I.

Introduction

Korean Art and Architecture, the art and architecture of Korea since the New Stone Age (Neolithic period). Korea is noted for its unsurpassed traditions in pottery. Korean art is often a synthesis of Chinese influences and native artistic traditions—such as the use of bold color, natural forms, and lively surface decoration—which produced styles that, in turn, were transmitted to Japan.

II.

Prehistoric Period

The use of pottery was an important feature of the New Stone Age throughout East Asia, and this is reflected in the earliest known Korean artifacts. Coarse-bodied earthenware has been recovered from the late Neolithic period (about 3000 bc). Bronze metallurgy, transmitted from the Mongols about 1000 bc, was quickly mastered by Korean casters. Excavations have revealed bronze and iron objects, including an assortment of ritual bells, small weapons, and mirrors as well, all dating from the 1st millennium bc.

III.

The Three Kingdoms (1st century bc-7th century ad)

More is known of Korean history and art after the 2nd century bc, during the Three Kingdoms period, when China controlled the northern portion of Korea, and the south continued under native rule. Three states—Koguryŏ (Goguryeo), Paekche (Baekche), and Silla—produced art that laid the foundation for much of Korea's artistic development. Paekche, poor in mineral resources, continued the long-established pottery tradition, producing glazed funerary vessels and intricately decorated architectural tiles. Koguryŏ and Silla, while also contributing distinctive gray-bodied stoneware, are most famous for their metalwork, for example, the gold burial crowns worn by the Silla monarchs—tall, delicate headdresses, often embellished with a profusion of small spangles and commalike forms in gold and jade.

The introduction of Buddhism in the 6th century ad provided one of the most significant sources for artistic expression. Silla and Koguryŏ metallurgy is well illustrated by the gilt bronze statues from this period depicting Buddhist deities. The oldest examples of Korean architecture also reflect Buddhist influence. One of South Korea’s renowned Buddhist temples, Pulguksa, was built in the 8th century under the royal patronage of the Silla kingdom, which formally adopted Buddhism in the 6th century.

IV.

Unified Silla (668-935)

The unification of Korea under a powerful Silla monarch stimulated continued artistic growth within the native styles. The technology for highly refined, glazed stoneware was attained during this period and laid the foundation for the remarkable celadon ware of the succeeding dynasty. Buddhism continued to exert a powerful influence in Korean art, with gilt bronzes of the Three Kingdoms period joined by sculpture in gold, cast iron, and stone. Temple building proliferated, and the remains of numerous sites still exist. The Sŏkkuram cave temple, built high on a mountain near Gyeongju in 751, is still in a remarkable state of preservation. Evidence also remains of secular architecture, such as the oldest known observatory in East Asia. The Chomsongdae observatory, which is some 6 m (some 20 ft) high, attests to the level of scientific skill attained by the Koreans in the 7th century.

V.

Koryŏ (918-1392)

The last Silla kings were weak and were succeeded by the Koryŏ (Goryeo) dynasty. The ancient ceramics tradition reached an apogee at this time in the incomparable green-glaze stoneware called celadon; it is characterized by the distinctive color resulting from the gray clay body under a translucent green glaze and is often decorated with motifs stamped or carved onto the surface and then filled with white or brown clay. The most popular forms were vases, desk utensils, and vessels that served either secular or religious functions.

Gilt bronze and gold statuary were widely produced during the Koryŏ period, continuing the sculptural tradition within Buddhist art. The Koryŏ era is most notable, however, for other religious artifacts. Bronze architectural ornaments reveal the decorative sophistication found within temple complexes. Elaborate rituals required utensils of various kinds; the most beautiful were executed in gilt bronze or celadon. In the Koryŏ period, painting first gained importance, again within the Buddhist context. The remaining 14th-century examples reveal an impressive level of accomplishment, which would fully flourish in the succeeding Chosŏn (Joseon) period.

VI.

Chosŏn (1392-1910)

The Korean government was restructured in the 14th century, which prepared for the artistic accomplishments of the Chosŏn period. The major artistic achievements in the Chosŏn dynasty were in two areas: ceramics and painting. The so-called punch'ŏng wares, highly decorated folk pottery, served both artistic and functional purposes. In contrast to this robust pottery are the delicate porcelain wares, most notably the blue and white style that was transmitted from China in the 15th century and which occurs as small vases, water droppers, and brush pots, revealing its favored status among the scholarly class.

From the 15th century on, a professional painting “bureau” existed in Korea. The most important works, however, were produced by amateur-scholars, a tendency found in China as well. In the early Chosŏn period, the most influential force in Korean painting was the landscape tradition of China's Northern Song (Sung) artists. The Koreans did not adhere strictly to the Chinese styles and produced a distinct form of expression using bolder colors, freer brushwork, and subtle humor. Painting of the later Chosŏn dynasty reflects both the conservatism of the Chinese Che school and the individualism of the Korean artists, who experimented with Zen brush painting and innovative styles in calligraphy and continued to use bright colors and lively, secular themes.

The 20th-century art of Korea is still dominated by ceramics, particularly by revivals of interest in Koryŏ celadon and the Chosŏn blue and white style, as well as by painting styles, all of which continue much of the individualism established in the 18th and 19th centuries.

See also Chinese Art and Architecture; Japanese Art and Architecture.