As a textile and interior designer, and as a business owner, Chang Eungbok has been involved in many design projects in various fields over the past thirty years. It has been a journey of constant searching for what is “Korean” in design. Her goal is that Koreans and non-Koreans may come to better understand and appreciate the sense of beauty that our Korean forebears long enjoyed but that is fast disappearing.
Chang Eungbok’s design philosophy is ‘Soft Design and Living’, and this lavishly illustrated book introduces for the first time in one place the many dimensions of her work. “Peach Blossom Dream” is the name she gives to one of the two key themes. It is inspired by the sensuous textures, design, colour, form, and playful and humorous narratives of Korean traditional folk art, that include folk painting (minhwa), royal artifacts, clothing, gyubang craft (or ladies’ craft), architecture, musical instruments, household effects, pottery, embroidery, lacquer-ware, and mother-of-pearl decorations. “Peach Blossom Dream” recreates the spirit of Korean traditional folk arts by selecting colours that reflect its joyfulness and boldness, and are made in luxurious styles using media such as silk, organza, linen, rice-paper, glass, metal and wood. The other theme is “Mountain-Water”, which borrows from the aesthetics of Joseon period ceramic art, and the “formless form” of the white porcelain “moon jar” and the benevolence, goodness, and fullness it conveys, and the modesty of buncheong ceramics. This theme is also influenced by “literati paintings” (muninhwa) of the late Joseon period, and in particular the “True-View Landscape” (jingyeong sansu) paintings of Gyeomjae JEONG Seon (1676-1759), which are particularly representative of this style’s simple form and colour, subdued texture, and aesthetics of restrained elegance. Chang’s work recreates the artist’s landscape paintings in monochrome, imitating drawing style and sensibility but freely rearranging compositions.
Chang Eungbok often uses patchwork techniques. This jogak-iki follows the Korean traditional technique of patchwork, and is applied to cushions, blankets, curtains, artefacts and furniture. The traditional analog practice of jogak-iki is married to the present day through digital technology, producing two separate but successful outcomes. One is a hand-made product, the other a pattern developed with the aid of new technology. Thus, Chang’s work may follow a traditional practice, but it also utilizes the latest technical innovations and ideas, reflecting modern sensibilities while at the same time wholly preserving the meaning and spirit of the traditional.
