buncheong. Buncheong was a product of the transitional period when celadon, formerly the preserve of the Goryeo aristocracy, was coming to be more widely used. Later, when the more durable and thinner white porcelain ware was developed, its practical advantages made it the preferred pottery of the ]oseon era. Although white porcelain replaced 73

buncheong in the royal palace, the common people continued to use buncheong until the ceramic industry collapsed due to the Japanese invasions of the 1590s. It is this buncheong tradition that is now being revived in the form and technique of "everyday ceramics." This revival is due above all to the national character of buncheong ceramics. Celadon and porcelain were 74

Korean interpretations of techniques introduced from China, but buncheong was a native Korean product found nowhere else. The current trend in using traditional ceramics as everyday articles began as part of the grassroots nationalist Minjung arts movement of the 1980s. One of its main objectives was to revive the distinctively Korean flavor of buncheong. Buncheong was an ideal

medium because its elegant beauty combined a rustic folk quality, naturalness and contemporary sensibility. Therein lies the beauty of the Kizaemon Tea Bowl, a national treasure of Japan thought to have been produced in Korea or by a Korean potter abducted to Japan, that is praised so highly by Japanese art critic Yanagi Muneyoshi. At the same time, buncheong still maintains the practical values that all true handicrafts must possess. Yanagi, who reinterpreted the arts and crafts ideas of Ruskin and William Morris from an Asian perspective, insisted that the highest form of craft was the people's handmade everyday articles. According to his theory, the craft of a fine artist is divorced from real life, so no matter how magnificent the work, it cannot surpass the beauty of practical function. Industrial production, on the other hand, loses the true nature of a craft through its dependence on economic considerations. The most beautiful craft is to be found in things made by ordinary people thinking only of their practical use while through this utility their lives as a whole become beautiful as well. This process should lead to Yanagi's romantic utopia, the realization of a world, not of mere loveliness, but of beauty. Naturally, Yanagi's norion of folk .arts has not been without its detractors. But today's handmade ceramics are no different from the rice bowls and liquor cups made by the Joseon commoners for everyday use, embellished only with buncheong glaze or decorated with minimalist designs. The patterns formed by the glaze and dents or irregularities in the shape themselves became decorative elements. When these buncheong

ceramics were plundered by Japan during the invasions of the 1590s, they quickly became cherished family treasures. Today's handmade ceramics preserve the character of buncheong or of another indigenous style, onggi ware with a rich brown glaze. These are the vessels of the cottage, not the palace. They do not follow established traditional designs, but are freely adapted to their function. Some reveal an individual potter's style, but they never lose sight of their purpose. Without even trying to be decorative, some potters achieve an elegance for which many are willing to pay the somewhat higher price they command as compared to massproduced ceramics. Part of the attraction of handmade articles is that no two are quite the same. Add use to uniqueness, and you have something deeply personal. Everyday ceramics can be used as soup bowls, sugar bowls, or even ashtrays. But when people buy these ceramics, they are not merely buying a cup or dish for daily use; they feel they are also buying a piece of art, or

Recently in Korea, handmade ceramics have been coming into daily use. With their natural, rustic look, these everyday ceramics carry on the tradition of Korea's unique buncheong. Buncheong was an ideal medium because its elegant beauty combined a rustic folk quality, naturalness and contemporary sensibility. . a piece of Korean tradition. The market for handmade ceramics in Seoul today overlaps with high-class art galleries offering works of fine art such as paintings and sculptures. The goal is not a smooth, flawless, refined and technically perfect object, but a humble, unpretentious, naturallooking item. Believing that this goal should be within the reach of amateurs, most potters producing everyday ceramics teach their craft in

workshops open to the general public. Here you can quickly learn the potter's basic techniques and adapt them to produce your own unique creations. The majority of potteries is clustered in the Icheon area outside Seoul, but it is not hard to find classes in everyday ceramics downtown. These alternative handmade ceramics are not without their limitations. In many ways, they are less convenient to use than the mass-produced brands and they tend to be limited in variety of vessel types as well as beauty of form. But such shortcomings always leave room for improvement. With wider use and improved quality, the ceramic craft can truly thrive in the future. Koreans are about to open the floodgates of an alternative approach that frees everyday aesthetics from economic concerns while enriching our daily life with added beauty. These are the masterpieces of daily life. As Yanagi wrote: "Imagine a kitchen a hundred years ago. It must have been a veritable gallery of domestic art." â&#x20AC;˘

