The
use of dancheong in Korea dates back many centuries, and the skillful techniques
developed long ago are still preserved today. Dancheong refers to Korean-style
decorative coloring used on buildings or other items to convey beauty and majesty,
and is done by applying various patterns and paintings in certain areas. Five
basic colors are used: red, blue, yellow, black and white.
In addition to its decorative function, dancheong was applied for practical
reasons as well. It was used to prolong the life of the building and conceal
the crudeness of the quality of the material used, while emphasizing the characteristics
and the grade or ranks that the building or object possessed. Dancheong also
provided both a sense of conformity to certain traditions and diversity within
the tradition.
Ordinarily dancheong refers to the painting of buildings constructed of wood.
Coloring of other buildings or objects may be found as well, adding majesty
to a stone building, structural statues or artifacts.
Due to the absence of buildings that date from ancient times, the history of
Korean dancheong can only be traced via murals in old tombs during the Three
Kingdoms period (57 B.C.-A.D. 668). Particularly, in murals of old tombs from
the Goguryeo Kingdom (37 B.C.-A.D. 668), there remain diverse colored patterns
which show the appearance of dancheong and architectural characteristics of
that period. Along with those murals, colored pictures and lacquerwork excavated
from tombs also show the elements of dancheong.
According to historical records of the Three Kingdoms, only nobility with the
rank of seonggol (those in the royal family qualified to be king) could use
the five colors during the ancient Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-A.D. 668). Unfortunately,
no building decorated with dancheong from that era remains today. Only through
evidence from architectural remains excavated in Gyeongju, the capital of the
Silla Kingdom, can it be deduced that dancheong during that period was quite
delicate and beautiful.
In the Gaoli tujing (Goryeodogyeong, Illustrated Account of Goryeo), written in
the 12th century by the Chinese scholar Xu Jing(Seogeungl), it is noted that
the Goryeo people enjoyed building royal palaces. According to the text, the
structure of the places where the king stayed was constructed with round pillars
and a square headpiece. The ridge of the roof was colorfully decorated and its
configurational structure appeared as if it were about to ascend to the sky.
This description suggests the size and majesty of the palace of the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392), which existed around the 12th century. Xu Jing's book also included
a description of the luxurious dancheong work stating that, "the handrail was
painted in red and decorated with vine-flowers; the coloring was very strong,
yet gorgeous, thereby making the palace stand out among other royal palaces." | | In murals of old tombs from the Goguryeo Kingdom, diverse colored patterns show the early form of Dancheong |
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Buildings from the Goryeo Dynasty that remain standing today exhibit bright
and soft coloring and the dancheong lining shows that the dancheong techniques
used during the Three Kingdoms period were further improved during the Goryeo
Dynasty.
During
the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), Korean dancheong work was further developed
and diversified. The general characteristics of dancheong during that period
were a more expressive style and featured a complex unit pattern and decorative
composition, along with more luxurious coloring.
There were a number of different types of dancheong; even in one particular
building, patterns might be differentiated according to the part of the building
they were located in. Nevertheless, dancheong patterns were systemized in consistent
order. The system of patterns was categorized into four different types based
on the structural characteristics and positions within the decorative composition.
These four types included morucho, byeoljihwa, bidanmuni and dandongmuni.
| Colorful dancheong, where diverse and vivid colors intertwine. |
| Morucho, also called meoricho, was a pattern used in painting both ends of supporting
beams (such as the ridge of a roof) or corners of a building (such as the tip
of eaves). Although the pattern of morucho differed based on the era and the
building, its basic patterns consisted of a green flower, water lily, pomegranate,
bubble, and whi (feather), although it should be noted that the whi pattern
was not featured in Goryeo era dancheong. Using one sample pattern, morucho
was repeatedly used in all the same parts of a building. Naturally, it occupied
the largest amount of space and was most noticeable. Morucho was therefore the
basic dancheong pattern used in almost all types of buildings. During the 18th
and 19th centuries, morucho developed quite diverse styles, showing the vivid
characteristics of Korean dancheong technique. |
Byeoljihwa
refers to decorative painting that utilized a storytelling technique and occupied
the gap between two morucho. It differed based on the characteristics of the
building, and was not used in palace construction; instead, it was most often
employed in the construction of temples.
