In the final weeks of November 2023, 45 centuries-old ceramic treasures arrived at the Denver Art Museum after a long journey from their home at the National Museum of Korea. These ceramics are buncheong ware—a style that emerged in Korea during the early Joseon dynasty (1392–1897), beloved by royalty, common people, and foreigners alike. These National Museum pieces are accompanied by modern and contemporary Korean art that draw influence from their distinctive aesthetic—a testament to buncheong’s enduring impact. These historic ceramics and the modern artworks they inspired are on view at the DAM in Perfectly Imperfect: Korean Buncheong Ceramics.
Buncheong ceramics stand out in Korean art history because the roughly 200-year period of their prevalence represents a shift in the aesthetics favored for high-status ritual and daily-use ceramics. Their free-spirited, yet practical forms and decorative techniques cannot be seen in the blue-green celadon of the preceding Goryeo dynasty (918–1392) or the Josean-dynasty whiteware porcelain that eventually surpassed buncheong in popularity, which are both characterized by aesthetic restraint and emphasis on simplicity and perfection of form.
Buncheong ware, in contrast, bursts with personality. Playful surface decoration, organic lines, and asymmetrical shapes give the impression of rusticism when in fact many of these works were high-status objects that require immense technical skill. They are, as the exhibition title suggests, perfectly imperfect, and if you come to meet them during their visit to Denver you will find each brings a distinct personality to the encounter. The exhibition is split across two spaces in our Arts of Asia galleries on the fifth floor of the Martin Building.
Upon entering Perfectly Imperfect in the Jackson Special Exhibition Gallery, you will see six free-standing cases each with a diverse array of buncheong. Each case links to one of four themes further explored in a larger wall case—decorative techniques, the royal court, life and death, and modern influences. Take your time with the works in these free-standing cases—we have included prompts on the labels to encourage you to look slowly, connect, and reflect. Each ceramic will bring something new to your understanding of buncheong.
A lidded jar you’ll find in one of these cases, for example, was crafted for the interment of Prince Gyeyang’s placenta and umbilical cord after his birth in 1427, which was believed to have a profound influence on the infant’s future and, furthermore, the fate of the entire nation. Upon discovering this, you might consider what it means to craft a vessel for something so intimate and sacred, and, if you were curious to explore more objects like this, you would find a larger case nearby with buncheong ware related to funerary traditions.
This jar’s intricate stamping technique presents a delicate chrysanthemum floral motif, signifying a superior quality of jars employed within the royal court. This connects to another adjacent display featuring an array of dishes and bowls utilized in specific governmental offices or royal household, each bearing its office name inscription both inside and outside. The exhibition's pull-out label provides an opportunity to delve deeper into the meaning and rationale behind these inscriptions. (A pull out label is a larger information sheet in a wall-mounted literature holder next to a case with a label that says "read more.” Visitors can take this info sheet out and read in more detail about the objects. There is also one for the big case in the front of the China gallery with all the ceramics).
Other pieces may draw you in with their intricately adorned surfaces, accomplished with two different colored clays—greenish-grey and white. The vessels themselves are sculpted from the more pigmented clay, and white slip (liquid clay) is applied with a variety of techniques for different decorative effects. This is what the term “buncheong” means—it was coined by twentieth-century Korean scholars by combining two words: '분,' 'white-slipped,' and '청,' 'grey stoneware.' On some ceramics, the white slip appears loosely brushed over the surface. On others, it is inlayed into shapes stamped or carved into the vessel. If these richly textured surfaces make you ache to touch them, you are in luck! A nearby case explores seven different decorative techniques, each with a touchable tile commissioned by Colorado-based Korean artist Hyang Jin CHO. Here, you can see and feel surfaces that are inlayed, stamped, carved-away, incised, brushed, and dipped with white slip, as well as one technique that employs iron-oxide pigment to achieve deep brown designs.
Surrounding the historic buncheong ware are modern paintings by celebrated twentieth-century Korean artists that reference buncheong’s distinctive aesthetic. Fans of the K-Pop sensation BTS may recognize the work of YUN Hyong-keun. Lead singer RM paid homage to this artist in his first solo album with the song “Yun,” which takes the form of an imagined dialogue between RM and the deceased painter.
Explore the contemporary influence of buncheong further as the exhibition continues in the Korea gallery. Here, you’ll find works by living artists who bring their own perspective to buncheong ware. From the silvery vessels of HUH Sangwook to the textured, etched paintings of MOON Sungsic, we hope to emphasize the endless ways buncheong ware continues to provide beauty and inspiration over hundreds of years.
Also in the Korea gallery is a case of “failed” buncheong ware—fragments and deformed vessels unearthed from kiln sites across Korea. For every complete vessel you see in this exhibition, there are others that were equally lovingly crafted only to collapse, shatter, or fuse together in the kiln—a true game of chance. While the original maker may have deemed them a failure, these broken or warped vessels provide valuable insight into the firing process and possess a strange beauty of their own that attracted twentieth-century collectors. If these shards bring to mind images of archeologists digging through the kiln-sites, trying to understand how the fragments relate to one another, you may enjoy the 3-D puzzle just feet away from this case, where you can reassemble a buncheong vessel from fragments.
This incredible array of Korean cultural treasures was made possible by the generous support of the National Museum of Korea’s three-year overseas Korean Gallery Support Program and will be on view in Perfectly Imperfect until the end of 2025. If this exhibition leaves you hungry for more, check out our digital exhibition catalog for 3-D object scans, essays, and more.