n Korean traditional painting and embroidery, flowers are often depicted together with butterflies. The butterflies symbolize happiness, prosperity, marital bliss, and good fortune. Although the flowers are thought to be feminine and the butterflies masculine, a pair of butterflies signifies a happy husband and wife. Through the ages, the butterfly has been appreciated for its beauty and familiarity. Korea is home to some 266 species of butterfly belonging to 5 families, exceeding those in Germany (200), France (230) and England (69). As the Korean peninsula extends a considerable distance from north to south, it embraces a range of climatic varieties, from arctic to subtropical. A diverse topography of rugged highlands and low-lying plains further enhances the variety of plant life, and hence butterflies, which rely on plants for survival. Butterflies found in Korea include 254 indigenous and 12 migratory species. Of the indigenous butterflies, 199 are native to South Korea and 55 to North Korea. Even the indigenous species are not generally found throughput the peninsula, but rather are restricted to certain regions, altitudes, and seasons. Only about 20 varieties including Parnassius stubbendoifii, Papilio machaon, Colias erate, Pieris rapae, Polygonia c-aureum and Minois dryas are found just about everywhere. The remainder is confined to fairly circumscribed areas. Some live only inland and are not to be found on the ecologically significant islands of Jejudo and Ulleungdo, whereas those that live on Jejudo do not necessarily exist on Ulleungdo. The high mountainous regions of the Hamgyeong-do provinces in North Korea, including Mt. Baekdusan and

the Gaema and Bujeon plateaus, are home to some 55 species of butterfly found nowhere else, including Parnassius nomion, Parnassius eversmanni and Colias melinos. Meanwhile, Graphium sarpedon basks in the mild climate of the south coast and inhabits such islands as Ulleungdo, ]ejudo, and Heuksando. Tongeia fischeri is found on Jejudo and all over the mainland, but not on Ulleungdo. Thermozephyrus ataxus lives only on Mt. Duryunsan and Mt. Daedunsan in Jeollanam-do province, while Rapala arata exists only on Ulleungdo. Other species are altitude-sensitive. The only place in South Korea where you can see Eumensis autonoe or

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Aphanyopus hyperantus is toward the summit of Mt. Hallasan, while kaniska canace is found only high up the slopes of Mt. Seoraksan. In addition, certain butterflies appear at specific times of the year. Callophrys ferrea, Dilipa fenestra and A nthocharis scolymus for inFor its size, Korea boasts a remarkable variety of butterflies. Most Korean species are typical of those from temperate zones in terms of their modest size and subdued coloring.

stance, are only to be seen in April and May, whereas species that appear in spring and summer include Pieris rapae, Papilio xuthus, Papilio bianor and Pontia daplidice. Among those seen in summer and autumn are Lethe Diana, Eurema laeta and Polygonia c-aureU1n. Korea's largest butterfly is the Papilio bianor, whose wingspan can reach up to 35 millimeters in summer, while the smallest is the male Aeromacbus imacbus (Menetries) at about 23 millimeters. The majority are of small or medium size. Few Korean butterflies feature the brilliant primary colors associated with tropical species. Instead, most have subdued coloring that helps to

control the body temperature of butterflies living in temperate zones. A few, such as Sasakia charonda have vivid purple shades or an eye-catching metallic luster. The green metallic iridescence of the Favonius, Neozephyrus and Chrysozephus groups, or the Lycaena phlaeas is no less striking than the elegant Papilio 1naackii (Menetries). According to renowned Korean lepidopterist Suk Ju-myeong, the Papilio maackii (Menetries) is the butterfly most characteristic of Korea. - He explained that this species is bold, attractive, and dignified, with a strong yet gentle quality. And because it lives in the mountains, it remains aloof from worldly affairs, while being a prolific breeder with a large population. Although Japan has named the Sasakia charonda its national butterfly, Korea currently has a national flower (Rose of Sharon) but 1 no butterfly has been so designated. Only two of Korea's butterfly species are detrimental to local agriculture. The caterpillars of the Parnara guttata which used to _ thrive on the leaves of rice plants, have long since been eradicated by pesticides. Pieris rapae caterpillars eat the leaves of cabbage, bok choy, and radishes, but this pest too has been greatly curtailed by chemical treatment. Indeed, in these days of concern about the excessive use of agricultural chemicals, a caterpillar here and there is the mark of a natural organic crop. Most butterflies depend on plants

