What do the phoenix or egret-like birds represent?
The pair of birds represent marital bliss, the birds mate for life.
What do the primary color stripes represent?
Each color represents a few different things so all together they represent harmony and balance. For example, black, red, blue, white, and yellow represent the five directions: north, south, east, west, and center, respectively.
Why was the hwalot repaired so much if it belonged to a rich person? And why was it passed from from generation to generation? Is that a kind of family pride?
This garment was associated with family and community pride. It would have been owned by an aristocratic woman, but she also would have passed it down to family members and, eventually, other community members. These robes are like heirlooms in a sense, with brides wanting to wear the same hwalot their mother or grandmother did. After the robes started looking shabby, they were passed down to a less wealthy family.
The white cuffs, especially, would be replaced every time it was worn to keep it looking like new. Even for a rich person, a garment like this would have been expensive with all the different elements and extensive embroidery.
I read that most Korean women could a buy a hwalot for their wedding by the 20th century. Does that mean that everyone was richer?
I'm not sure exactly what caused that change. I suspect that the hwalot became less expensive (possibly as a result of industrialization) rather than the people becoming that much richer.
Why was the lining made of paper if this robe belonged to a rich person?
The lining is made of relatively inexpensive paper because the cuffs were replaced frequently to always look fresh and new!
Cool!
What are these shapes at the bottom?
Those are waves; they add to the natural imagery of the embroidery.
Waves are a common feature on hwalot, or bridal robes. They provide a ground for the natural imagery to be built on. Notice that the herons are standing on the water and reed-like plants also grow at the bottom.
So these symbols are mainly Joseon dynasty traditions?
Many of the symbols can be traced back even further. The elaborate decoration of women's clothing is what is really indicative of the Joseon Dynasty. Especially in contrast to the austerity of men's clothing and furnishings.
The garment is really sophisticated when compared to Joseon period porcelain and the men's items.
It is definitely more ornate, that's true! The men's items you see from the Joseon period are less decorative and more austere not because the individuals who made them were less skilled,
but because they were made with different aesthetic goals and social norms in mind.
Men of the Joseon period were influenced in their dress and in the things they surrounded themselves with by Confucianism. As a result, the clothes and items for men in the Joseon period were much simpler and more austere. Women, meanwhile, were still allowed to wear and own the bright, colorful objects that were associated with Buddhist aesthetics.
The moon jar is a great example of the simple and unadorned being desirable. Moon jars are made of two bowls joined together, and often have a visible seal where the two meet. The lopsided aspect of the jars is actually seen as more beautiful because it is subtle, simple, and natural, all desired attributes in a society a society with a Neo-Confucianist ideology.
Oh, I see.
Did they use special materials or techniques?
The color blocking or patchworking you see on the sleeves is a common Korean technique called saekdong.
Is saekdong only used on wedding dresses?
Saekdong is not only used on wedding clothing, no. You can see it on any number of colorful Korean garments.
The intricate embroidery and gold thread, in addition to the heavy symbolism on the robe, are what make it such a special piece for a special event.
What is the meaning of these Chinese characters? Why did they use Chinese instead of Korean?
The writing, like the flower and animal symbolism on the hwalot, communicates blessings for the marriage. The writing here in particular says, "union for the two families" and "wishing for one hundred blessings"
As for the use of Chinese characters, that's actually something you'll see a lot in our Korean gallery. Korea has a long history of cultural exchange and influence with China. As for how it relates to art, Chinese and hangul work very differently as writing systems, so they can also communicate things differently. For instance, in hangul, each character is an individual sound or syllable. In Chinese, each character can have an entire meaning unto itself, so it can be used differently in a composition.
In fact, until 1446 Koreans almost always used the classical Chinese writing system. Hangul, the Korean writing system, is incredibly young, and you can see the influence of centuries using Chinese writing in Korean artwork, alongside the influence of Buddhism and Confucianism.
So all of the Koreans could read Chinese or just some aristocrats?
As with literacy in general, aristocrats would have a better chance of learning the language system.
Did they only wear this kind of garment for their wedding and then they passed it to the next generation?
Yes, these robes are very much associated with weddings. They are based on an earlier type of garment that noblewomen probably wore on other special occasions, but those didn’t have as much embroidery.
