Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Keywords
Art History, Korea, Folk Art, Landscape, Painting, Ritual Art
Department
Art and Art History
Major
English Literature and Art History
Abstract
The Five Peaks Screen of Korea’s Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) is one of the most iconic works of its time. Nevertheless, the remarkable visual impact and cultural significance of the Five Peaks Screen evades systematic scholarly study, partly because of its generic classification as folk art. In this paper, I will resituate the Five Peaks Screen in the artistic tradition of East Asian landscape painting. When considered in the context of literati painting traditions and relevant popular landscapes, it becomes clear that the design of the Five Peaks Screen coheres to traditional aesthetics to emphasize the ability of artwork to inform and influence life and ritual. Ultimately, I find that, as the local expression of a general idiom for the way in which artistry interacts with ritual culture in the Joseon dynasty, the Five Peaks Screen’s conscious rejection of literati painting aesthetics is an affirmation of tradition.
Faculty Mentor
Kristen Chiem
Funding Source or Research Program
Keck Scholars Program, Summer Undergraduate Research Program
Presentation Session
Session D
Location
Rockwell Academic Center 175
Start Date
3-4-2015 3:45 PM
End Date
3-4-2015 4:00 PM
Imagination and Reality: Landscape and the Folk Culture of Joseon Dynasty Korea
Rockwell Academic Center 175
The Five Peaks Screen of Korea’s Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) is one of the most iconic works of its time. Nevertheless, the remarkable visual impact and cultural significance of the Five Peaks Screen evades systematic scholarly study, partly because of its generic classification as folk art. In this paper, I will resituate the Five Peaks Screen in the artistic tradition of East Asian landscape painting. When considered in the context of literati painting traditions and relevant popular landscapes, it becomes clear that the design of the Five Peaks Screen coheres to traditional aesthetics to emphasize the ability of artwork to inform and influence life and ritual. Ultimately, I find that, as the local expression of a general idiom for the way in which artistry interacts with ritual culture in the Joseon dynasty, the Five Peaks Screen’s conscious rejection of literati painting aesthetics is an affirmation of tradition.