Papilio xuthus can be seen near villages and on

grassy hills (opposite page) Korea's only carnivorous butterfly, the Lycaena phlaeas has a scarlet metallic sheen (top) T~haumde(bot)

for food. Adult butterflies live on the nectar of flowers, whereas caterpillars eat the petals, shoots and leaves of various plants. This is true of Korean butterflies as well. A few species of butterfly live on insects; the only Korean example being the Taraka hamada whose caterpillars eat tiny aphids while the adult butterflies eat aphid secretions. Butterflies in general are characterized by a coiled straw-like body and two pairs of wings covered with scales. These scales, which play a criti-

cal role in the life of the butterfly, contain pigments whose variegated patterns not only differentiate the sp~cie but enable individual butterflies to recognize their mates. They also help to regulate the butterfly's body temperature, provide camouflage to hide it from predators, and prevent its body from becoming waterlogged in the rain. Species belonging to the "white butterfly" family can have white, yellow, or orange wings. Since they live mainly in .meadows and are exposed 79

to direct sunlight for extended periods, their light coloring helps prevent overheating by reflecting radiant heat. Kaniska canace and Nympha/is xanthomelas which live on the sap from oak branches, have underwings colored to match oak bark, such that when perched on a branch, they fold their wings so only the underside is exposed: Thus, their conservative color scheme contributes to their protection At mating time, the male butterfly chases the female, but even when he catches her, it is difficult to mate without the female's cooperation. To overcome possible resistance, the male Papilio bianor and Elitaea scotosia use their scales to produce an aphrodisiac scent that females find irresistible.

Kaniska canace features a brilliant blue stripe on its wings (left). An endangered species, Aporia erataegi (Linnaeus) (right)

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As for the Genus parnassius group and Luehd01jia puziloi, the male secretes a yellowish-brown substance while mating, which forms what is called a sphragis on the female 's abdomen. Similar to the chastity belts that the Crusaders would have their wives wear when they went off to war, the sphragis prevents the female from mating with another male. The male does not appear to feel similarly constrained to monogamy. Butterflies flitting among the flowers have little practical value for humans, yet they can lift our spirits and stir our hearts. As such, they are appreciated as one of the blessings of nature. Amid the drastic environmental changes of recent years, the butterfly's world has also changed much. Korea has undergone the same transformation as other advanced industrial countries, and with its high population density, such changes have been intensified. As the sphere of human activity relentlessly expands, there is ever less room for butterflies.

Fortunately, there are no reports yet of any indigenous species becoming extinct, but all observers agree that the butterfly population is diminishing throughout the country. Unless care is taken, some of the more localized species could soon disappear forever, as there are already clear signs of danger. In response to this imminent threat, in 1989 the Ministry of Environment designated certain species of wild animals and plants for protection under Article 2, Section 9 of the Environmental Protection Act. These included 21 insect varieties, which was increased to 31 by 1993. In 1998, 42 animals and plants were designated as endangered species, and 141 as protected species. Among these, the Aporia crataegi (Linnaeus) and Eumensis autonoe (Esper) were listed as endangered butterflies and the Spindasis takanonis (Matsumura), Fabriciana nerippe ( C et R. Felder) and Parnassius bremeri (Brewte1') as protected butterflies. "Endangered

1. Colias erate is easy to find in fields and hills between April and October. 2. The largest of Korea's butterflies, Papilio maackii (Menetries) 3. Sasakia charonda is noted for its purple coloring and metallic gloss 4. Callophrys Eerrea lives in sunny valleys during April and May

species" are those at risk of extinction through damage to the natural ecosystem and indiscriminate collection. "Protected species" are those protected by the government because of their scientific importance, scarcity in-

ternationally, or diminishing numbers. In South Korea, it is reported that countrywide, except for the Jeolla-do and Chungcheongnam-do provinces, butterflies which had been known to live in certain areas have either disappeared or are found in much smaller numbers today. The main causes are thought to include changes in vegetation, road construction, excessive collection, and global warming. A common feature of butterflies is that they are prolific and naturally able to recover from a loss of numbers. As long as their living environ-

ment is not damaged, their future is assured. When they dwindle or face extinction, it is usually because of a loss of natural habitat resulting from urban sprawl. Development is a necessary consequence of striving for improved living standards. But when thoughtless development harms the environment, the quality of life is lowered instead of enhanced. My hope is for us to maintain a healthy natural environment in which we can share the joy of life with our colorful friends, the butterflies. â&#x20AC;˘ 81

