Koreana Spring 1995 (English)

KOREAN ART & CULTURE Vol. 9, No. l Spring 1995

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BEAUTY OF KOREA

T'aeguk

The comma-shaped yin and yang figures of the t'aegiik symbolize the creation of the cosmos and the reciprocal action of opposites-heave-n and earth, good and evil, light and darkness, male and female.

The t'aeguk has been an important element of East Asian thought for centuries. Koreans adopted the symbol to use in their national flag in 1878.

The red yang and blue yin symbolize harmony within change, a concept that runs throughout the Korean people's view of nature and life.

One finds referen ces to the triple t'aeguk_:_a combination of three comma-shaped figures symbolizing the interaction of heaven, earth and humanity-in many traditional legends and customs.

The five-color t'aeguk mark is even more colorful, combining the five colors of the Korean cosmology. Vivid reflections of Korean philosophy and aesthetics in everyday life, both marks are commonly found in handicrafts, such as paper fans and kites, drums, inlaid lacquerware, and cloisonne accessories, as well as in architecture. •

KOREAN ART & CULTURE

COVER: The fifty years since

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liberation from japanese colonial rule have been a period of

0

glory and hardship, of painful national division and remark-

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able development. This issue of KOREANA considers a half century of achievements and

T

The Post-Liberation Experience 4

setbacks in the fields of art and

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culture.

AHalf Century of Art and Culture

Fifty Years Since Liberation: A Turbulent History

by Lee jong-sok

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12 T

s

A Round Table Discussion on Post-Liberation Culture

24 In Search of a Common Cultural Identity

by Kim Moon-hwan

30 Contemporary Korean Art Born of Liberation and War

by Lee Yil

36 Korean Painting: 50 Years of Wandering

by Pak Yong-suk

42 Developments in Korean Literature: From Liberation to the 1990s

by Kim Yoon-shik

47 CLOSE-UP

Pa rk Kyung-ree

by Zeong Hyon-kee

•

Korea Foundation 3

H~I.L-iP':!

51 KOREAN ARTISTS ABROAD

Han Yong-jin

Published The K quarterly by 526 Namdaeorea Foundation munno 5-ga C Seoul100-095 , hung-gu, , Korea

by Kim Hyung-kook

58 ~RTIFACS

ABROAD

YEssex MUSeUffi

by Kim Kwang-on

ON THE ROAD

Ch'orwon· On the Fr~ntli

by Kim]oo-young

. e of a Divided Korea

70 KOREA

e Camellia

by Kim Tae-wook

73 CURRENTS

A Critic's Look at the year of Art

by Lee Ku-yeol

JOURNEYS IN KOREAN UIERA1URE

soH Kl-WON Multiple Voices and Satirical Perspectives 76

by Yu Jong-ho

P ~

BLISHER-DTO

hO! Chang -yoon EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Hong Soon-il ART DIRECTOR Park Seung-u

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~ShCOVERING

KOREANA

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Translated by Kevin O'Rourke

Behind this facade of political and economic achievements, however, lurks a spiritual laxity that is slowing our progress. The scandals and disasters that rocked the nation last year, including a string of grisly murders, incidents of desertion by army officers, the collapse of Songsu Bridge on the Hangang River and more, were hardly what one would expect from an advanced n.ation.

In short, as Korean society celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of liberation, the proud drama of our national achievements is clouded by chaos and disorder. As we boast of our dramatic economic achievements, the ugly face of corruption and immaturity, so typical of underdeveloped nations, peers over our shoulder. Perhaps this is why Korean tourist groups are seen as such disorderly and immodest upstarts overseas.

The Anniversary's True Meaning On the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of liberation, we must begin to analyze the dubious origins of this Janus face of Korean development. We must have a clear understanding of how independence was achieved, of how the division of the Korean peninsula came about, and of how that division was sealed as a result of the Korean War, a fratricidal conflict. Only then can we address modern Korea's split personality.

When discussing the history of liberation from Japanese rule, w e often speak of the heroic struggles of Korean freedom fighters. Clearly their noble cause and spirit of self-sacrifice deserve our respect. Their struggle was instrumental in alerting the world to the Korean people's ardent desire for independence. It was a catalyst to liberation, and today, that struggle constitutes the mainstream of Korea's modern history. That is why the government awarded independence fighters the Order of Merit for National Foundation and provides financial support for their offspring.

