The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of July 6, 2022

Books and Scholars’ Accouterments

책가도 (冊架圖)

late 1800s

Yi Taek-gyun

(Korean, 1808-after 1883)

Korea, Joseon dynasty

(1392-1910)

Ten-panel folding screen; ink and color on silk

Overall: 197.5 x 395 cm (77 3/4 x 155 1/2 in.); Painting only: 139.3 x 330.8 cm (54 13/16 x 130 1/4 in.)

Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund 2011.37

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The third panel from the right bears a hidden seal, which reveals the artist: Yi Taek-gyun, a prominent court artist active in the late 1800s.

Description

Functioning the same way as a signature in Western art, a seal impression on a chaekgeori screen is sometimes included to reveal the painter’s identity. It is called a “hidden” seal due to its discreet placement. Only about 12 works with such a “hidden” seal are known today. This screen has one on the third panel (from the right). Examined recently, the characters in the seal impression revealed that Yi Taek-gyun, a prominent court artist, is the creator of the museum’s painted screen.

Provenance
2011
(Christie's New York, Japanese & Korean Art, New York, NY, 23 March 2011, lot 992, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
2011-
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Black, Kay E., and Edward W. Wagner. "Ch'aekkŏri Paintings: A Korean Jigsaw Puzzle." Archives of Asian Art 46 (1993): 63-75. www.jstor.org
Sin, Mi-ran. “Objects in Chaekgeori Paintings [책거리 그림과 器物硏究].” Misul sahak yeongu (2010): 169-194. www.dbpia.co.kr
Christie, Manson & Woods International Inc, New York. Japanese & Korean Art. 23 March 2011. Lot 992. Reproduced: lot 992
Franklin, David and C. Griffith Mann. Treasures from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2012. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 274-275
“Art of Asia Acquired by North American Museums, 2010-2011.” Archives of Asian Art, vol. 62, 2012, pp. 105–153. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 114, fig 11 www.jstor.org
Ahn, Dae-hoe. "Hobby life and Cultural phenomena in the Late Joseon Dynasty [조선 후기 취미생활과 문화현상]." Hanguk munhwa (2012): 65-96.
Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 255; Reproduced: pp. 246–247
The City in Art, Art in the City [미술 속 도시, 도시 속 미술]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2016.
McCormick, Sooa Im. “Taste of Distinction: Screens of Scholar’s Accouterments." In Chaekgeori: The Power and Pleasure of Possessions in Korean Painted Screens. Albany: SUNY Series in Korean Studies, 2017. Reproduced and mentioned: pp. 50-62
Chung, Byung-mo and Sunglim Kim. Chaekgeori: The Power and Pleasure of Possessions in Korean Painted Screens. Albany: SUNY Series in Korean Studies, 2017.
Beyond Folding Screens [조선, 병풍의 나라]. Seoul: Amorepacific Museum of Art, 2018.
Breedlove, Byron. “All Bookshelves Are Magical.” Emerging Infectious Diseases journal (October 2020) vol. 26, no. 10: 2537-2538. dx.doi.org
Exhibition history

Main Asian Rotation (Gallery 238). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (January 27, 2014-January 12, 2015).

Chaekgeori: Pleasure of Possessions in Korean Painted Screens. The Cleveland Museum of Art (August 5-November 5, 2017).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2011.37