Geography
Korean
A heated floor, and furniture that sits close to it
The Korean interior begins with the floor. Ondol underfloor heating put sitting and sleeping at ground level, so the furniture is low and the surface you touch matters most. Rooms are plain by design — white walls, unpainted wood, a spareness that comes from Confucian ideas about how a household presents itself rather than from any shortage of skill.
History
Goryeo (918–1392) is the celadon dynasty: inlaid, grey-green ware, and the one place Korean work has always been judged alongside Chinese.
Joseon (1392–1910) is furniture and white porcelain — softwood left unpainted, joinery left visible, and ceramics admired for the quality of a single glaze.
What to look for
Glaze pooling in the recesses, unpainted softwood with its grain intact, and a form that is quieter than its Chinese equivalent.
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