Nevertheless, the direct cause of liberation was Japan's defeat by the Allied Powers. The subsequent division of the Korean peninsula and occupation by the United States and the Soviet Union are proof of this. The Korean people did not understand the cold realities of postwar politics. Recklessly, they assumed that they could and should establish an independent state immediately after liberation. This unrealistic notion was the seed for the postliberation tragedy.

Korea's politicians shared this naive belief. They gathered supporters to form new political parties and appointed themselves Korea's new leaders. In reality, however, the world was divided in two-the American camp and the Soviet camp-and the Korean peninsula soon became a focal point of the Cold War struggle between them.. Ignorant of this and overwhelmed with the joy

The fiftieth anniversary of liberation begs the question : What have we achieved as a nation?

National division, so vividly portrayed in this image of refugees fleeing Pyongyang during the Korean War, still looms large on the Korean people's agenda.

of liberation, Korean politicians thought only of establishing an independent nation and failed to deal effectively with the realities of world politics.

The same can be said of the Korean War. Many people see Korea's division as a result of the liberation process, the establishment of separate governments in the South and North, and the Korean War. However, the war was what cemented the division. The fighting was so fierce, so blindly fratricidal, neither side has opened itself to dialogue, cooperation, or unification. This is why North Korea's political rulers, who started the war in hopes of communizing the peninsula, deserve to be chastised in the court of history. Only then can we prevent a similar tragedy from occurring in the future.

A History of Glory and Failure There is more to the last half century than hardship and failure, however.

Korea's economic and political achievements have been truly glorious. Even more significant is the fact that this achievement w as realized, not at the hands of a narrow class or interest group, but through the orchestrated efforts of all Koreans. During the 1970s and 1980s, South Korean people devoted themselves to the development of their economy. South Korea's economy was similar to that of the North until the 1970s, but in the last twenty years, it has grown to ten times the size of the North Korean economy.

It is our duty to understand how this happened. What ignited this tremendous national dynamism, and how has

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As Koreans celebrate the 11ftieth anniversaryr ofliberation, the proud drruna of their national

achieven1ents tells ofvaliant struggles for justice and democracy.

FroiD top: the April19, 1960 Student Revolution, the pro-deLDocracy LDoveLDent of the nlid-1980s.

it stayed alive? That understanding will be a valuable asset as we build a new age. A new civilization is borne of the awakening and efforts of those who make history. Therefore, -we must understand the role of the key players in that fantastic growth.

Even more urgent is the task of overcoming the trend toward immorality and disorderliness that has plagued our society in the wake of this economic growth. During the last year alone, we witnessed unprecedented violence, large-scale accidents caused by simple negligence, military desertions, and fla10

What does globalization mean for us on the fiftieth anniversmy of .liberation? It means nurturing a sense of courtesy, wisdom and integrity. It means abandoning the prejudice, egotism and selfJShness that w e have acquired over the last flfty yem-s.

grant corruption by government officials. On top of this, a national trend toward lawlessness, immorafity and cor. ruption threatens to slow our economic growth.

Many people fear this moral decay may lead to the total collapse of our society. Koreans are scorned for their spendth rift habits and osten tation.

They flock overseas expecting to be shown the respect befitting the citizens of a developed country, but are treated w ith co nte mpt reser ved fo r big spenders with no culture.

In a sense, the Korean people are

like a silly child in an adult's body.

Fifty years after liberation, this overgrown infant is being set adrift on the vast sea of economic and cultural competition. If we go out onto that sea as we are now, who knows what whirlpool we will be swept into?

Who knows what competitor we will fall prey to? It is time we developed th e inner maturity to match our grown-up body. Without a sense of balanced morality, culture and moderation, we will never survive on the sea of "unlimited" international competition.

Becoming Citizens of the World What does globalization mean for us on the fiftieth anniversary of liberation?

It means nurturing a sense of courtesy, wisdom and integrity, behaving in a way that does not offend others. We must rid ourselves of the prejudice, egotism and selfishness that we have acquired over the last fifty years. We must accept universal human values and join the world tide. We must learn to respect other people's possessions, characters and customs, while maintaining what is good about our own system. We must not impose our opinions

on others, but at the same time, we must not be too easily swayed by others. We must value what is ours and let others appreciate that value.

The half century since liberation is, in many ways, the starting point for the next fifty years. It is a time for introspection, a time to rectify past mistakes and make sure we do not repeat them.

