Artist Minsook Park : The Poetry of Engraved Lines
Lines That Tell a Story
Minsook Park’s work is an exploration of the expressive power of lines—marks that extend beyond simple strokes to embody intangible values and emotions. To her, a single engraved line is not merely a visual element but a profound trace of movement, thought, and patience. Her ceramic surfaces become canvases where time, endurance, and personal narratives are meticulously etched.
The turning point in her artistic journey was a visit to the Yun Hyong-keun Retrospective at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. The deep, somber strokes of cheongdasaek (靑茶色), an almost black hue, moved her profoundly. The unembellished yet honest marks in Yun’s work resonated with her, carrying an understated yet undeniable presence of soil and time. Standing before these works, she felt an overwhelming sincerity—an echo of the artist’s life embedded within each stroke.
This encounter led her to carve her own lines—not with ink, but with clay. Instead of merely drawing on the surface, she adapted the traditional sanggam (inlay) technique, where she incises patterns into the clay and fills them with contrasting materials. This method of removal and replacement mirrors the cyclical nature of existence: to carve is to empty, and to fill is to create. It is a process that demands patience, endurance, and a deep engagement with the material. Through this meditative repetition, she imbues her work with both physical and emotional depth, allowing each mark to hold its own quiet narrative.
Artist’s Note: The Dialogue Between Line and Clay
A line, defined as the movement of a point through space, holds infinite expressive potential. My artistic process began in earnest after experiencing Yun Hyong-keun’s retrospective, where his seemingly simple yet deeply evocative vertical strokes left a profound impact on me. The silent depth of his cheongdasaek lines was both raw and poetic, resonating with a quiet intensity that I could not ignore.
Inspired by this, I began engraving my own lines—not on paper but on porcelain. I employ a modernized version of the sanggam technique, where I carve delicate lines into the surface, then inlay them with darker clay. Each incision requires careful precision and patience, and the repetition of these marks becomes an act of endurance. It is a laborious process, but one that allows me to physically embed my emotions into the work.
The act of filling and emptying mirrors a larger existential cycle—one that speaks of persistence, reflection, and balance. At times, the stark honesty of these marks makes me feel exposed, yet in this vulnerability, my work finds its voice. Each line I carve is a quiet yet deliberate statement, carrying stories that evolve with time.
My compositions begin with the simplest of lines. Through layering and repetition, these lines take on texture and structure, forming a tactile rhythm. The predominant use of black clay in my work stems from its ability to encapsulate fleeting emotions—both present and absent. In this darkness, I find echoes of Yun’s cheongdasaek, a color layered with time and experience. In my lines, I seek to engrave not just form, but emotion, endurance, and the quiet weight of existence.
Education
2018 Sungshin Women's University, Korea, Craft Major
2022 Sungshin Women's University Graduate School, Korea, Craft Major
Exhibition
2021 The 37th SungShin Ceramic Arts, Group Exhibition
2021 Line of Gathering, Private Exhibition
2021 Shape of Joy, Group Exhibition
2022 Mono-Nouveau, Group Exhibition
2023 Home(Place for my mind), Group Exhibition
2024 木金土; Wood Metal Soil, Group Exhibition
2024 A Record of Autumn, Group Exhibition
2024 Emotional Line, Private Exhibition
Award
2018 National Pottery Contest, Korea Women's Pottery Association
2022 Craft & Design Production Development Project, KCDF
Art Fair
2023 Craft Trend Fair, Rising Craftsman, Coex
2024 Sokcho Art Fair, ChilSung Boatyard
2024 Craft Trend Fair, Rising Craftsman, Coex
Conclusion: The Enduring Presence of Lines
Minsook Park’s work is a testament to the quiet yet powerful nature of engraved lines. Each stroke in her ceramics holds an accumulation of time, emotion, and introspection. By merging traditional inlay techniques with a contemporary sensibility, she creates works that bridge past and present, material and emotion, silence and expression.
Her ceramics are not just objects; they are experiences—offering a tactile and visual dialogue between the artist, the medium, and the viewer. Through the process of engraving, filling, and repeating, she transforms porcelain into a vessel of endurance and meaning. In doing so, she invites us to slow down, to observe, and to appreciate the beauty found in persistence, honesty, and the subtle language of lines.