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Celadon passed from favor and was
inevitably replaced by white porcelain. This process
began in China in the 14th century. At the same
time in Korea, white pottery began to replace silverware
in the households of the new royal family, as they
followed Confucian precepts and tried to discover
reality simply and soberly.
The ideology of Neo-Confucianism rejected the
elaborate porcelain wares being produced in China,
and instead encouraged the production of a simple,
elegant white ware specifically our own.
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| In the course of the 17th century,
Japanese potters learned the new Chinese styles
and developed the sophisticated Arita pottery culture.
Then European learned the techniques of making porcelain
from Japan and developed their own European pottery
in the early 18th century, produced in particular
the delicate "bone china" in which the
clay is mixed with calcined cow bones. |
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The White Ware produced in Korea in the
Choson Era has its own qualities, differing much from
the works produced in China and Japan at the time:
1) It is marked by the refined
elegance and simplicity characteristic of the Korean gentry.
2) It uses symbolic designs such as dragons, peonies,
arabesque patterns, pine or plum trees, flying cranes.
3) It leaves much of the surface blank, the designs are
painted in a concise, clear manner.
The aesthetics of this White Ware suggest a oneness
with nature.
It is the hallmark of Korea's Choson Dynasty, and reminds
us of the way in which the Korean people of the period
valued thrift, integrity, and simplicity.
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