The future is more important than the past, but we must make a righteous and decisive start, which requires wisdom and the determination to transform our frustrating and shameful past into a glorious and honorable future. + 11

ROUND TABLE

AHalf Century of Art and Culture

The Post-Liberation CHOE: We have gathered to discuss Korean culture and arts over the half century since our country was liberated from Japanese rule in 1945. It has been a period of national glory and hardship, of joy and tears, of great rewards and bitter frustration, but what has it meant for our culture and art?

What has our fifty-year race toward modernization brought us?

There are, of course, many answers to these questions. It has been a period in which the Korean people recovered their national sovereignty but almost immediately witnessed the division of their land. It has been a half century of crippling disasters, of repression and conservatism under the shadow of national division, but at the same time, an era of remarkable development, eco· D n\ '~e r :. \ t'i '{on:.e\ , u ~a \ :. U\ , . er:.\t'i nomically, politically and culturally, or O\ 1 J0 ~ \)n\'1 development that our ,biO ~ro\e 55 ~ l'\at\ona . ,n~ ' . C:,e OU country had ~en· ' j\e:.tueuc:., r · · C'u."" cnuc or O\ cente not achieved ~ oeta\0{ . ~ \.te~'l . · cl~ro\ e" seou\ j\r\5 0 in th e pre viMot\Y; 1\ u raU\a cn t~ t y_y.\\\'o\t\0115' 0 ous centuries. ~ "o0n-\~ ' /U\rector ~ ~'" ~ foS\ Cr\UC ance Cr\t\C

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Editor's Note:

In commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of Korea's liberation from japanese colonial rule, KOREANA in vited five eminent specialists to participate in a round table discussion on post-liberation culture and arts.

12

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'

Experience Korea has been swept by what many people call the "Three Revolutions" over the last fifty years. First, there was a revolution in education as compulsory schooling was introduced, offering greater educational opportunities to the average citizen. In the 1960s and 1970s, we saw an economic revolution spurred by the military goyernment's detailed Five-Year Plans. In the 1980s and 1990s, we witnessed a political revolution, born of the valiant democratization movement and based, in part, on the solid economic foundation built during the previous decades.

The dreams of modernization promoted by the Enlightenment Movement in the late nineteenth century were dashed by Japanese aggression, but when the Japanese left the peninsula in 1945, the Korean people unanimously ~ mbraced the establishment of a republic. There were no royalists demanding the restoration of the monarchy or old ways as there had been in postwar Europe.

Of course, many take a negative view of the last fifty years. They see the period as a half century of subordination to yet another foreign power, of national division, of a divided society, of seemingly endless military rule, but I believe the period has been a time of great accomplishment. Today I hope to consider how the last fifty years have affected Korean culture and art, and how culture and arts have influenced the course of modern Korean history. On the one hand, what have we gained? What have we accom13

plished? And on the other hand, what has been lost in this half century of national division? What have we forgotten?

Perhaps we should begin with our senior member Mr. Pak Yong-ku for he has had a ringside seat to so much of what has happened during this period.

PAK: I can speak from personal experience since I was born just four years after the Japanese annexed the Korean peninsula in 1910. In my view, the most influential elements of the fifty years since liberation from Japanese rule have been the division of the Korean peninsula and the Kore-

14

an War. Anti-Japanese and anticommunist values have been the fundamental forces in South Korean society since the founding of the Republic of Korea under Syngman Rhee. As a result, we have been unable to seriously study the experiences of our neighbors, the Japanese, and any consideration of even the most basic elements of socialism has been taboo. As a result, Korean society is stunted, twisted and gnarled like the pine tree that symbolizes our nation.

We must also recognize the importo effectively deal tance of our f~ilure

w ith the issue of pro-Japanese sentiments after liberation as well as our subsequent dependence on the United States, especially in the cultural field.

As many in the opposition movement have pointed out, our cultural dependence on the United States and the isolated development of separate cultures in North and South Korea hang over our modern arts and culture like dark clouds. We must not overlook the fact that these issues are closely linked to the recovery of national sovereignty.

The Cold War is still with us in a sense.

I would hope we could look back over the last fifty years of division

with a sense of mission, realizing that we must prepare for unification by recognizing and overcoming the Cold War environment.

CHOE: Thank you for pointing out some important historical elements that affect all artistic genres. Your observations can serve as the basis for the rest of our discussion. Let us turn now to each participant's field of expertise.

KIM B: The literary field can be summarized in two basic points. First, we must recognize that the Korean people recovered their own language in 1945. It's only natural that a society should recover its native tongue upon

the end of colonial rule, but this must not be seen as a passive act. Rather, Koreans actively embraced their national identity. The fact that the Korean people recovered their languageboth spoken and written-without any resistance constitutes a recovery of their cultural and literary identity as well.

