A hand-sculpted porcelain decanter from Dogabi — a South Korean ceramic studio whose entire output is built around a single figure: the dokkaebi, or Korean goblin. In Korean folklore, the dokkaebi is not a villain. It is a guardian — a protector of the home, a bringer of abundance, a creature that lives in the space between the frightening and the familiar.
This piece, No. 15, is a decanter for soju, sake, or liquor. The neck opens at the crown of the head — a wide-mouthed goblin face looking straight out, ready to pour. Wheel-thrown and hand-sculpted in white porcelain, the body is clean and bright against a crown glazed in deep oxblood red that bleeds down over the brow. Two eyes with gold-fired irises. A wide-open mouth lined with both British 23.5k gold and platinum-fired teeth — the combination appearing in no other piece in the series, giving this one a particular extravagance. One platinum horn, one gold horn, asymmetrical and deliberate. The spout rises from the center of the crown.
Fired at 2,282°F with oxidation, then re-fired at 1,472°F for the gold and platinum glaze. Each piece is one of a kind; no two Dogabi are identical.
WHY IT'S SPECIAL
- A functional decanter: designed for soju, sake, or liquor — the neck opens at the crown, the face pours from below. The object works as hard as it looks.
- Every piece is unique: wheel-thrown and hand-sculpted individually by ceramic artist Hyung Jun Kim — no two are the same face, the same glaze, the same expression.
- Gold and platinum combined: the only piece in the Dogabi collection to use both British 23.5k gold and platinum firing — one horn in each, teeth in both, fired at 1,472°F.
- Oxblood red crown against white porcelain body: the color contrast is stark and deliberate — the dokkaebi wearing its hat, as the folklore describes.
- Dokkaebi mythology: in Korean tradition, the dokkaebi makes gold for good people, protects their homes, and helps them succeed. The abundance theme is not incidental in a piece designed to hold spirits.
- Collectible from the first: the studio numbers each piece, and past Dogabi sold through Takamichi Beauty Room have not returned.
HOW TO USE
Fill with soju, sake, or liquor of your choice. Pour from the open mouth. Hand wash only; do not submerge.
DETAILS
- Material: white porcelain
- Size: 100 x 110 x 145 (h) mm / approx. 3.9" x 4.3" x 5.7" high
- Weight: 560g
- Method: wheel throwing, hand sculpting
- Kiln: oxidation firing at 2,282°F; gold (British 23.5k) and platinum glaze firing at 1,472°F
- For soju, sake, or liquor
- Hand wash only
- One of a kind; each piece varies
- Made in South Korea by THR Ceramic Studio
THE BRAND
Dogabi is the ceramic line of THR Ceramic Studio, founded in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea in 2003 by ceramic artist Hyung Jun Kim. The studio's work spans functional objects and one-of-a-kind sculpture, but the Dogabi series is its most singular obsession: every piece is a new version of the same figure — the dokkaebi of Korean folklore, reimagined in porcelain each time. The dokkaebi has been part of Korean imagination for centuries, appearing as guardian, trickster, monster, and protector depending on who is telling the story. Kim's versions are all of these at once. Each is numbered, each is different, and none come back once they're gone. In October 2025, Takamichi Beauty Room hosted an exhibition with the artist, covered by T Magazine.
