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Yanagi Muneyoshi’s Affection for the Ceramics of Korea

Along with being the founder of the Japan Folk Crafts Museum, Yanagi Muneyoshi was known for his deep affection for Korean ceramics. To acknowledge his role in promoting folk crafts in Japan, the museum is presenting an exhibition of “Ceramics of the Joseon Dynasty” (April 1-June 27).

After the annual appearance of the delightful cherry blossoms in Japan, the warming weather signals the start of a fierce competition among local cultural groups, such as museums and art galleries, to attract audiences to their particular activities and events. This array of cultural programs includes an exhibition of ceramics of the Joseon Dynasty at the Japan Folk Crafts Museum, in Komaba, Tokyo, which provided a chance for viewers to reflect on the graceful elegance and endearing charm of Korean ceramic works.



Japan Folk Crafts Museum
The Japan Folk Crafts Museum was established in 1936 by Yanagi Muneyoshi (1889-1961), an instrumental force behind the folk crafts movement in Japan. The museum houses a collection of some 17,000 works, including a variety of folk craft items, such as ceramics, textiles, and lacquerware. Yanagi Muneyoshi is said to have been deeply impressed by the arts of Korea, especially its ceramics, from the time of his first visit to Korea at the age of 27. He once noted: “Joseon (Korea) is a country that has d great beauty and a place with people who cherish such beauty.” In recognition of his love for the arts and people of Korea, the Japan Folk Crafts Museum maintains a permanent display to introduce Korea’s arts and crafts. Of note, Yanagi Muneyoshi was a scholar who highly assessed the beauty of Korea’s ceramic jars and the sculptural masterpieces of Seokguram grotto. He also praised the aesthetics of Korea’s embrace of practical elegance. And, as a man of action, he led the Japanese folk crafts movement that appreciated the beauty of handmade craft works steeped in the everyday life of people. The exhibition is thus a meaningful opportunity to observe the extent to which the Japanese public admires the exquisite Korean ceramics collected by Yanagi Muneyoshi, a Japanese aesthetics scholar who is first and foremost mentioned whenever discussing the beauty of Korean arts.
The “Ceramics of the Joseon Dynasty, Korea - Special Memorial Exhibition Commemorating 50 Years after Muneyoshi Yanagi’s Death” features 270 works of the Korean ceramics housed by the Japan Folk Crafts Museum. The museum takes much pride in its treasure trove of Korean ceramics, which overall includes some 600 ceramic items of Korea. A majority of these works have been selected and acquired by Yanagi Muneyoshi, as the museum’s founder. Although the collection also includes a few ceramics of the Goryeo Dynasty, including celadon works, it is mainly comprised of ceramics from the late 17th century to the latter half of the 19th century, during the Joseon Dynasty. The museum is a foremost art space where you can view the beauty and grace of Korean ceramics in Japan, in terms of quality as well as quantity.



Admiration of Korean Artworks
Yanagi Muneyoshi’s many art-related achievements include his efforts to make known the true value of Joseon-era ceramics (“Yi dynasty ceramics”) in Japan. He delved deep into the unique formative beauty of Joseon, and regarded the Korean people as creators of extraordinary beauty. He sought to share his views among global audiences by organizing ceramics exhibitions abroad. Inspired by such graceful elegance, he also published various articles on the arts of Joseon. Over time, his personal crusade to promote Korean ceramics became known in Korea as well, while his admiration of Korean art also included an affection for the Korean people. At the same time, he was troubled by the Japanese government’s harsh treatment of Korea and its people, and bravely protested with his pen to oppose Japan’s
wrongful actions.
The Korean ceramics on display include the favorite works of Yanagi. His encounter with Korean arts during his youth served as a turning point in his life, and subsequently influenced the writing of his papers, which laid a foundation for the folk crafts movement in Japan. Yanagi Muneyoshi thus contributed to modern Japanese art as a result of his awareness and fascination with the unique arts and traditional crafts of Korea, which few Koreans fully realized at that time. It is thus hoped that the exhibition will serve as an occasion to broaden interest in the aesthetic values of Korean ceramics among Japanese viewers, along with contributing to closer friendship between the peoples of Korea and Japan.



In conjunction with the commemorative exhibition, the Japan Folk Crafts Museum presented a variety of related activities, including a lecture on the museum’s Korean art collection and a gayageum concert to introduce traditional Korean music. In addition, the Korean Cultural Service in Tokyo will host an exhibition of Yanagi Muneyoshi’s photo albums, manuscripts, publications, and examples from his collection of craft works of the Joseon Dynasty at its galleries on June 9-19, 2010, as part of the events to celebrate the one year anniversary of the opening of its building.

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