CHOE: Excuse me for interrupting, but perhaps we should take a moment to emphasize just how deep , how widespread, the sense of national loss was under Japanese rule. Not only did the Korean people recover their national sovereignty in 1945, they also recovered their language, even their names. Young people today may have trouble understanding this, but the recovery of our language and names was, from a cultural point of view, as moving as the recovery of national sovereignty.

KIM B: Today's youth have grown up speaking and writing Korean, so the recovery of a long-lost language probably doesn't mean much to them, but it was an important experience for me. I was in first grade in 1945. One day our language simply changed. Our textbooks too! At the time I didn't really understand what was happening, but now that I'm grown and understand the history and social atmosphere of that period, I see the recovery, the rediscovery, of our spoken and written language as perhaps the most significant element of Korean independence in 1945.

Though Koreans had their own written language for centuries, it was shoved aside in favor of an elitist literary culture that used Chinese characters. During the Japanese colonial period, Koreans weren't even allowed to use Korean. The essence of our recovery of "nationality" lies in the recovery of our language. In that linguistic recovery, the Korean people established a sense of national purpose, of national , identity, and truly achieved indepen~ dence. ~ Since liberation, we've seen a gradu-

Choe Chungho

Our modern culture and arts are best explained within the context of the ideological confrontation that ruled the world for much of the last half centwy. From a broad ~

view, however, there have been many important cultural achievements since liberation.

15

Kbn Moon-hwan

Any consideration of the last fifty years must take into account the failure to realize the potential opened by national liberation from japanese rule in 1945.

16

al shift toward a nearly exclusive use of han-gul, the pure Korean alphabet, and the natural emergence of Korean as the central linguistic form in our society. Of course, literature played an important role in that process. It also played an important role in reflecting the pain and conflict of post-liberation society, struggling against the tragic circumstances and distortions of our national history.

Over the last fifty years, with liberation and the division of the peninsula, the Korean War and the resulting poverty and disorder, the student revolution of 1960 and the 1961 coup d'etat, the process of industrialization and military dictatorship, literature has played an important role in the struggle to achieve freedom and democracy, in the quest to achieve unification, and in the exploration of ways to protect human rights and achieve justice.

There is no question that the Korean language has been contaminated to a certain extent by the Japanese colonial experience and the introduction of Western culture, but I cannot help feeling that our national language has made remarkable progress over the last half century. In a sense, it has created modern Korean culture.

CHOE: Before we turn to the fine arts, let us consider a slightly broader issue: the Korean people's sense of beauty, that is, Korean aesthetics since liberation. Professor Kim , you cover a broad range of culture in your work KIM M: I was born in 1944. The Korean War broke out when I was in first grade so I have no direct experience of the immediate post-liberation period. It wasn't until I was older that I came to understand the historical importance of that time.

Young people today are fond of the expression haebang konggan, literally "liberation space." The term refers to the environment surrounding liberation, the potential opened through national liberation. In my view, any consideration of the last fifty years must take into account the failure to realize

that potential, the failure to build upon the many possibilities opened by liberation from Japanese rule in 1945.

Any discussion of Korean aesthetics during this period must consider the ideological confrontation thathas ruled our lives over the last fifty years. The debate between "pure" (suqsu) and "activist" (ch 'amy6) art has continued into the 1990s. As far as I'm concerned, the roots of this conflict stretch deep into the Japanese colonial period. Unfortunately, most of the artists dedicated to the purist approach wasted their energies, scrambling to avoid the activist label or glossing over the activist approach.

The purist position, that is, the belief that the portrayal of beauty is the ultimate goal of all art, ruled Korean society for many years, but on closer consideration of the purist rhetoric, we see that the "pure" art they were advancing was in many ways tantamount to the poetic enthusiasm, and detachment, of the Choson Kingdom's scholarly elite.

It was as if they wanted to withdraw from the world of man, as if the purpose of their art was to escape into nature and avoid society.

This tendency seems to have intensified under Japanese colonial rule.

When we consider the process by which Japanese aesthetics were introduced to Korean society, it is clear that Koreans were turning toward Japanese aesthetics, toward a Neo-Kantian belief in the separation of art and social realities. Their attitude toward natural beauty formed their aesthetic core. I believe this resulted in the obscuring of militarism's shortcomings. This traditionalist belief-that beauty lies in nature, that the artist must recreate the beauty of nature- served to distract people from self-examination, from introspection.