The content of Byeoljihwa consisted of auspicious animals (such as dragons,
horses, lions, and cranes), the sagunja ("the Four Gentlemen" or plum, orchid,
chrysanthemum and bamboo), or scenes from Buddhist sutras. Though unrelated
to the content of the sutras, the prevailing state of society of the time was
also often depicted in temple byeoljihwa.
Bidanmuni refers to the diverse coloring of rare and elegant designs or geometric
patterns, and was used in various parts of the building, particularly in temples,
while dandongmuni involves the design of a single flower plant or animal, or
the application of a single geometric pattern in one section.
The
colors of dancheong reflected the characteristics of the period. During the
Goryeo period, parts of a building exposed to outside sunlight, such as pillars,
were painted in red, while protruding corners of eaves or ceilings not exposed
to sunlight were painted in greenish-blue, so as to enhance to the contrast
of brightness and darkness. This application was known as the sangnok hadan
(green-top, red-bottom) principle.
During the Joseon Dynasty, red, orange, blue, yellow, green, and seokganju colors
were used profusely. Seokganju, also called juto, denotes red clay or ocher
that yields a dark red or reddish brown pigment typically used for dancheong
and pottery. This mineral pigment, basically ferric oxide of ferrous sulfate,
is noted for its resistance to sunlight, air, water and heat. These were also
mixed with white, Chinese ink color and other ingredients to derive various
other colors. The colors were separated by insecting of white lines, thereby
enhancing the distinctiveness of the pattern's outlining and coloring.
Ordinarily
the order of colors used was determined by the characteristics, size, and appearance
of the building. Usually, however, two to six colors were used following a set
rule. For instance, when a gradual reduction of colors was desired from six
colors, colors immediately after the first and immediately before the last colors
were eliminated first to achieve a 5-4-3-2 order. Coordination of colors for
dancheong consisted primarily of juxtaposing different and complementary colors.
A technique of alternating a warm with a cold color was used to make the different
colors more distinct from each other. Traditionally, typical pigments employed
for dancheong were derived from pyeoncheongseok, a kind of copper ore, for dark
blue and navy blue colors and from malachite for dark greenish blue. These pigments
were preferred because of their vividness, durability and relative serenity.
In addition, the vermilion pigment produced from clay, also a popular color
for dancheong, was mostly imported from China's western regions and was hence
highly valued.
The painting of dancheong was done by dancheongjangs, artisans skilled in the
work of dancheong. A dancheongjang artisan was referred to by a number of titles:
hwasa, hwagong, gachiljang, or dancheong. When the artisan was also a monk,
he was referred to as a geumeo or hwaseung.
For
palace construction, dancheong was done by a governmental office, the Seongonggam.
Seongonggam artisans exclusively carried out dancheong work for palaces and
other places, such as guest houses and government buildings. Temples, on the
other hand, had their own resident dancheongjangs. In addition to performing
dancheong work , however, the temple artisans also engaged in production of
other works, including Buddhist painting and sculpture. Although there were
two different categories of dancheongjang for palace and temple painting, the
technical procedures related to dancheong work were the same. The patterns and
coloring systems were therefore identical for the two categories.
At the beginning of a project, a pyeonsu, or head artisan, was chosen by the
initiating party of the construction project. The pyeonsu then selected the
format of dancheong for the pertinent building and chose the patterns to be
used. From the mixing of colors to instruction about construction procedures,
the pyeonsu was responsible for the completion of dancheong in its entirety.
Upon the beginning of dancheong work, a sample pattern was created for use in
generating the same pattern of the pertinent parts of the building. This procedure
was called chulcho. A bluish-green color was used as the base color, after which
the pattern was placed on the desired spots of the building. This is done by
pounding a powder sack over a paper transfer on which the design was outlined
with pin holes. This work was referred to as tacho.
After the above procedures, coloring could finally be done. When coloring, each
artisan painted only one color. The number of artisans employed in painting
equalled the number of colors used in the design. Through such construction
procedures, dancheong work was executed efficiently.