Traditional Korean patterns are often featured throughout

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

, clothes, porcelain, necessities, and more. These patterns can be recognized either by one of the four time periods they originated from ( The Three Kingdoms,

Unified Silla Unified Silla, or Late Silla (, ), is the name often applied to the Korean kingdom of Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, after 668 CE. In the 7th century, a Silla–Tang alliance conquered Baekje and the southern part of Goguryeo in the ...

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificati ...

Joseon Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...

), or by their shape (character, nature, lettering, and/or

geometry Geometry (; ) is, with arithmetic, one of the oldest branches of mathematics. It is concerned with properties of space such as the distance, shape, size, and relative position of figures. A mathematician who works in the field of geometry is c ...

Korean Traditional Patterns

The longing for a realistic desire or association with the world through a specific object is the principle of charm for Korean patterns. Traditional patterns can be seen as

incantation An incantation, a spell, a charm, an enchantment or a bewitchery, is a magical formula intended to trigger a magical effect on a person or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung or chanted. An incantation can also be performed during ceremo ...

prints depending on whether a wish is realistic for an ideal life. As a result, traditional Korean patterns are seen as

visual art The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts ...

detailed with

symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: Arts * Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism ** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries ** Russian sy ...

, value, and emotion. These prints often capture the beauty of nature, longing for a

utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', describing a fictional ...

, affection, and the prayers for good fortune. One of the major patterns used in Korea is a

peony The peony or paeony is a flowering plant in the genus ''Paeonia'' , the only genus in the family Paeoniaceae . Peonies are native to Asia, Europe and Western North America. Scientists differ on the number of species that can be distinguished, ...

in bloom, symbolizing wealth. Additionally,

pomegranate The pomegranate (''Punica granatum'') is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae, subfamily Punicoideae, that grows between tall. The pomegranate was originally described throughout the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean re ...

s and/or

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...

s are placed in a woman's living space to encourage

fertility Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Fertili ...

. Patterns may also represent a sign, despite whether or not the pattern features fictional subjects. This is mostly shown with a

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

patterns, which is often regarded as a lucky sign depending on the story behind it.

Peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, non-fu ...

patterns invoke

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...

and

longevity The word " longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography. However, the term ''longevity'' is sometimes meant to refer only to especially long-lived members of a population, whereas ''life expectancy'' is always d ...

, representing a mythical peach that was sad to grow in heaven (Xi Wangmu legend, 서왕모 전설). A

carp Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. While carp is consumed in many parts of the world, they are generally considered an invasive species in parts of ...

pattern symbolizes success in life, as presented in a myth. These representations are derived from the artists who created the patterns, or the people who witnessed and experienced such things. Since the

Three Kingdoms Period The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and was followed by the West ...

, traditional Korean patterns were generally involved with Buddhism, in addition to

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

and

Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...

History

The Three Kingdoms Period

It was in the

that patterns showed distinctive Korean styles. The patterns of this period were influenced by

Chinese culture Chinese culture () is one of the world's oldest cultures, originating thousands of years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia and is extremely diverse and varying, with customs and traditions varying grea ...

and

Buddhist art Buddhist art is visual art produced in the context of Buddhism. It includes depictions of Gautama Buddha and other Buddhas and bodhisattvas, notable Buddhist figures both historical and mythical, narrative scenes from their lives, mandalas, and ...

. Because the three kingdoms were in the same cultural zone, the artifacts of the three kingdoms are similar, while at the same time showing respective differences. For example,

four symbols The Four Symbols (, literally meaning "four images"), are four mythological creatures appearing among the Chinese constellations along the ecliptic, and viewed as the guardians of the four cardinal directions. These four creatures are also refe ...

(사신도) were the main theme in

Goguryeo Goguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) ( ) also called Goryeo (), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled most ...

murals. The symbols are also observed in

Silla Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of K ...

earthenware Earthenware is glazed or unglazed nonvitreous pottery that has normally been fired below . Basic earthenware, often called terracotta, absorbs liquids such as water. However, earthenware can be made impervious to liquids by coating it with a ce ...

. The 'Cheonma (天馬, literally translated to the horse of the sky)' drawings in Silla '

Cheonmachong Cheonmachong, formerly Tomb No.155 in South Korea, is a tumulus located in Gyeongju, South Korea. The name "Cheonmachong" means Sky horse tomb. This tomb was built in the style of Silla. Excavation of the tomb began on April 16, 1973 and is beli ...

' royal tomb (천마총) were quite similar to

's mural paintings in a

tumulus A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones buil ...

Unified Silla Period

In the mid-7th century,

unified the

three kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...

and created a new national culture. During this period, Buddhism art especially flourished. As trade with the countries bordering Western China, Unified Silla introduced new crafting technologies and styles. One of the examples of these new patterns was the floral medallion motif pattern (寶相華紋,보상화문). The floral medallion motif pattern was introduced from Persia to Korea and Japan in the 7th century. The fictional flower has eight leaves with sharpened ends. Interests regarding the matter of the afterlife also increased during the period, and were reflected through geometric patterns such as comb-pattern, triangle, circle, and the floral medallion motif.