Influenced by the intellectuals of this age, Koreans came to see artistic beauty as something separate, something estranged from the reality in which they were living. In later years, especially after the coup d'etat in 1961,

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Korean military leaders, like the Japanese <;olonial government, skillfully exploited this Japanese-style aesthetic consciousness to hide the true nature of their regime.

We may not have bee!l'aware of it, but this aesthetic consciousness still influences contemporary interpretations of traditional culture. The ideological enmity that had sprouted during the colonial period intensified with the division of the peninsula, and the gap between rich and poor widened in the hothouse environment created by subsequent military regimes bent on rapid economic development.

These two elements remained important factors in Korean society. Traditional culture was distorted to suit the purposes of the ruling regime. For example, scenes satirizing the yangban elite were deleted from traditional masked dramas because the military rulers believed they fostered an unsavory class consciousness. On the other hand, there was a tendency to see everything in terms of class on university campuses. Student ¡activists were just as likely to focus on the elements of traditional culture that served their political purposes. Over the last fifty years, these narrow political interests gave birth to cultural polarization, and the richness of Korean culture has been lost in the shuffle.

CHOE: What has been the significance of the last fifty years for modern art?

LEE: Korean art has seen many changes over the last half century. As Mr. Pak noted earlier, the handling of pro-Japanese sentiments was an important issue, as was the rejection of Japanese color schemes. Also, there was active debate over what made "Korean" art.

The rejection of Japanese colors was especially strong among Korean painters. I believe this was because the Japanese definition of "Oriental painting" (tongyanghwa) had come to mean 'Japanese painting" during the colonial period. Indeed, the concept had been 17

enforced in the annual Choson Art Exhibition held by the Japanese colonial regime. Korean artists felt compelled to fight this.

In the field of Western painting, we find the conflict between "pure" and "activist" art, much as we sa>y in the literary field, but more important was the organizational rivalry, quite unrelated to artistic factors, that divided the art community.

The Korean War was clearly a historical watershed. In the social and political turmoil, many painters from the North fled south, and left-wing painters in the South headed north. The whole structure of the domestic art community changed. After the war ended, the painting community slowly began to reorganize, and the National Art Exhib~ tion, the South Korean successor to the Choson Art Exhibition, was launched.

The post-liberation generation made their debut during this period. Graduates of Korean art schools formed the core of this group.

In the years that followed, a new generation of artists, still in their twenties and inspired by artistic trends from the West, particularly the United States and France, launched the Art Informel Movement. These young artists had experienced the war and were determined to fuse their intense personal consciousness and experience in their art. Park Seo-bo, Kim Tschang-yeul and their compatriots were the leading force in modern Korean art at that time. Thanks to them, the trend toward internationalization proceeded at a rapid pace.

As international exchanges picked up in the late 1960s, more artists spent time overseas, in Europe or the United States, and became active in the international art community. Many of today's major artists studied in Paris. Korean painters had their own enclave there.

In the 1970s we began to see a trend toward diversification. With economic development, Korean painters began to search for their own identity. They 18

were no longer passive. They no longer blindly followed Western trends. It was during this period that Korean artists began the creative search for their own unique art. They began to explore ways to carry on the Korean artistic tradition in a modern world.

The construction of a Korean pavilion at Venice Biennale this year shows just how far we have come. Many nations competed for inclusion in the Biennale. Korea's selection reflects the status of Korean modern art in the international community.

CHOE: From our discussion I feel that the fifty years since liberation should be seen as part of the modernization movement that began in the Enlightenment period at the end of the nineteenth century. Today we are' discussing modern literature, music and art. These are all new cultural genres that emerged in the course of Korea's modernization. They did not exist in traditional society. There were no professional artists as we know them today, only court-appointed artists. The same was true of music. It all began to change with the Enlightenment Movement. Unfortunately, the process of modernization was interrupted by Japan's aggression and the colonial experience. I see the post-liberation period as an extension of that modernization process. If that is the case, what have we achieved in the last fifty years? Can what has occurred even be called an "achievement"? That in itself is subject to debate.

We must remember that 1945 was not simply the year of Korea's liberation; it was also the year in which World War II ended, the year in which peace was restored to the world, although the Cold War divided nations again just two years later. The year 1945 brought peace but only for a brief instance. Soon the Cold War turned hot on the Korean peninsula and the Cold War mentality came to rule our culture.

