A Companion to Korean Art

From the publisher’s website:

The only college-level publication on Korean art history written in English

Korean pop culture has become an international phenomenon in the past few years. The popularity of the nation’s exports—movies, K-pop, fashion, television shows, lifestyle and cosmetics products, to name a few—has never been greater in Western society. Despite this heightened interest in contemporary Korean culture, scholarly Western publications on Korean visual arts are scarce and often outdated. A Companion to Korean Art is the first academically-researched anthology on the history of Korean art written in English. This unique anthology brings together essays by renowned scholars from Korea, the US, and Europe, presenting expert insights and exploring the most recent research in the field.

Insightful chapters discuss Korean art and visual culture from early historical periods to the present. Subjects include the early paintings of Korea, Buddhist architecture, visual art of the late Chosŏn period, postwar Korean Art, South Korean cinema, and more. Several chapters explore the cultural exchange between the Korean peninsula, the Chinese mainland, and the Japanese archipelago, offering new perspectives on Chinese and Japanese art. The most comprehensive survey of the history of Korean art available, this book:

• Offers a comprehensive account of Korean visual culture through history, including contemporary developments and trends
• Presents two dozen articles and numerous high quality illustrations
• Discusses visual and material artifacts of Korean art kept in various archives and collections worldwide
• Provides theoretical and interpretive balance on the subject of Korean art
• Helps instructors and scholars of Asian art history incorporate Korean visual arts in their research and teaching

The definitive and authoritative reference on the subject, A Companion to Korean Art is indispensable for scholars and academics working in areas of Asian visual arts, university students in Asian and Korean art courses, and general readers interested in the art, culture, and history of Korea.

J.P. Park, June and Simon Li Associate Professor of Chinese Art History at the University of Oxford, UK.

Burglind Jungmann is Professor Emerita of Korean Art and Visual Culture at the University of California Los Angeles, USA.

Juhyung Rhi is Professor of Buddhist Art History at Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Contours of Korea’s Cultural History | Donald L. Baker

Part I Ancient to Medieval Cultures on the Korean Peninsula

1. Early Paintings of Korea: Murals and Craft Decorations | Minku Kim
2. Sculptures of the Three Kingdoms and Unified Silla | Sunkyung Kim
3. Buddhist Architecture, Politics, and Gender in the Three Kingdoms and Unified Silla | Youn-mi Kim
4. Art and Artifacts of Three Kingdoms Tombs | Hyunsook Kang

Part II The Koryŏ Dynasty

5. Introduction and Development of Koryŏ Celadon | Namwon Jang
6. Koryŏ Buddhist Sculpture: Issues and History | Sun-ah Choi
7. The Art of Salvation: New Approaches to Koryŏ Buddhist Painting | Yoonjung Seo
8. Establishing a New Tradition: Koryŏ Buddhist Architecture | Seunghye Lee
9. Arts of Refinement: Lacquer and Metalwares of Koryŏ | Charlotte Horlyck

Part III The Chosŏn Dynasty

10. The Emergence of Confucian Culture: Early Chosŏn Painting | Insoo Cho
11. Transformation: Three Centuries of Change in Late Chosŏn Painting | Chin-Sung Chang
12. Ceramics and Culture in Chosŏn Korea | Soyoung Lee
13. Ritual and Splendor: Chosŏn Court Art | Burglind Jungmann
14. Faith, Ritual, and the Arts: Chosŏn Buddhist Art and Architecture | Unsok Song

Part IV Modern & Contemporary Developments

15. Modern Korean Art in the Japanese Colonial Period | Jungsil Jenny Lee
16. The Long Breath: Postwar Korean Art | Joan Kee
17. Situating Contemporary Art of South Korea, 1980 to 2016 | Young Min Moon
18. South Korean Cinema in the Age of Hallyu | Kyung Hyun Kim