Hanbok: a renaissance or extinction?

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In a room lined with racks of hanbok and punctuated by a long table in the center, hanbok designer Kim Young-jin smooths her hands over a huge, folded swath of cloth. She drapes it over herself, envisioning it as a chima -- the skirt of a hanbok -- as she explains how she creates her fanciful designs.

At age 38, Kim is young by industry standards, especially considering her role as director of the hanbok brand Tchai. Most established hanbok artisans and designers range well above their 30s. Her hanbok -- especially the delicious pastel confections from her May 2009 show -- showcase a unique and inventive spirit, one that brings out the beauty of traditional hanbok, but also moves forward by incorporating European fabrics.

In a society where hanbok is primarily reserved for weddings, holidays and ceremonial rites, Kim hopes to see a wider niche carved for the traditional garb, one that includes parties and fosters what she calls "creative consumption."

She is not alone.

A new crop of artisans, designers and stylists are entering the field. Some seek to preserve tradition and pass it along, keeping it alive in its "pure" form. Others seek to develop it and find ways to widen its role in modern-day society.

The reality is, however, that in the world of fashion, they represent a minority. Since Western clothing entered Korea in the late 1800s, hanbok`s role in society has steadily declined. If, during the late Joseon Dynasty, streets were populated with women and men flitting about in jeogori (the top of a hanbok), chima and baji (pants), now it is only on rare occasions that one might glimpse someone sporting a hanbok.



Where then, does the future of hanbok lie? Does it have one?

Professor Kim Soh-hyeon, dean of the Traditional Korean Costume Department at Baehwa Women`s University, thinks so.

In her opinion, children these days are receiving a lot of exposure to traditional Korean culture. That kind of exposure, she predicts, will shape their interests, making how they perceive hanbok different from those of earlier generations. By different, she means positive.

In addition, according to Kim, other traditional aspects of Korean culture are already experiencing a renaissance of their own, casting a ray of hope on hanbok.

"In the past, everyone dreamed of living in a Western-style house," she explained. "But now if you do not have money it is hard to live in a hanok. ... So, now, living in a hanok has become something of an ideal. The same goes for hansik. But this does not hold true for hanbok."

"You know how they say the sky is its darkest right before dawn breaks," Kim expressed hope for the future of hanbok. "I think that this might be (hanbok`s) darkest hour."

By dark, Kim is referring to the current state of hanbok, an outcome of a somewhat stagnant market and of beliefs that hanbok are difficult to wear.

"Those who craft hanbok, they only know how to make chima and jeogori," she explained the situation from a general point-of-view. "If there is a slight change in design, then because it is different from how it was made in the past, they do not know how to make it. This is because those who make hanbok are usually elderly."

"As a result, even if one wants to add new designs, since they are difficult to produce, there are a lot of instances where such attempts are not fully carried out."

The past custom of relying on an apprentice system, where one builds up one`s credibility by working under an established hanbok designer, might inadvertently contribute to certain barriers in the industry.

According to Kim, when Baehwa Women`s University first established the Traditional Korean Costume Department in 1989, there was a great deal of concern about where students could work after graduation because hanbok establishments back then used an apprentice system.

"Even though various aspects of the structure have changed now, those who run hanbok businesses still think a great deal about the past," Kim added.

Hanbok designer Lee Seo-youn stands as a potential case-in-point.

The designer behind the hanbok featured in the hit SBS drama "IL JI-MAE: The Phantom thief" -- the one where hallyu star Lee Jun-ki donned a mask and played a Joseon Dynasty hero -- revealed that he had a hard time breaking into the drama market.

The 34-year-old designer said it took him three years of cold-calling someone at SBS to nab his first big break -- designing traditional accessories for a period piece -- because the market already had established hanbok professionals.

Not only a newbie but young to boot, Lee did accessories for three dramas before he landed his gig doing both costumes and accessories for "IL JI-MAE: The Phantom thief."

"Most people who make hanbok are much older," Lee explained. "And those who are young, around my age, are still in the learning stages."

Yet, Lee and Tchai`s Kim Young-jin represent a change in the industry that Lee just described. They are both relatively young and have received a lot of press for their designs.

Bringing new blood into the industry, however, is just the tip of the iceberg.

There is the sensitive juxtaposition of tradition versus change, with no conclusive answer as to what is more important -- the preservation of the past or development into the future?

Furthermore, the current generation of artisans and designers are an important asset to the continuation of the tradition of hanbok. Their expertise and know-how form a foundation for future generations and the sway they hold over the industry is hard-earned.

Without a doubt, however, as with anything, change is inevitable. The issue is not about whether or not the industry will change, but as to how it can change in a way that will help sustain and even broaden hanbok`s role in society.

One of the areas that both Tchai`s Kim Young-jin and professor Kim Soh-hyeon point to is to the lack of industry segmentation.

"The reason hanbok has not developed is because everyone must do it alone," Tchai director Kim pinpointed the tendency for an artisan or designer to handle everything from production to sales on their own.

Professor Kim agrees that the industry has not become segmented yet. "In the future, I think, if the market gets bigger, then marketing and other divisions will get subdivided."

Yet, without demand, any changes made to the industry will be made in vain.

Demand, or lack thereof, could be the biggest bulwark to the revival of hanbok.

"People these days say that hanbok is hard to wear." Kim highlights the current attitude. "They often say that it is uncomfortable."

"But it is because we currently wear it in its formal form and therefore have changed hanbok to suit its formal form that it cannot help but be uncomfortable," Kim explained.

To illustrate her point, she said: "Do people who wear wedding dresses say that wedding dresses are comfortable?"