In my view, our modern culture

and arts are best explained within the context of the ideological confrontation that ruled the world for much of the last half century. From a broad view, however, there have been many important achievements in various cultural fields since liberation. Perhaps we could discuss them now, and then consider any negative aspects of these developments.

KIM B: The literary community saw active debate over modernization in the 1960s. A number of issues were raised: How does one discover one's true self in a modern context? What does personal discovery mean? How do we overcome the social contradictions of modern life? In a sense, it was the purist-activist debate all over again, but writers were now asking themselves: How do we resolve this issue in our writing? Is literature a tool .to serve the greater society or is it an end in and of itself? The debate changed with each new age, but writers always asked the same question: How do we accommodate and express the conflict between the individual and the greater society in literature?

Literature has actively responded to the rapid changes that have swept Korean society. It has reflected the vast changes in social values to achieve a new artistic form. The accomplishments of the postwar writers, the existentialism of the 1960s, the realism of the 1970s, the examination of Korea's national division and the tragedy of war by activist and nationalist writers in the 1980s, the discovery of the self in modern society, the expansion of a sense of community consciousness, the revived interest in n ational h istory-these are all matters of great pride.

And writers have continued to pursue literary truth, to reevaluate the society in which they are living, to struggle to cultivate the spirit and determination of the Korean people.

CHOE: Perhaps we could get a bit more specific. In your view, w hich works and authors best represent Korean literature since independence?

KIM B: Naturally I would choose Park Kyung-ree's The Earth (T'oj1) and Hwang Sok-yong's Chang Kil-san. I also believe Hong Song-won's The Dawning Sky (Mondong), Kim Won-il's Pine Tree Forever Green (Nul p 'urun son am u), and Cho Jung-rae's The T'aebaek Mountains (T'aebaeksanmaek) are on par with the world's best roman-fleuve. Novels, such as Choi Inhoon's The Square (Kwangjang), Yi Ch'ong-jun's This Paradise of Yours (Tangshindului ch'on-guk), Cho Se-hUi's A Dwarf Launches a Small Ball (Nanjangi-ga ssoaollin chagun gong), and Lee Mun-yol's Son of Man (Saramui adul), are also worthy of international

recognition. As for poetry, the works of Ko Un, Shin Kyong-nim, Hwang Tong-gyu, Kim Chi-ha and Chong Hyon-jong are noteworthy for their rediscovery of a purely Korean feeling and for their rich use of the Korean language.

CHOE: What about the art field?

Which artists best represent the last fifty years in your view, Mr. Lee? LEE: As in literature, the post-liberation generation was especially active, but we should also note a handful of artists who were active before 1945 and continued to play an important role after liberation. Park Su-keun, Lee Joong-seop and Kim Whan-ki are especially noteworthy. Lee's work is the embodiment of the tragedy of national division and the Korean War. His paintings vividly portray the heartache of families torn apart by war, of his own terrible loneliness. Fighting Roosters portrays the world through the innocent eyes of a child. In The Ox, Lee's most famous painting, the animal's plaintive wail reminds us of the artist's own emotional pain. Suffering, the scars of war, the loneliness of Korean life-these are the themes of Lee's work One could say his paintings reflect Korean history, the reality of Korean society at that time.

Park Su-keun's work has been reevaluated in recent years. He fled to North Korea during the Korean War.

But today we can see that he made significant contributions to the definition of the Korean people's national spirit, while searching for freedom of expression. Park lived an impoverished existence right until his death, but his paintings are rich in the emotions of the common people-old men and women you might find anywhere in Korea, simple village women. Their faces reveal not despair, but a certain hope, the determination to overcome their many hardships.

Kim Whan-ki was a modern romantic. After going to the United States in 1963, he developed his own unique artistic world. In my view, these three men were among Korea's most accomplished artists. Their careers stretched from the pre-liberation period well into the 1960s and beyond.

CHOE: What about the music field?

PAK: The division of the Korean peninsula served to undermine and divide the music community, particularly in the field of composition. The development of a sense of national self is an important element in the acceptance of modern culture, but the country was divided just as musicians were developing a sense of national identity and moving away from romanticism. As a result, Korean music lost its sense of self for some time. Still, I believe composers Kim Sun-nam, who went to North Korea, and Yun I-sang, who has been active for so many years in Germany and has yet to be allowed to return to South Korea, are important symbolic figures in Korean music. Kim came close to realizing a "national" music in his compositions, but his efforts were frustrated by the ideological division of our country. Yun has created an East Asian musical spirit through international musical techniques. Unfortunately he has not been allowed to visit South Korea.