MASTERPIECES

The Soulful Gaze Boy Attendant Stands Vigil in the Palace of Darkness Kim Seung-hee (Text and photographs) Curator, National Museum of Korea

is face turned slightly to the left, the boy gazes soulfully. Though his eyes are not intent! y focused, they are nonetheless profoundly insightful, capable of seeing the thoughts and reading the minds of humans. These are eyes that peer not into the material world but rather that of the spirits, concerned not only with things of the here and now but of the past and the future.

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The boy dwells in the Myeongbujeon Hall of a Buddhist temple. The dead are destined to visit Myeongbu, the Palace of Darkness, where they await judgment on the karma of their life on earth, according to which they will be sent to hell or heaven, or doomed to be reborn to life in this world in a different form. Korean temples include a number of halls for different purposes. For example, there is typically a main hall of the temple Daeungjeon, dedicated

to Sakyamuni, the Historical Buddha; Eungjinjeon, the Hall of Arhats, dedicated to arhats or Sakyamuni's disciples; and Gwaneumjeon dedicated to Gwaneum bosal (A valokitesvara), the Bodhisattva of Mercy. Myeongbujeon is where prayers are offered for the deliverance of the dead and is dedicated to Jijang bosal (Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva), the guardian of the earth, who declined Buddhahood until he could help all beings attain salvation. The Bod-

Although Buddhism in general declined noticeably under the Confucian-oriented Joseon Dynasty, the Ksitigarbha cult thrived because Confucianism failed to offer an adequate explanation about the afterlife. Buddhism thus came to be justified for its ability to alleviate the fear of death, while the abundance of Myeongbujeon halls reflects the extent to which the cult flourished.

hisattva is flanked by the ten kings of hell who evaluate the lifetime deeds of the deceased. The soul of a dead person is scrutinized ten times in all, , seven times every seventh day, on the lOOth day, and the first and the second anniversary of the person's death. .I Although Buddhism in general declined noticeably under the Confucian-oriented ]oseon Dynasty (13921910), the Ksitigarbha cult thrived because Confucianism failed to offer an adequate explanation about the Âˇ ~ afterlife. Buddhism thus came to be justified for its ability to alleviate the fear of death, while the abundance of "\ Myeongbujeon halls reflects the extent to which the cult flourished. Myeongbujeon also embodied the fervent wishes of the alienated lower classes for recompense in the afterlife for the pain and hardship they endured in their oppressive earthly life. The iconography of Myeongbujeon featuring Ksitigarbha and the ten kings is not complete without the messenger from the other world. Amid the apprehension created by the symbolism of death, judgment and deliverance, there are unexpected figures of a boy and a girl. The

only explanation for the presence of these innocent children among the grotesque figures in such a 1nacabre environment seems to be that they might be young attendants to the ten kings. However, such explanation is not altogether satisfactory because the children appear to be independent rather than subservient to the kings. The contradictory expression of the boy, reslilting from the stern look of his.straight, narrow nose and compassion emanating from his lightly closed lips, perhaps reflects a sincere desire to scrutinize for possibilities to save the soul of the new arrival. The discerning eyes seem to look straight into the soul yet a faint smile hovers on the mouth that turns up at its corners. It is a smile that offers a glimmer of hope and a promise for a new life in the thereafter, a smile of serenity and compassion not natural for a child. This is not an image of death becoming of the palace of darkness but an embodiment of a powerful life force. The boy's body seems awkward and immature under the thick, ill-fitting clothing but it is this awkwardness and immaturity that epito-

Standing Boy wooden statue, 18th c.,_ height 50.6cm (above) Boy Attendant and the Ten Kings of Hell at Seonunsa Temple (opposite page)

mize life itself because it is rich with the potential for development in the future. With its dynamic hemlines, the figure of an innocent boy wearing a lotus leaf-hat that symbolizes rebirth is a ray of life that lights the dark world of death. â&#x20AC;˘ 83

ART REVIEW

THE HISTORY AND CURRENT STATUS OF

HANGEULTYPOGRAPHY KwonHyeok-soo Professor of Visual Communication Design, Kyungwon University

n the past, research on Hangeul fonts and type design was practically nonexistent despite Hangeul's significance in linguistics and typology. Since 1980, however, a wide variety of innovative experiments have been undertaken under the direction of designers of the so-called Hangeul generation , who received an education exclusively based on