Goryeo period

Since

endorsed

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

as the state religion, and continued the legacy of the society of the prosperous

aristocracy based on rich Buddhist traditions, Buddhist art flourished. Goryeo patterns tended to be more colorful. Goryeo celadon was painted with patterns such as clouds, lotuses, and cranes. Goyeo lacquerware, inlaid with mother-of-pearl, displayed patterns like chrysanthemum, waterfowl.

Joseon dynasty period

Joseon art was not a product of previous traditionally trained skills, but rather was an independent development from previous traditions. Characteristic of the period was the 'gil sang' pattern, which are translated as lucky signs (길상무늬, 吉祥). Examples of gil sang patterns include Lotus pattern, 'man' (卍) pattern, the ten traditional Symbols of Longevity (十長生), letter pattern and so on. Letter patterns are patterns using Chinese characters (i.e. 부(富)·귀(貴)·수(壽)·복(福)·강(康)·영(寧)·희(囍)) which have the meanings of wealth, honor, long life, happiness and peace respectively and were used with decorative frames.

Usage

Korean traditional patterns were used in architecture, daily goods, and artifacts of Buddhist temples to further emphasize Buddhism. The main purpose for making patterns was decorative, and often functioned to protect the object. For example, '

Dancheong ''Dancheong'' ( ko, 단청; 丹青) refers to Korean traditional decorative colouring on wooden buildings and artifacts for the purpose of style. It literally means "cinnabar and blue-green" in Korean, and is sometimes translated as "red and blue ...

' is a Korean artifact painted with various patterns on a wooden structure. The reason for making the Dancheong pattern was to protect the structure from decay from rain or wind. Dancheong was especially useful at showing colours important to Korea, these were blue, red, black, yellow, white, black. At Court, the order of precedency and position were exhibited through a court suit's embroidered pattern. The King's suit named ' Gonryongpo (곤룡포)‘ was embroidered with a gold dragon. A civil official's suit was embroidered with a crane and a military official's suit was embroidered with a tiger. The number of animals displayed rank. In daily life, patterns used packages, cloth scraps and embroidered pads attached to both sides of a pillow for decoration and a wooden rice-cake pattern maker. Generally, each family had a distinct rice-cake pattern; this pattern was not changed and wasn't used by another family.

Classification

Patterns can be classified by subject matter or meaning. For example, a typical subject matter can be animals like the dragon or the phoenix and plants, such as lotus or bamboo. Or, there are letter patterns like ‘卍’ and geometrical patterns. ''According to meaning, there are the ten symbols of longevity'' (십장생) and complex patterns that represent longing for bearing many sons or longing for success.

Character patterns

Character pattern refers to faces or shapes of humans, mountain gods, Buddha, the Four Devas. Many of those patterns are influenced by Korean past history and culture like Buddhism. One major example of Korean character patterns is the

Dokkaebi Dokkaebi ( ko, 도깨비) are legendary creatures from Korean mythology and folklore. Dokkaebi, also known as "Korean goblins", are nature deities or spirits possessing extraordinary powers and abilities that are used to interact with humans, ...

pattern, which is typically used as a background pattern for older documents, a knife ornamented with silver, and root tile, originating since

era.

Animal patterns

Animals who give goodness or fear to humans often used as subject. When animals are represented as pattern, they were not only existing, but also symbolic of a human's spirit. Figures represent the human face or form, or refer to such pattern expressed fresh, Buddha, deities, imp. ''In Korea, such as the Buddha and the deities, bicheonsang has appeared frequently in Buddhist art''. Animal The existence of which was to benefit the animals fear humans were also frequently used as a material of pattern. When expressed as animal patterns, rather than simply taking only their form. Symbolism has also produced in the human consciousness. * Dragon Dragon is a mysterious animal made real and imaginal animal's strength. The dragon became accepted as the head of all animals. Because dragon has infinite power, people thought of the dragon as a mysterious creature. Jangangsa Dragon, near Busan, Korea

* Phoenix Iran means Phoenix up with a rod and the female, the male sulfur. Love gave birth to the head of the department facilitates all animals is a new imagination. * Fish The fish pattern means richness. That human use fish pattern guessed at the Stone Age. These customs come to fishing life. In Korea, fish patterns could be searched for stones near a residential area in New Stone Age. * Tiger Tiger is third of the 12 zodiac animals. It has trusted doughty, greedy, cruel. But it could prevent harmful diseases. In the Joseon Dynasty period, there are customs to attach picture drawn tiger patterns in the gate to prevent evil.

Plant patterns

Plants were a good subject because they gave much favour to humans and have a beautiful shape. The main subject of plants is a flower. Without a specific symbol, the flower symbolizes beauty, and thus flower patterns often do not represent a specific flower, but rather a common flower shape. * lotus Korea-Andong-Gwangheungsa-Dancheong-04

The lotus is the flower representing Buddhism. It was thought to be a pure symbol because it didn't colour dirty in dirty wetland, And lotus means a disinterested attitude, purification in Buddhism. Lotus carved in the female object is a symbol of creation and reproduction. Also, waterbird can be shown near lotus pattern. This means getting seed of life, in fact, means begetting a son. * chrysanthemum Chrysanthemum is the oldest flower in the orient. It means high integrity and elegance.