In the performance field, Korean musicians have made enormous strides on the international stage. Violinists have had particular success, perhaps because the instrument suits the East

PakYong-ku

The development of a sense of national self is an important element in the acceptance of modern culture, but Korea was divided just as musicians were A

developing a sense of national identity and moving away from romanticism.

19

Asian psyche so well. Chung Kyungwha, Kim Young-uck and Kang Tongsok have become international stars, as has young Sarah Chang. Chung's brother Myung-whun has made a name for himself as a conductor, directing the Bastille Opera Orchestra until last year, while Paik Kun-woo and Suh Hye-gyong are known for their expertise on the piano.

Several opera singers, including Jo Sumi and Shin Young-ok, have been gaining international attention on stages in both New York and Europe.

Certainly the most remarkable developments have been in the performance field.

From this it is easy to surmise the depth of the Korean people's national affinity for music and dance. I personally see China as the land of the written word, the Japanese archipelago as the land of art, and Korea as the land of song and dance. I once saw an English-language guide to China that described the local Korean community as a "Homeland for Song and Dance."

Tung-i chuan (Accownt of the Eastern Barbarians in the third century Chinese history San-kuo chih) also describes the Korean people as lovers of music and dance.

CHOE: Professor Kim, what significant developments do you see in the theater community?

KIM M: During the 1950s and 1960s, . the Art Informel Movement was an important trend in the field of art, and in the music community, new compositions based on twelve-tone music won international recognition for Korean musicians. On the other hand, Korean theater- or should I call it "Anti-theater"-had relatively little impact. The "New Theater" of contemporary Japan was sentimental, a fairly sincere response to the entertainment-oriented theater that preceded it. It had, however, developed in association w ith the proletariat movement, and as a result saw the production of many plays criticizing the status quo.

Many Korean dramatists, such as Yu 20

Chi-jin, studied "New Theater" in Japan, but political conditions here in Korea made the establishment of a true theatrical tradition, based on structured performance, extremely difficult. The Informel Movement in the art field and the twelve-tone music composed by young Korean composers were reactions to distinct stimuli; such stimuli did not exist for you ng dramatists. A handful of plays emulating the West's theater of the absurd were produced, but generally speaking, there were no noteworthy works during this period.

It was in the 1970s, amidst the political uncertainty and social injustices of the developme nt dictatorship, that many playwrights awoke to write plays similar to Japan's "New Theater."

Some playwrights, such as Lee Kangbaek, wrote allegorical works, but realism was the ruling trend.

In Japan, members of today's theatrical status quo began challenging "New Theater" in favor of "Underground Theater." Korean theater companies and producers, including Yu Tokh yo ng and An Min-su, attempted theatre de Ja cruaute, influenced by dramatic techniques imported from Europe and the United States, and in the years since, 0 T'ae-sok has worked at combining the traditional nanjang theater-in-the-round format and Western methods. Only recently have we seen any attempt to challenge language-centered realism in the work of Son Chinch'aek, Yi Yun-t'aek, Yi Pyong-hun and others. Yi Hyon-hwa stands in sharp contrast to these realist pia ywrights.

Of course, realism remains the norm, but we are seeing a growing preference for the feelings of the new generation.

CHOE: In summary, I believe we could say that China was Korea's primary cultural influence, indeed, the world's cultural center as far as the Choson Kingdom was concerned, through the nineteenth century. As our cultural center shifted to the West, "Enlightenment" came to mean an acceptance of things Western, of mod-

ernization. Japan soon replaced the West in that process, however, and as a result, Japanese culture dominated us against our better judgment. Japan soon was our main source of external cultural influence.

In many ways, liberation meant the replacement of Japanese culture with that of the United States. A unique element of Korea's external relations, an element that sets it apart from the nations of Europe for example is: Our external relations have always been limited to one significant counterpart. During the colonial period, our outside relations were limited to Japan; upon liberation, the Soviet Unio n became North Korea's significant other, the United States, South Korea's. The relationship between the two Koreas has remained troubled ever since.

It wasn't until the 1988 Seoul Olympics and the gradual relaxation of Cold War tensions in the latter part of the 1980s that we began to see the development of m ultilateral foreign relations. It was also during this period that we saw a trend toward national introspection. Frankly, it was only with the embracing of Western culture after liberation and Korea's pursuit of multilateral international relations that we were awakened to the question of who we really are. As a result, there was a new interest in traditional culture, a kind of rediscovery.

