Skip to main content

Environmentally friendly interiors using Hanji ........

' Hanji is used in limitless applications, including  wallpaper and an array of household goods made with traditional craftsmanship. The official residences of the Korean Mission to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Mun are good examples of the esthetic qualities of hanji interiors.'
Cha Jong-sun
Professor at Yewon Arts University, Hanji Formative Arts Department

Ban Ki-Mun, Secretary General of the United Nations

Hanji has been showing a resurgence in popularity of late as people are turning to more environmentally friendly lifestyles where the importance of a good quality of life is paramount.  

One of the ambassadors for this is General Ban Ki-Mun and his wife who have recently worked in collaboration with he Hanji Formative Arts Department of Yewon Arts University in decorating the Guest Room of the UN Secretary General’s official residence in New York and the official residence of the Korean Mission to the UN with hanji. It's believed that the current Pope is also looking at having his residence decorated using hanji.

The room was decorated based on the concept of “Modest but not shabby, splendid but not extravagant,” which  expresses the esthetic quality of Korea’s ancient Baekje Dynasty, well known for its temperance and dignity. During the hottest months of the year in New York, many UN officials were surprised by the changes made in the building spaces using hanji materials.

The room was decorated with Hanji wallpaper containing wormwood, charcoal and elven  with a traditional Dangcho pattern.

Dangcho Pattern

Household Items Made of Hanji

Cloth made with hanji was used for the bedding, sofa cover, and curtains. A bandaji (chest with a hinged front flap) and a two-tiered wardrobe made with  traditional hanji-making technique were also placed in the home.  Hanji-made furniture displays a uniquely Korean color combination and pattern. 
Bandagi Chest


Along with Hanji being used at the Secretary General's residence there were also fourteen 3 metre long lighting fixtures installed into the main hall of the Korean Mission to the UN across from the UN Headquarters.  These were put in place to signify Korea's wish that they may light the way to humankind's everlasting peace and happiness.
Household Items Made of Hanji
Hanji interiors with the handmade mulberry paper made from the bark of the Korean 'dak' tree is lightweight and it has durability and ventilation qualities. It's  also extremely functional as it repels bacteria and insects, eliminates odours, adjusts humidity and absorbs noise. Research has  shown that it creates long wave infrared rays which are good for the human body.

Hanji is not only great for using in craft projects but it's also  good for your health and environmentally friendly as well.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Lotus symbol in Korean culture .....

In traditional Korean Hanji art you can see many different designs of plants, animals, letters and insects. I'm sure you've wondered what they all symbolise as they are repeated so often and in many different ways.  In this post I just want to take a brief look at the lotus plant and what it symbolises for the Korean people. I've used this design on a few articles but I never really knew the full meaning of what it represented until I started doing some research for my book.  Even though many of us aren't Korean we can still use these designs and in so doing, translate a deeper meaning to our articles. Here are a just a few of my favourites from the easiest to the more difficult to cut out.                         The lotus flower symbolises creation, birth, liveability and reproduction and therefore it's one of the most  important symbols in both Korean culture a...
3 comments
Read more

The Buddhist symbol, Hanji & Korean culture ....

When selecting designs for my Hanji pieces I tend to make stylistic choices as to what will look best on each piece but the Korean designs all have very deep symbolic meanings.  None more than the Buddhist swastika (manja) design. ‘Manja’ (만, Man is “卍” and 만자, Manja literally means “letter Man”) is also called Srivatsalksana in Sanskrit.  It is one of the thirty-two (32) marks of excellence of the Buddha and is said to exist on his hands, feet, hair and waist.                         For those of us in the West this is often confused with the German Nazi swastika symbol but in fact it's been  around for about three thousand years.  The swastika is an equilateral cross with arms bent at right angles and all in the same direction, usually to the right, or clockwise. It's a symbol of prosperity and good fortune and it originally represented the revolving sun, fire, or life. The word swastik...
Post a Comment
Read more

Online Hanji paper store, in English .....

I'm really pleased to be able to share with you this website where you can order a variety of Hanji papers from Korea and it's all in English !!!  The store is based in Daejon, Korea.   HAMINBRIDGE ( Thehanji ) was established by Moonyang Park in 1983. It's a family owned 2nd generation  business and they have a factory in Junju.  They also have a factory in China where some of the paper is made. The website is at www. thehanji.com and it provides a selection of specialty Hanji paper (Korean paper) and products.   I ordered some papers from them recently  to see what it was like and they were extremely efficient in dealing with  the order and it was here in the UAE within 5 days so I was really impressed. The prices were good and they even have some on special, the paper is beautiful and the ease of ordering was amazing.   They do sell rolls of paper, traditional papers and lanterns but overall I did think the range...
6 comments
Read more