Crafting Beauty from Darkness: A Conversation with an Black Ceramic Master
“The flame in the Kiln is the uncharted territory, In this freedom I discover a new sublimity, the Black Ceramics”.
-Black Ceramics Master Kim Syyoung
Ceramic Master Kim Syyoung
2019 Korean Order of Culture Merit Hwagwan Medal
2016 Title of Master of Gangwon Province
1999 Title of Master Gyeonggi Province
MS. Graduate school of Industry Yonsei University
BS Department of Mechanical Engineering , Yonsei University
Mr. Kim Syyoung is a master of black ceramics with an impeccable reputation worldwide. Mr. Kim is a recipient of theOrder of Culture Merit (Hwagwan) from the Korean government in recognition of his passion and dedication to black ceramics for more than 30 years. In 2019 the Victoria and Albert Museum added his large Moon Jar to their collection. His artwork displays unique colors characterized by a myriad of iridescent spots on the shiny metallic surface. In his hands, the soil is reborn as a unique material with completely different characteristics after being tested under high temperatures ranging from 1,320°C to 1,450° C.
Mr. Kim studied soil and fire to reproduce traditional black ceramics, a Korean tradition that has almost disappeared since the Goryeo dynasty. He started making traditional Korean black ceramics Tea Bowl and Moon Jar based on craftsmanship in 1988.
He imbued the meaning of human life in the changes while firing that repeatedly disappear and reappear due to the change of properties inside of the kiln, which is how his works are created. His paintings and sculptures of brilliant colors express the infiniteness of human life and the present beauty that resonate together with ecstasy, tragedy, and fate.
The Song Dynasty Black Ceramic Collection tells the story of the scarcity of black ceramics at 0.06% in V&A that boasts the world's best ceramics collection, and it is mainly composed of small black ceramic dishes. Mr. Kim fills his worldview as an artist by expressing the best black ceramic as he attempts to resonate with people, and his formativeness is also expanded to a large size as he leads black ceramic arts in this age.
About Black Ceramics
Black Ceramics
Ceramics are distinguished by the color of their surface, and the color of the surface is influenced by minerals in the soil. Porcelain is white , celadon is blue, and black ceramic is black. Comparing the iron content of porcelain goes through the de-ironing process while celadon has 2-3% and black ceramics has 6% iron content . As the black color has a range of spectrum itself, Mr. Kim Syyoung aimed at reproducing the traditional deep and heavy black color in his early works. It took five years for Mr. Kim to recreate the Korean traditional black ceramics in black and reddish brown colors.
Now, Kim Syyoung’s black ceramics, firing not only creates ceramics; it is also a process for awakening various minerals hidden in the soil. He repeatedly forms and dissolves the kaleidoscopic patterns and colors on the surface of black ceramics, called ‘clay flower’.
“The Moon Jar”
In 2010, Mr. Kim moved his kiln to a new studio and has begun working on the Moon Jar.
Inspired by a moon that looks white but actually consists of dark matter, he wanted to create black ceramic moon jars. Mr. Kim was able to recreate the shape of the Korean traditional moon jar that is considered a masterpiece of the 18th century. Mr. KIm experimented with the body, the foreground, and the food of the moon jars by differentiating them slightly and discovered how the shape changes based on the kiln operation and with extreme temperatures. Large moon jars greater than 50cm are considered hard to make as the larger the size, the larger risk it has to collapse during the kiln work. Thus, in one year a maximum of only 5 moon jars can come to light. In his fifth year, Mr. Kim has mastered producing round large moon jars reborn with the everlasting clay- flower characteristics
[Deep Dive Interview]
Exploring the World of Black Ceramics with
Master Kim Syyoung
Q: I believe many would be curious about how black ceramics are made. Please explain to us the overall process of making black ceramics.
A: The overall process starts with collecting the “right” soil depending on the design of any piece. The process of making black porcelain starts with collecting two types of soil: one for molding and one for glaze making. The soil for molding needs to withstand very high temperatures in the kiln, thus is collected, filtered multiple times, and mixed with an exact proportion of water. The same goes for the glaze, but with different proportions of mixture and types of soil. Then we start the molding. When working on traditional moon jars, molding is done using a potter's wheel. Depending on the size of the finished molding, it is left to dry naturally for 10 days up to a whole month.