Kim points to the creation of so-called fusion hanbok as an alternative version of the traditional attire. She also points to the incorporation of hanbok elements into contemporary fashion as another path for development.

Yet Kim does not harbor any grand illusions for the future of hanbok.

"We will no longer wear hanbok as everyday attire."

So, what, then, can be done for hanbok`s hereafter?



Bred not born



Fostering new talent is one way to ensure a future for hanbok.

Professor Kim and the Department of the Traditional Korean Costume at Baehwa Women`s University have been educating aspiring hanbok designers and industry insiders for over two decades. According to Kim, it is the first and only undergraduate department to specialize in teaching traditional dress.

"Most (of our) students go on to work in the wedding dress, formal dress or hanbok fields," she said.

This March, to further their efforts towards raising new talent, the department has introduced a new two year program. The new program promises to be more in-depth than the standard two year one.

In order to qualify, applicants must have at least one year of work experience. One of the goals of the program, according to Kim, is to teach students how to institute new designs, produce them, connect with consumers and thus cultivate a new area for the hanbok market.

"We need to provide clothes that showcase a Korean aesthetic," Kim said. "And there is a lot of demand for that. But businesses that provide that are in the early stages right now. So now I think we need to pioneer that field and create a workforce that suits that field... Things like that are important goals that we have."



New blood



Both Tchai`s Kim Young-jin and hanbok designer Lee Seo-youn may represent the new market that Kim was referring to. What they do represent is a new generation of hanbok designer, not just because they are relatively young, but because they bring something new to the forum.

Tchai director Kim uses 18th century hanbok as the foundation for the line and form of her designs, layering them with Italian lace, taffeta and Korean hanbok fabrics to create what she calls "contemporary hanbok."

For Kim, the slim sleeves of that period`s hanbok are "delicious," and the way that the chima billows out at the hips and narrows down at the ankles showcases a "voluptuous beauty."

To achieve that classic hangari silhouette, Kim carried on the traditional 18th century custom of using a mujigi chima.

The mujigi chima, according to Lee Kyung-ja, Hong Na-young and Chang Sook-hwan`s "Korean Traditional Costume Aesthetics and Truth of Their Original Form" (Youlhwadang Publisher, 2003, p. 24), is a "tiered underskirt with various colors" that was worn by "women of the upper class," and "when worn under the finely woven skirt, the colors showed through."

Kim took the beauty of this style one step further.

"We always do three layers for our hanbok," said Kim, pointing to a peachy-pink jeogori made from of a layer of lace laid over two more layers of fabric. "We used three layers to have the colors subtly seep through."

The effect is transcendent, especially when she employs unconventional fabrics like lace, tulle or chiffon as the final outer layer. The various colors underneath emerge, adding depth and an opalescent quality to each piece.

Never was this more evident than at her pastoral fashion show in May of last year. Set outdoors, the natural sunlight shone through her pastel delicacies, revealing the sweet colors underneath.

Inspired by Sofia Coppola`s "Marie Antoinette," Kim drew from the film`s contemporary aesthetic and colors to create the show`s ethereal collection. One of her standout pieces, a blush, silken, high-waisted chima over a sheer lace jeogori was sold to a Korean client in New York.

Like Kim, designer Lee Seo-youn uses a variety of fabrics for his hanbok, including brocades and other fabric he has purchased from Europe, China, Thailand and Japan.

A bit of a globetrotter, Lee fishes for raw materials for his accessories from China`s countryside, Thailand, Japan, and flea markets in Europe and America. When he unearths antique fabrics, he draws inspiration from their patterns to create his fusion and traditional hanbok.

One of his pieces, slated to show this fall, highlights his ability to fuse both Western and Eastern sensibilities into his hanbok. He paired a blue and gold brocade Italian silk chima with a black and chocolate brown jeogori. The jeogori had a sort of splattered Jackson Pollock-esque pattern to it. When asked what inspired him to use that pattern, Lee answered: "I wanted to express the feel of hanji (traditional Korean paper)."

Exhausted from his last stint doing pieces for SBS` "Princess Ja-Myung," fans of Korean dramas may see his creations in a historical piece some time next year.



Sustaining tradition



Without a traditional foundation, hanbok -- even its contemporary form -- would not have a future. One of a group of artisans who have dedicated themselves to the preservation of traditional dress, Kim Kee-sang is next in line to become Intangible Cultural Properties Chimsun Craftsman No. 11, a revered title that his mother, the prominent Park Kwang-hoon, currently holds.

The 53-year-old artisan started training under his mother in the early 1990s. For eight years he was only allowed to sew by hand. In other words, Kim did not touch a sewing machine until the 21st century.

The winner of two special prizes for the 26th and 27th Korea Traditional Handcraft Contests, Kim lectures at Sungshin Women`s University and teaches classes at Park Sun Young Traditional Korean Clothing.

His pieces are elegant and intricately sewn, showcasing the beauty of faithfully recreated hanbok in its deep colors and delicately sewn wrapped seams, serving as testimony to the fact that as long as Kim can thread a needle, the foundations of a long-standing tradition will continue on, well into the future.



Details



Tchai

Located in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, opening hours are from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays. Tchai is closed on Sundays. For more information call (02) 333-6692.



Lee Seo-youn Hanbok

Located in Anguk-dong, Jongno-gu, opening hours are from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Lee Seo-young Hanbok is closed on Sundays. For more information call (02) 735-4250.



Park Sun Young Traditional Korean Clothing

Located in Ewha-dong, Jongno-gu, opening hours are from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Classes taught by Park Kwang-hoon and Kim Kee-sang are held on Tuesdays through Fridays and on every other Sunday. For more information call (02) 742-1345.



(oh_jean@heraldm.com)











By Jean Oh