Artificial pattern

When using artificial patterns, the meaning of the symbol was considered more important than the design itself. The Seven Treasures (칠보문) are the most common artificial patterns used. The Seven Treasures signify objects which are considered auspicious. The Seven Treasures include: coin, horn of water buffalo, book, wormwood, ornament used for wrapping cloth (방승,方勝), mirror, and percussion instrument (특경,特磬). * The Seven treasure Coin means good fortune, a horn of water buffalo means great fortune, diamond for wrapping cloth is for good wishes. The illustrated book is for smooth office life. Wormwood is a kind of medicinal herb and used to light fires, and is attributed to longevity. Mirrors symbolize king or power. The percussion instrument 'teck kyeong' (a kind of idiophone) (특경,特磬) is a traditional Korean instrument made of jade.

Natural (Landscape) pattern

Nature patterns are patterns that use things found in nature, excluding animals and plants. Common themes are Sun, moon, and stars. Landscapes and strangely shaped rocks are also common. These patterns usually symbolize longevity, because of their immutability. * Cloud pattern Dragon pattern in korea

Cloud is the most common nature pattern. In the past, people believed if they pursued virtue while they lived, they could rise to the sky riding a cloud or attain Buddha-hood. Cloud patterns are also used to represent the dragon's divine spirit. Patterns with cranes are usually also seen with clouds in the background. Cloud patterns are divided into three shapes. The first shape is a cloud being blown in the wind, the second shape is a cloud floating in the sky, and the third is scattered and dotted clouds. These shapes of cloud patterns were different by era. Each pattern reflected different social backgrounds.

Letter pattern

Letter patterns use certain letters as part of the design by continuously placing specific letters. Placing letters with auspicious meanings on an object was believed to bring good luck to the owner. Commonly used letters are: ' Bok (복,福), Hee (희,囍), or Su (수,壽)'. Hangeul Letters Exhibition 23

Geometric pattern

Geometric patterns are patterns formed by horizontal, vertical, and diagonal lines, or circles. These patterns can be found as far back as prehistoric times, and are considered to be the most primitive patterns. Tools made in the Neolithic period and Bronze Age have repeated stripes, circles and concentric circles as designs. These patterns are thought to represent the sun, rays of sunlight, and rain. Other geometric patterns include: * Taegeuk pattern and the Eight Trigrams for divination Taegeuk means development, prosperity by balance of

yin and yang Yin and yang ( and ) is a Chinese philosophy, Chinese philosophical concept that describes opposite but interconnected forces. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the c ...

(negative and positive). '

Taegeuk ''Taegeuk'' (, ) is a Korean term cognate with the Chinese term '' Taiji'' ( Wade-Giles spelling: ''T'ai-chi''), meaning "supreme ultimate", although it can also be translated as "great polarity / duality". The symbol was chosen for the desig ...

' represents ultimate truth that is origin of all creation in Eastern philosophy.{{Cite web, url=http://terms.naver.com/entry.nhn?docId=2114323&cid=50765&categoryId=50778, title=태극,太極 aegeuk patternwebsite=NAVER, publisher=원불교대사전, access-date=2016-11-21 It was mainly used in the Joseon Dynasty period. The

Eight Trigrams The bagua or pakua (八卦) are a set of eight symbols that originated in China, used in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality, seen as a range of eight interrelated concepts. Each consists of three lines, each li ...

for divination is a kind of geometrical symbol representing the basic form of the phenomenal world. Straight line with no break (一) represents 'yang', and Line with a break in the centre (--) represents 'yin (negative)'. One yang sign and two yin sign can be united and two yang sign and one yin sign can be united and each is one of trigrams. The Eight Trigrams for divination is explained all nature phenomenon.

Complex pattern

Complex patterns are patterns that show many compounded subjects. For instance, to emphasize the auspicious nature of the dragon, a symbol of defence against evil spirits, it can be depicted with clouds. Also, a common combination is putting apricot blossoms, which represents spring and longevity, together with palgajo (bird), which represents filial piety. Patterns can be arranged by putting ones with similar meanings together, or combining ones with different meanings to create a new symbol. For the former, a common example is the shipjangsaengmun (十長生), or 10 traditional symbols of longevity, and for the latter, fish and reed can be commonly seen in patterns. Fish represents life's leisure, success in life, prosperity for descendants, and conjugal harmony for couples, but when seen with the reed, it represents longevity. The shipjangsaengmun (十長生) is an example of complex patterns that arranges similar symbols to strengthen the original meaning of the symbol. The ten symbols include: sun, mountain, rock, water, cloud, pine tree, elixir plant, turtle, crane, and deer. Each symbols in the shipjangsaengmun (十長生) stands for longevity, but when used together it strengthens their original meaning. The number ten (十) also represents completeness.

References

Korean culture Patterns Korean design