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Hangeul, ignoring Chinese characters. Korea's first alphabet, Hangeul (originally named HunwzinjeongeU1n) was promulgated in 1446. In 1443, King Sejong, the fourth king of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), ordered scholars to come up with an alphabet easy enough for the ordinary people to learn and use. Preparation work was already underway, and in 1446, Hunrninjeongeum, or the "proper

sounds to teach the people," was completed. Hunminjeongeum was a success, reflecting almost completely the entire phonological and phonemic system of the Korean language. Hangeul represents the harmony between science (principles of phonetic symbols) and philosophical concept (the rules and logic of the universe), and is thus considered one of

the most significant treasures in the history of writing. Nonetheless, the study of Hangeul fonts and typological design have largely been neglected, with little if "" any significant research or results. The original print of Hunminjeongeum, with the explanatory notes issued at the time the alphabet was promulgated, was not discovered until 1940 while few linguists, even Korean scholars, fully recognized the scientific value and originality of Hangeul until1960. Only in 1980 was a new definition of Hangeul put forth by British lin-

Hangeul gate (opposite page) KimJin-pyongs poster (above left) Venice Biennale 1999 (above right)

guist Geoffrey Sampson, who published a new concept called the '"featural system.'" Although Korea$ tumultuous history inhibited rigorous study of Hangeul, such ignorance and indifference are an embarrassment to all Koreans. For a long time, changes made in the design of Hangeul were virtually all but restricted to converting to a left-right writing format from the traditional top-down system. Discussions on the identity of Korea in the 1970s and the burgeoning nationalism and democracy of the 1980s brought about revolutionary changes in Korean culture an d society, resulting in increased independent research and attention to Hangeul. Designers of the Hangeul generation maintain a traditional outlook on

the shape and molding of the characters, but at the same time, experiment with new ideas. These designers es tablished an environment co nducive tp trying out new print styles, ushering in a world of typography that would lay the grounds for and dictate the field of visual communication in the 1990s. Ever since, young designers have continued their efforts to advance the tradition of extracting the beauty out of Hangeul, in line with the principles and spirit with which it was created. The designers explore the possibility of breaking fr o m the square pattern of Hangeul, a widely perceived limitation in desig ning Hangeul fonts. They are also drawing keen attention with their experiments in digital fonts, online font 85

Discussions on the identity of Korea in the 1970s and the burgeoning nationalism and democracy of the 1980s brought about revolutionary changes in Korean culture and society, resulting in increased independent research and attention to Hangeul.

Various Hangeul typographic designs

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environments and an expanded phonetic symbol system. At the center of the new generation of designers are Kim Jin-pyong (1949-1998) and Ahn Sang-soo (b. 1952). Two recent events provided an opportunity for the public to get a glimpse of their pioneering designs: the Special Exhibition of Kim Jinpyong (October 16-December 4, 2001) at the Typo Festival: Seoul Typography Biennale held last year and the Ahn Sang-soo Hangeul Exhibition of this year. The Special Exhibition of Kim Jinpyong was a landmark event that put Hangeul on the map of world typography. Meanwhile, Ahn Sangsao exhibited works that represent

the so-called typeness of Hangeul, or the aesthetics of the type as a physical entity and a method of expression. The exhibition was the culmination of his Hangeul design activities of 20 years (Rodin Gallery, May 25July 21, 2002). His ex perimental designs-based on his interest in typology as an independent entity with unique physical attributes rather than as a symbol dependent upon language-are reflected in a variety of media, including posters, books, magazines and periodicals. I foresee a rising appreciation for the aesthetics of Hangeul typography because of Ahn Sang-sao's designs. As Ahn has pointed out, Korea has contributed a great deal to the development of typography with Hangeul, one of the most unique and youngest writing systems, and the world's first movable metal printing type. The world's writing is currently dominated by the Roman alphabet, Chinese characters and Arabic. Hangeul, a writing system consisting of phonetic symbols, was invented under unique circumstances, amid the influence of Chinese ideographs. In other words, Hangeul came into existence in a society whose culture was dominated by Chinese letters. Due to its characteristics as phonetic symbols, however, limitations exist. I anxiously await more innovative experiments, further exploration, and a continued search for more possibilities of creating new forms of images. I have full confidence in the creative potential of Hangeul and its universality. The history of typography is being rewritten by the new generation of designers/ artists who are taking the initiative toward the advancement of 21st century design in Korea. â&#x20AC;˘

