Jar, stoneware with painted and dragged slip, made by Lee Kang-hyo, Korea, ca. 1988.

The jar has a flat unglazed base with a chip at one side. It is of tapering cylindrical shape with two handles at half height. The rim is thick and round edged. The dark brown body is covered with a greenish glaze. Dividing the jar vertically at the handles, there are two slip-decorated areas. One portion is decorated with freely drawn double lines, rising from the foot to the rim, descending in a series of loops. The second section bears parallel lines of slip drawn diagonally across the wall of the jar. A band approximately 6 cm wide at the foot is glazed but with no slip.
The artist is a graduate of Hongik University and his work is inspired by the ceramics of Korea's past, refering specifically to punch'ông and onggi wares.

Given by B.T. Woo

Lee Kang-hyo is one of several modern Korean potters for whom their nation’s rich ceramic heritage, and especially that of the common people, is a fertile bed of inspiration. This vase from the 1980s reveals Lee’s interest in buncheong (‘powdery-green’) ware – stoneware decorated with slip (clay mixed with water) produced in the 15th and 16th centuries. The vase also makes reference to onggi vessels – the dark, heavy earthenware jars used to store condiments.

Applying glaze with the fingers is common among onggi potters in some parts of Korea. Here, Lee has adapted the technique by using his fingers to trail decorations in the buncheong-inspired slip.

FE.1-1993