Barrel-shaped Japanese ceramic bottle
Image Credit

Barrel-Shaped Bottle with Peony Motif 모란무늬 장군 (액체를 담는 그릇) Joseon dynasty (1392–1897) Korea. 8 3/4 x 6 1/4 in. dia. Buncheong with inlaid and stamped design. National Museum of Korea: Bequest of Lee Kun-Hee, 2021. © National Museum of Korea.

Perfectly Imperfect

Korean Buncheong Ceramics
Ahora a la vista

Barrel-Shaped Bottle with Peony Motif 모란무늬 장군 (액체를 담는 그릇) Joseon dynasty (1392–1897) Korea. 8 3/4 x 6 1/4 in. dia. Buncheong with inlaid and stamped design. National Museum of Korea: Bequest of Lee Kun-Hee, 2021. © National Museum of Korea.

Perfectly Imperfect: Korean Buncheong Ceramics, co-organized with the National Museum of Korea (NMK), features more than 40 exquisite works of Korean Buncheong ceramics from the 15th century to today, renowned for their white slip and adorned with diverse surface decorative techniques. The exhibition also includes four 20th- and 21st-century paintings as well as 16 drawings by five painters.

Sophisticated, playful, and engaging, buncheong ceramics became a uniquely Korean art form in the late 14th to 16th centuries. Elements of the Buncheong style have remained relevant in modern and contemporary Korean art and have influenced other artistic expressions. Its refined and rustic aesthetic has been admired by generations of potters and artists in Korea and across the world.

Curated by Hyonjeong Kim Han, Joseph de Heer Curator of Arts of Asia, and Ji Young Park, National Museum of Korea Fellow of Korean Art at the Denver Art Museum, along with curators at NMK, Perfectly Imperfect inaugurates unique programs, exhibitions, and collaborations between the NMK and the DAM over the next three years.

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Japanese bottle with fish decorations

Bottle with Fish Motif 물고기무늬 병, Joseon dynasty (1392–1897) Korea. 11 7/8 x 6 3/4 in. dia. Buncheong with iron-painted design. National Museum of Korea: Bequest of Lee Kun-Hee, 2021. © National Museum of Korea.

Black and yellow pastel painting of a summer night sky

Sungsic MOON 문성식, Summer Night 여름밤, 2022. Oil pastel and oil stick on wooden panel; 8 ⅞ x 13 ¾ in. Courtesy of the artist and Kukje Gallery. Photo by Chunho An. Image provided by Kukje Gallery

White elephant-shaped vessel with cone-like shape on its back

Elephant-shaped Ritual Vessel with Tortoise Motif 코끼리 모양 제기 (제사에 쓰이는 그릇), Joseon dynasty (1392–1897). Buncheong with incised design; 9 7/8 x 16 1/4 in. National Museum of Korea. © National Museum of Korea

Paneled painting with brown at the edges and tan in the center

YUN Hyong-keun 윤형근, Umber Blue 청다색, 1980. Oil paint on linen; 44 1/8 x 57 1/4 in. National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea collection. © Estate of YUN Hyong-keun, courtesy of MMCA, Korea

White buncheong cup with two handles at opposite ends

Cup with Two Handles 손잡이 달린 잔, late 1400s–early 1500s, Joseon dynasty (1392–1897). Korea. Buncheong with dipped white slip design; 13/4 x 3 1/2 in. National Museum of Korea. © National Museum of Korea

Blue mineral stone slab

LEE Kang Hyo 이강효, Buncheong Mountain-Water 분청산수, 2020. Red clay with white slip; 19 ¼ x 31 ⅛ x 10 ⅝ in. Collection of the Artist. © LEE Kang-Hyo. Photography © KIM Seong-un

Repeating blue patterned oil painting

KIM Whanki 김환기, 14-XI-69#137, 1969. Oil paint on canvas; 61 5/8 x 36 3/4 x 1 5/8 in. National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea collection. © Whanki Foundation·Whanki Museum. Korea/Courtesy of MMCA, Korea

Circular flask-shaped ceramic sculpture

HUH Sangwook 허상욱, Flask-Shaped Bottle with Plantain Motif 분청은채파초문편병, 2023. Clay with white slip, painted in iron and blue, and silver lustre; 17 ⅜ x 18 ½ x 8 ⅝ in. Collection of the Artist. © Huh Sangwook. Photography © Studio Ye

Barrel-shaped Japanese ceramic bottle

Barrel-Shaped Bottle with Peony Motif 모란무늬 장군 (액체를 담는 그릇) Joseon dynasty (1392–1897) Korea. 8 3/4 x 6 1/4 in. dia. Buncheong with inlaid and stamped design. National Museum of Korea: Bequest of Lee Kun-Hee, 2021. © National Museum of Korea.

Japanese jar with peony and scroll motif

Jar with Peony and Scroll Motif 모란과 넝쿨무늬 항아리, late 1400s, Joseon dynasty (1392–1897). Korea. Buncheong with carved-away (sgraffito) design; 16 ¾ x 12 ½ in. dia. (42.7 x 31.8 cm. dia.). National Museum of Korea.
© National Museum of Korea

Flowerly-patterned Japanese urn

Hyang Jin CHO 조향진, Urn for commemorating April 16th (Part of installation "Inevitable Coincidence"), 2015. Glazed stoneware with stamped design; 16 x 12 in. Collection of the artist. © and courtesy Hyang Jin Cho

Small white lidded bowl

Lidded Bowl 뚜껑이 있는 대접, late 1400s–early 1500s, Joseon dynasty (1392–1897). Korea. Buncheong with brushed white slip design; 4 x 6 ¾ in. dia. (lid); 7 ⅜ x 6 in. dia. (bowl). Bequest of Lee Kun-Hee, 2021. National Museum of Korea © National Museum of Korea

White elephant-shaped vessel with cone-like shape on its back

Elephant-shaped Ritual Vessel with Tortoise Motif 코끼리 모양 제기 (제사에 쓰이는 그릇), Joseon dynasty (1392–1897). Buncheong with incised design; 9 7/8 x 16 1/4 in. National Museum of Korea. © National Museum of Korea

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Korean buncheong ceramics have a fascinating history, though their production in Korea spanned a relatively short period of fewer than two hundred years, from the end of the fourteenth century to the late sixteenth century.

Learn more about this history and the making of Perfectly Imperfect by browsing through the exhibition's digital catalog.

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Perfectly Imperfect: Korean Buncheong Ceramics is organized by the Denver Art Museum and the National Museum of Korea.

This exhibition is generously supported by the National Museum of Korea. Additional support is provided by the donors to the Annual Fund Leadership Campaign and the residents who support the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD). Promotional support is provided by 5280 Magazine and CBS Colorado.