Cho S&Jn-]ak

Life at the Bottom: The Fiction of Cho Sun-jak Chung Kyu-ung Literary Critic

he 1970s was a defining pericxi for mcxiern Korean literature, especially in regard to fiction. It would be difficult to summarize the literary and historical significance of that decade, whether it be positive or negative, but it can clearly be said that several writers who emerged during this period contributed significantly to narrowing the gap between literary fiction and the public. Known I

These "prostitute novels" do not merely provide readers a superficial portrayal of women prostitutes, but rather by delving deeply into the universal themes of life and society confirm that the life of even those in the small, dark corners of society are in fact connected with the life of everyone else in one way or another. as "70s writers," they were born around 1940 and experienced the madness of war, the misery of poverty during childhood, and a dark age of Korean politics in their youth. They were able to reach out to the public through their writing because they struck a chord with readers by weaving together personal experience and literary creativity. Cho Sun-jak is one of the 70s writers. If experience and creativity are the two pillars of fiction, they are 88

reflected differently by individual writers. There are times when creativity supplements experience, and others when experiences surface in forms disguised through creativity. Looking at Cho's works, it is important to note that his earlier short stories seem to be based primarily on personal experience while his later novels appear to be more deeply rooted in creative imagination. His short stories confirm that his strength as a storyteller is worthy of appreciation. It is apparent that his early short stories are closely linked, directly or indirectly, to his real-life experiences. Born in 1940 in Daejeon, Cho was 10 when the Korean War broke out, with his father being shot and killed soon thereafter. He lived through much hardship, losing two younger siblings to an epidemic, which afflicted him as well, forcing him to drop out of elementary school:- Most of his . childhood was spent in extreme poverty. Despite all this adversity, Cho managed to graduate from a teacher-'s college and get a job as an elementary school teacher. But he soon moved to Seoul with nothing more than a fierce determination to become a writer. After struggling for 10 years, he made his literary debut in 1971 with the short story "Tomb for Patriots," through a competition the

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monthly magazine Sedae sponsored for unsuccessful applicants of the annual spring literature contests. Cho's experience of growing up linder such harsh circumstances is realistically depicted in his writing. He describes his writing as "life at the bottom." In particular, the life of prostitutes make up the central theme of many of his works, including "Tomb for Patriots," "Model Composition" and The Prime of Yeongja, the novel that first won him wide acclaim and is now his best-known work His keen interest in this specific profession could be interpreted as an attempt to explore how these social outcasts respond to society and social situations, as well as society's response thereto. Accordingly, the prostitutes in Cho's novels are portrayed as being at life's pit, without any hope; nevertheless, they are characters who demonstrate that life is worth struggling for. Another important point is that these "prostitute novels" do not merely provide readers a superficial portrayal of women prostitutes, but rather by delving deeply into the universal themes of life and society confirm that the life of even those in the small, dark corners of society are in fact connected with the life of everyone else in one way or another. Cho's intentions are clearly revealed through the transformation of his

characters. In "Tomb of Patriots," Yeong-sik, a welder, and Yeong-ja, a maid at the house of the welding shop owner, are both children of patriotic martyrs who died for their country. They receive an invitation from the mayor of Seoul to participate in a dedication ceremony for the tombs of the patriots, but for them, the event is nothing but a meaningless formality. In The Prime of Yeongja, which is a sequel to the short story, Yeong-ja loses an arm while working as a bus conductor and thus turns to prostitution, while Yeong-sik, after returning from a tour of duty in Vietnam, ends up scrubbing people's bodies at a public bathhouse. Despite the fact that these characters deserve to be compensated for their loss and hardship, they continue falling further toward life at the bottom as a result of societys structural contradictions. In Cho's works that portray children and their world, such as "Premiere," "The Wall" and "Art Contest," the dominant theme is the seemingly insurmountable walls between personal lives and social systems. For instance, in "Premiere" and 'The Wall," the protagonists harbor an intense fear or hatred of their fathers. The fathers in these works represent Cho's obsessively negative worldview. In the context of the

