Art for Every Day
There is no greater opportunity for appreciating beauty than through its use in our daily lives. ~Yanagi Soetsu, Japanese philosopher, from The Beauty of Everyday Things
In the traditional Korean art of living, everyday objects are not just functional but also beautiful and meaningful, connecting us with culture and history. Works of culture are used in daily life, not just exhibited in galleries and museums.
Delphic Tea House in Seoul. See our Journal post here
The Japanese philosopher and art historian Yanagi Soetsu pioneered the appreciation of traditional hand-crafted everyday objects as works of artistic value.
He founded the Mingei, 'Folk Art', movement in the 1920s, believing that art was not just for gallery spaces, but for the spaces people use every day.
Yanagi's reframing of vernacular crafts as high-value works of art grew from the admiration he had for Korean ceramics.
Korean Moon Jar, 18th century, in the Japan Folk Arts Museum ('Mingei Kan'), Tokyo
Yanagi lived in Korea in the 1920s and fell in love with the timeless beauty of Korean ceramics.
He extolled their authenticity and simplicity, and noted that they were everywhere in Korean daily life, used for everything from tea cups to kimchi pots.
Based on his expert knowlegde of European and Asian art history, Yanagi considered Korean ceramics to be among the most beautiful of any art.
Korean art is incomparable, unique and original.. It cannot be unerringly copied or emulated, no matter how skilled the craftsman. It is a beauty made possible only after being filtered through the Korean heart and soul.
Yanagi Soetsu at an exhibition of Korean art in Tokyo in 1921, and his book The Beauty of Everyday Things
In 1924, Yanagi opened the very first museum of folk art in the world, the Korean Folk Art Gallery, a collection of Korean ceramics and other works of art in Seoul.
On returning to Japan, Yanagi started collecting Japanese craft objects to showcase their intrinsic value as works of beautiful art.
In 1936, he opened the 'Mingei Kan', the Japan Folk Arts Museum in Tokyo, which we can still visit today.
Korean tea, sweets and ceramic ware. Image by Bangim Craft
'The beauty of everyday things' seems to encapsulate the art of the Korean lifestyle. There is an importance attached to enjoying each moment at home, even doing routine daily things.
The simple act of having a cup of tea can be a time to restore peace of mind, through the beauty of the tea ware, accompanied as it always is by natural leaves or flowers.
Interior with Korean porcelain tea ware and moon jar. Image by Bangim Craft
The beauty of these daily objects also lies in the meaning they hold, connecting us to centuries of traditional culture. And connecting us to another person, the artist. The artist's unique expression remains in the finished object, the traces of their skill and experience, their creative energy and story, are all there. It's something that no technology, AI or mechanical process can replicate.
When machines are in control, the beauty they produce is cold and shallow. It is the human hand that creates subtlety and warmth. ~Yanagi Soetsu from The Beauty of Everyday Things