SOLD-NO-20 - TAKAMICHI BEAUTY ROOM, NY

Byeorak-songgot  벼락송곳

Front: A ceramic flower pot with a rich terracotta body, featuring an intricately carved Dogabi motif on the front. The detailed forehead pattern, central eyes, and sharp teeth are finished with 23.5K liquid gold accents, while the side horns are rendered in a matte black glaze.

Back: The detailed carved patterns flow seamlessly around to the back. The natural texture of the terracotta is prominent at the base, completing the substantial, hand-crafted form.

 

Size : 200×220×360mm, ∅110mm, 3090g
Material : Ceramic / Clay Developed in THR STUDIO
Method : Wheel Throwing, Sculpt
Kiln Temperature : 2282℉, Oxidation Firing, Glaze / 1,472℉, Gold

 

STORY OF DOGABI
The story of Dogabi passed down from ancient times was told that Dogabi who had mysterious power as god appeared in different forms and brought luck or punishment to human. They frighten human with a bizarre face, playing mischievous tricks on human with childlike innocence, giving an abundance of life with a generous smile.
* Dogabi is an old Korean word meaning goblin.

 

THE ONE-OF-KIND DOGABI
CERAMIC CRAFTS
CREATED BY THE ARTIST’S
IMAGINATION REPRESENT
THE METAPHORIC AND
EMOTIONAL EXPRESSIONS
OF THE DOGABI.

By capturing these characteristics and face expressions of the Dogabi in humorous and formative ways,
the Ceramist Hyung Jun Kim strives for creating Dogabi series with subtle and extraordinary colors
that only ceramics can produce.
The one-of-kind Dogabi ceramic crafts represent diverse faces of the Dogabi, created by the artist’s imagination.

The Appearance & Sculptural Characteristics of Byeorak-songgot (The Lightning-Spike Dokkaebi)

 

• Red ochre terracotta base
  • English: A natural apricot-ochre ceramic body that embodies the raw scent of clay and the unyielding, grounded vitality of the earth.
  • 한국어: 붉은 황토빛 테라코타 바탕: 거친 흙내음과 대지의 단단한 생명력을 품은 자연스러운 살구·황토색 몸체.
• Colossal brushstroke horn rising at the center of the forehead
  • English: A grand, razor-sharp central horn textured like rough tree bark or the scorch of a searing thunderbolt strike.
  • 한국어: 이마 중앙의 거대한 붓결 뿔: 나무껍질이나 타오르는 벼락 자국처럼 결이 살아 있는 웅장하고 날카로운 중심 뿔.
• Bold feather-wing patterns framing the eyes
  • English: A unique layered glaze of inky charcoal and deep mugwort tones, wrapping the face like a warrior's helmet or the plumage of a fierce bird of prey.
  • 한국어: 눈 주위의 짙은 날개깃 무늬: 먹빛과 쑥빛이 층층이 겹쳐져 투구나 날짐승의 깃털처럼 얼굴을 감싼 독특한 유약 질감.
• Wide-parted crimson lips and gleaming golden teeth
  • English: Crimson lips parting to reveal sharp, interlocking golden fangs that radiate an overwhelming presence of protective, evil-banishing power.
  • 한국어: 크게 벌린 붉은 입술과 황금 이빨: 붉은 입술 안으로 날카롭게 맞물린 금빛 송곳니들이 자아내는 압도적인 벽사의 기운.

Byeorak-songgot, Guardian Spirit of the Red Ochre Mountain (붉은 흙산의 수호신 '벼락송곳')

