Open Collections

Choi, Irene

University of British Columbia

This dissertation explores paengnapto 百衲圖, a type of Korean folding screen characterized by a compilation of diverse paintings and calligraphic works, either affixed or directly painted onto panels. Flourishing during the late Chosŏn dynasty (1392–1910), particularly in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, paengnapto encapsulate the themes of multiplicity, materiality, and transmediality. This study explores the various mediums involved in the production of paengnapto, with a focus on the intermedial relationships among paintings, calligraphy, albums, and screens. This examination underscores the fluid and flexible nature of the term paengnapto itself. This study also positions paengnapto within the broader East Asian traditions of composite-image making, including Japanese harimaze byōbu 貼交屏風 (“collage screens”) from the Edo period and Chinese bapo 八破 (“Eight Brokens”) paintings from the nineteenth century, while highlighting their transcultural and intertextual references, examined through the writings by late Chosŏn envoys sent to Japan and China. Through analyzing the socio-cultural and economic contexts of the late Chosŏn dynasty, the dissertation also addresses the role of paengnapto in collecting practices and their socio-economic functions within the dynamic cultural circles of the period. While the majority of paengnapto remain anonymous works, presenting broader challenges in their study—particularly regarding issues of dating and authorship—some key participants known to have produced these screens include court painters during the reign of King Kojong 高宗 (r. 1863–1907), many of whom came from the chungin 中人 background. These near-elite professionals formed close social bonds and wielded increasing social and cultural authority during the late Chosŏn period. Lastly, by examining how paengnapto are portrayed in other forms of representation such as photographs, postcards, and paintings, and by exploring how these screens became entangled in colonial and nationalistic discourses, this dissertation argues for paengnapto’s potential to challenge conventional narratives of Korean art and established art historical taxonomies.

Text

2025-04-24

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/90778

Art History & Theory

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/