Korean War, the father's madness can be interpreted as the madness of war, and the father's act of bestiality as confusion and chaos amid social alienation. Cho's early short stories, written mostly during the 1970s, are closely linked to the writer's own eX'periences. However, experience that is not supported by creativity cannot be transformed into literature. Consequently, Cho's literary achievement is the ability to complement his unique experience with brilliant creativity. His superb talent as a storyteller is also evident in the series of novels he wrote in the late 1970s, including Miss Yang's Adventures, Solitary Young Man, Pe1ject Love and Life_ on Grid Paper. The essence of Cho Sun-jak's fiction is probably best explained in the writer's own words: "Spending the ten most sensitive years of my life as a teenager tike this, I had an acute experience of life's harsh and treacherous pitfalls. This of preferring resulted in my obse~in the vulgar over the elegant, the desolate over the beautiful, the dark and gloomy existence over the light and bright world. My conscious was armed with hostility and enmity toward everything that common sense deemed normal and healthy." â&#x20AC;˘

NEW

FELWWSHIP PROGRAMS

The Korea Foundation launched its Advanced Research Grant and Postdoctoral Fellowship programs in Korean studies starting in early

2002.

ADVANCED RESEARCH GRANT The Advanced Research Grant program is designed to provide support for the scholarly research and writing activities of Korean studies scholars related to the humanities and social sciences fields, which will advance scholarship in Korean studies. Eligible projects involve research efforts that result in scholarly publications, which are to be disseminated in languages other than Korean. • ELIGIBILITY: Overseas Korean studies scholars with a Ph.D. degree in a subject related to Korea and who are currently engaged in Korea-related teaching and research activities • GRANT TERMS: Personal remuneration and project-related research expenses • GRANT PERIOD: Six to twelve consecutive months • REQUIREMENTS: Grantees are expected to devote full-time effort to the research and writing during the grant period. The Foundation fully expects that the proposed research will result in the publication of its results.

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSlllP The Postdoctoral Fellowship program provides promising and highly" qualified recent Ph.D. recipients with the opportunity to conduct research at leading universities in the field of Korean studies so that they can further develop their scholarship as well as have their dissertations published as manuscripts.

• ELIGIBILITY: Non-Korean scholars who have received their Ph.D. degree in a subject related to Korea within five years of their application but do not currently hold a regular faculty position • FELLOWSHIP GRANT: Stipend support for a 12-month period • FELLOWSHIP PERIOD: A 12-month period in accordance with the academic year of the affiliated institution • OBLIGATIONS OF FELLOWS: - Fellows shall be in residence at the affiliated institution during the academic year, and are requested to participate in the affiliated institution's activities. - Fellows shall revise their doctoral dissertation in the field of Korean studies to produce a publishable manuscript. •INSTITUTIONAL AFFILIATION: A formal affiliation is required with a university or research institution, other than that from which the applicant has received his/her Ph.D, that includes faculty and reference resources related io the applicant's research field. APPLICATION DEADLINE: February 28, 2003 For further information, please contact: Fellowship Program Team The Korea Foundation Seocho P.O. Box 227 1376-1 Seocho 2-dong, Seocho-gu Seoul137-072, Korea Tel: +82-2-3463-5614 Fax: +82-2-3463-6075 E-mail: fellow @kf.or.kr http://www. kf.or.kr

The Korea Foundation's other fellowship programs include: Fellowship for Korean Language Training: Designed to enhance practical use of the Korean language among overseas Korean studies scholars, graduate students, and professionals in Korea-related fields, by providing an opportunity to undertake intensive Korean-language training at a leading Korean university. Fellowship for Field Research (formerly Fellowship for Korean Studies): Intended to promote Korean studies and facilitate research work by Korea-related scholars and specialists by supporting their onsite study and research activities in Korea. Fellowship for Graduate Studies (formerly Graduate Scholarship): Aimed at fostering an expanded pool of young scholars majoring in Korean studies by providing scholarship assistance for graduate students in Korea-related fields at various universities in North America, Europe and Asia. Publication Subsidy Program: Provides financial support for the publication of Korea-related books by major university presses and leading academic publishers worldwide.

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All six million of its p8ispLe cilttered'acr()ss world are precious assets ti:l-Korea: --, .

The Overseas Koreans Foundati ~is cwo rhng ha unified Korean community by expandi~o!tv between Koreans both at home and abroad.

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Fax: 82-2 -3463-2555 • www . ko r ean . net

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