BKS Visit to the British Museum 2023
Written by: Martin Uden | Posted on: January 20th, 2023
On 13 January, some 30 BKS members were treated to a tour of the Korea Foundation Gallery and the Hirayama Studio. Numbers were such (plus a disappointed wait list) that we had to split into two groups, one going first to the Gallery with Sang-ah Kim, the curator for Korean collections, and then to the Studio, joined by the second group, where we met Meejung Kim-Marandet. After the Studio, the second group saw the Gallery with Sang-ah. We are enormously grateful to Sang-ah and Meejung for their expertise and their explanations, plus staying late on a Friday to look after us.
We were told that the Hirayama Studio was a unique resource of the British Museum, dedicated solely to the conservation of oriental paper artefacts. Meejung is the only conservator outside Korea who works solely on Korean paper. This work is currently funded by a generous contribution from Amorepacific, a well-known Korean cosmetics manufacturer. Meejung showed us various examples of the work underway and different types of paper that needed to be conserved.
Sang-ah explained that the funding from Amorepacific allowed the Museum to undertake a survey of its Korean paper holdings – screens, wall hangings and other paper materials – and to prioritise treatment based on condition and historical importance. Most of the first works selected for treatment were from collections that were acquired by the Museum in 1881, mostly from Japanese sources. For all that time in the Museum’s collection, they have not been displayed because of their condition, one picture of orchids remaining rolled up until funding allowed it to be conserved and mounted as a wall hanging. We were told that the fragility of the paper means that these items are displayed for only six months with the current selection being rotated out in February.
After the tour, the second group was able to eat together in a local Korean restaurant.
While we were being led from the Great Court to the Hirayama Studio through the bowels of the building, many of us were intrigued to see a sign prominently insisting, “It is strictly forbidden to feed cats in this area.” For those who want to know more, I discovered there is a blog about the cats on the BM website – here. No Korean connection, but another fascinating side of the wonderful British Museum!