• English: Long, long ago, in a deep valley where red ochre and unyielding stone met, lived a Dokkaebi named "Byeorak-songgot," who watched over the fiery primal warmth resting deep within the earth.
  • 한국어: 아주 먼 옛날, 붉은 황토와 단단한 바위가 어우러진 깊은 골짜기에는 땅속 깊은 곳의 뜨거운 기운을 지키는 도깨비 '벼락송곳'이 살고 있었습니다.
• English: Byeorak-songgot bore the warm earthy tones of the soil across his whole body, and tall in the center of his forehead rose a colossal awl-shaped horn, forged and hardened as it absorbed dry lightning strikes descending from the heavens.
  • 한국어: 벼락송곳은 온몸에 대지의 따뜻한 흙빛을 띠고 있었으며, 이마 한가운데에는 하늘에서 내리친 마른벼락을 단단히 받아내어 굳어진 거대한 송곳 뿔이 우뚝 솟아 있었습니다.
• English: One year, as relentless drought cracked the soil open, "Parched Drought Spirits"—creatures that devour the fertile warmth and rich vitality of human lands—crawled out from the dry fissures, stirring clouds of choking dust. Wherever these spirits roamed, paddies crumbled into sand and wells ran completely dry, plunging the villagers into despair.
  • 한국어: 어느 해 비가 내리지 않아 땅이 쩍쩍 갈라지자, 메마른 틈새 속에서 인간 세상의 기름진 흙과 온기를 갉아먹는 '가뭄 메마름귀신'들이 흙먼지를 일으키며 기어 나왔습니다. 메마름귀신들이 지나는 자리마다 논밭은 모래 먼지로 변하고 우물마저 바닥을 드러내어 마을 사람들은 절망에 빠졌습니다.
• English: Witnessing this devastation, Byeorak-songgot strode out to plant himself firmly in the heart of the cracked terrain.
  • 한국어: 이 광경을 본 벼락송곳은 갈라진 땅 한가운데로 걸어 나와 우뚝 섰습니다.
• English: Flashing his wide, fierce eyes, Byeorak-songgot thrust his massive brow horn high. From its sharp tip, a heavy tremor of the earth and a blinding flash of golden light surged forth, paralyzing the parched spirits hiding in every direction. Byeorak-songgot then parted his crimson lips, clashing his radiant golden fangs together to release a roar that shook heaven and earth.
  • 한국어: 벼락송곳이 부릅뜬 두 눈을 부릅뜨고 이마 중앙의 커다란 뿔을 번쩍 들어 올리자, 뿔 끝에서 대지의 묵직한 진동과 함께 눈부신 황금빛 섬광이 뻗어 나와 사방에 숨은 메마름귀신들을 꼼짝 못 하게 묶어버렸습니다. 이어 벼락송곳이 붉은 입술을 쩍 벌려 번쩍이는 황금 송곳니를 부딪치며 천지를 뒤흔드는 고함을 내질렀습니다.
• English: "Begone at once!"
  • 한국어: "썩 물러가지 못할까!"
• English: Overwhelmed by that thunderous shout and the terrifying majesty of his golden teeth, the parched spirits crumbled like dust and vanished deep beneath the rocky bedrock. Soon after, crystal-clear spring water surged up through the dry ground, and lush green shoots sprouted anew across the fields.
  • 한국어: 그 우렁찬 외침과 단단한 이빨의 위엄에 짓눌린 메마름귀신들은 먼지처럼 바스러져 땅속 깊은 바위 밑으로 숨어버렸습니다. 곧이어 메말랐던 땅속에서 맑은 샘물이 솟아오르고 들판에는 다시 푸른 싹이 돋아났습니다.
• English: Wishing for the soil of their village to remain steadfast and their harvests bountiful, the villagers shaped clay into the horn-crowned visage of Byeorak-songgot and reverently set it by the entrance of their gardens. From then on, it is said that wherever Byeorak-songgot stands vigil, neither drought nor famine can strike, and the blessings of the land endure for generations.
  • 한국어: 마을 사람들은 마을의 터를 단단히 지키고 곡식이 풍성하게 여물기를 바라는 마음으로, 이마에 큰 뿔을 지닌 벼락송곳의 얼굴을 흙으로 빚어 텃밭 어귀에 정성껏 모셔두었습니다. 그 뒤로 벼락송곳이 지켜보는 곳에는 가뭄과 흉년이 들지 않고 땅의 복이 대대로 이어진다고 전해집니다.