After that, “priming” is carried out at a temperature of 800-900 degrees. After this, the prepared glaze is applied for another round in the Kiln. It takes about 5 rounds of this process to find the right color and intended design for the piece. One round usually takes about 3 days, withstanding temperatures between 1250 and 1350 celsius degrees. Depending on the piece, some will go through extremely high temperatures up to 1500 degrees. Then we wait for the kiln to cool down. This takes about a week to be safe for it to take out. This also depends heavily on the size of the piece, the larger, the longer it takes to pull out the finished product. This is another extremely important step, if you hastily open the kiln door while the objects in the kiln have not completely cooled down, the artwork will break and collapse due to the sudden temperature difference. So, its a very long and arduous process. To answer your question of how long it takes would really depend on the size and shape of the piece, some will take up to many months and some small pieces several weeks.
Q: How long does it take to make per piece and what is the most complex process among the whole process?
A: It took me 10 years to find the unique style of the black ceramic color with “a clay-flower pattern on black ceramics. During my early times as an artist, I studied the tea bowl [daw-wan] which is smaller compared to my recent pieces. So, I was able to experiment with various kinds of soil and find my own unique color and style. I discovered a beautiful difference in light depending on the natural minerals in natural soil. I found out that the inherent minerals in the soil change their structure when they meet extreme temperatures, creating flower-like reflective patterns. I was excited about this discovery back then, and my Kiln was running 360 days out of 365 days. (chuckles)
To add to this, moving on from small tea bowls to large sculptures (like I make today), was one of the biggest challenges as it was extremely difficult to control the fire to express the same flower-like pattern while finding balance and color in ceramics. Now that I have mastered it, I have moved on to another realm of discovery of sculpture. These days the most complicated process is thinking about what my work should convey to the audience.
Q: What is your favorite process out of all, and why is that?
A: My favorite process would be the kiln work. Since the final touch of all my work is the Kiln, I am excited to see what finished beauty lies in the ashes when I open the Kiln door. Interestingly and ironically, 80% of my works during the kiln fire stage will collapse or break with even the slightest difference in condition. So opening the kiln door can be one of the most disappointing moments too. But, the moment when I open the kiln door and discover that my work has survived in the midst of the harsh fire is when I feel joy, and also keeps me going to make the next piece as well.
Q: What is the hardest in the making process and why is it?
A: Firing the kiln is still an arduous process. I have to stay up all night for several days and check the fire. It's a delicate process because I have to balance the amount of fuel and air in the kiln and carefully control the amount of air oxidation and reduction. Still today, the end of the flame is so mysterious yet so difficult to control.
Q: Is there a huge difference between overseas techniques such as pottery, ceramics, jars, etc., and your technique in Korea? What would the biggest difference be?
A: In Korea, traditional moon jars are made top and bottom separately and attached later in the process. People who are not familiar with this idea may guess that it's an easier way to produce moon jars. But in fact, this is an incorrect explanation. Our ancestors had the skill and mastery to mold large jars in one go. However, the mastery of top and bottom grafting of moon jars in Korea was passed down for a reason of its own aesthetics. Koreans admired the very slight asymmetrical beauty the moon jars would have after the kiln process. They valued the one-of-a-kind, relaxed, slightly asymmetrical shape of the moon jar rather than identical-looking factory printed beauty.
Q: Observing the details of the ceramics, Your black ceramic is born with brilliant “clay-flower” patterns that almost mimic the colors of a peacock feather. Please explain how this is possible and how this unique and mysterious pattern is born.
A: As everyone already knows, soil contains various minerals. However, when these inorganic ingredients meet with controlled fire with the process of extreme oxidation and reduction, beautiful and mysterious patterns and colors appear. We call this structural color. Unlike the colors of pigments or dyes made from chemicals, the microscopic structure of a component or material that reflects light is called structural color. For example, a peacock feather. The feathers of peacocks have different colors depending on which direction they are viewed from. They are originally brown feathers, but their fine structure is designed to reflect blue, turquoise, and green colors, so they look colorful to our eyes. My black ceramics share the same mechanism. The intense fire changes the structure of the inorganic elements within the soil of my work and thus is reborn with beautiful patterns and reflective color.
Finishing remarks
Fire with its temperatures ranging from 1,320°C to 1,450°C is an uncharted area that humans cannot approach or understand. Mr. Kim Syyoung explores such an uncharted area of fire and uses it as a key to transforming various substances in the world. In his hands, the soil is reborn as a unique material with completely different characteristics after being tested under high temperatures. Mr. Kim Syyoung believes that the moment of the Big Bang, the beginning of the universe, also takes place inside a small kiln; he loves and submits to the natural material transformation due to fire and yet continues to challenge the last variable that humans cannot control simultaneously. The work by Mr. Kim Syyoung can be best described as a harmonious fusion between the artist's spirit that wants to go beyond human limitations and the great nature beyond the control of human beings.
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