To be more specific, following liberation, the expansion of universal educational opportunities was paralleled by a retreat of elite yangban culture.

With the collapse of aristocratic culture came the relative promotion of traditional pop,ular culture, that is, the cultu re of common people during the Choson period. The Enligh tenment Movement sought to discover the self, to discover Korea's cultural identity, and in this introspective process, the cu lture of the common peoplemasked dance, p'ansori and other genres scorned until then- was elevated to the status of a national culture that transcended social class.

Kbn Byong-ik

Literature has played an important role in the struggle to achieve freedom and ¡d emocracy, in the quest to achieve unification, and in the exploration of ways to protect human rights and achieve justice.

21

LeeKu-yeol

The Korean War was clearly a historical watershed.

In the social and political turmoil, many painters from the North fled south, and left-wing painters in the South headed north.

The whole structure of the domestic art community changed.

22

Next I would like to consider the problem of national division. In the final analysis, this division means a loss of our sense of national unity, of national completeness. Both sides have been so busy asserting the supremacy of their own system that they have forgotten that they are part of a single entity.

PAK: The tragedy of fifty years of national division has meant we couldn't study Japan or communism.

CHOE: What problems have arisen in the cultural field over the last fifty years, and how can we solve them?

We need to identify the problems facing us before we can solve them.

KIM B: Despite the many achievements we have witnessed in the literary field, we have yet to receive the international recognition we deserve because of linguistic barriers. In recent years, the government and various private organizations have provided financial and logistic support for translations, but Korean literature has yet to make a foothold overseas.

Our task is establishing Korean literature as a respected participant in world literature. We need a more systematic and effective approach as well as more active and long-term support to achieve this goal.

I would also like to point out the rapid commercialization of literature we have seen in recent years. At issue are the defense and cultivation of serious literature. With the expanding market for leisure culture, literature has gradually degenerated to the level of consumer-oriented entertainment. Literature as we know it could be overwhelmed by pop culture if we do not act. There must be a collective effort, among educators, writers, publishers, editors and readers.

KIM M: We are standing on the threshold of the twenty-first century, a period in which many scholars predict a cultural war. In fact, there are indicators that the war has already begun.

Fortunately the present government has shown an interest in the promotion

of the culture industry and has expressed a commitment to the active cultivation of Korean culture. I am concerned, however, that the government is moving in a somewhat crude and materialistic direction.

What I mean to say is: If we are going to respond effectively to the threat of a cultural war, we must realize that software is as important, if not more important than hardware. The government has rushed into the introduction of cable television, for example, but at present, there is not enough domestic programming to broadcast over the new channels. As a result, broadcasters are forced to make do with imported programming. The free exchange of cultural products is, of course, the road to cultural development, but most cable broadcasters ... no, all cable broadcasters have to consider the bottom line.

They have no choice but to import inexpensive, and low-quality, programs.

The proverb says "You get what you pay for," and I am afraid that most cable broadcasting w ill be out-of-date and poor quality. This problem can only be solved by developing our own programs, and if we are to do that, we must develop our primary arts. We need a bold liberalization policy to improve general education and specialized art education.

LEE: In the art field, I would like to point' out someth ing that is not so much a problem as a task we in the art community need to work on. Art is not a part of everyday life in our society. The creative activities of artists, both at home and abroad, must be integrated into the life of the average citizen. But how? Exhibition facilities, funded and run by both government agencies and private foundations, must be expanded, and with policy inducements, we must create an environment that brings the citizen closer to art. The improvement of childhood and adult education, and the promotion of art programs in the mass media would also make an important contribution.

PAK: Culture is directly related to

life. Therefore, priority must be placed on the creation of a more comfortable living environment. At present, there is little awareness of Korean culture overseas, especially in comparison with Japanese culture. Two Japanese novelists have received the Nobel Prize for Literature. Of course, Japan has fine literature, but it seems to me that Japanese authors have had better luck because Western intellectuals are aware of the cultural underpinnings of Japanese literature.

Rafkadio Hem, an Irish writer who has played a central role in introducing Japanese literature overseas, has spent much of his life in Japan and has worked hard to promote Japanese culture. The more I think about it, the more I believe Hem's commitment to Japanese culture is related to the favorable living environment there and the Japanese people's own cultural consciousness. We must improve the general environment here in Korea in order to promote the development of our culture and arts and to create an attractive atmosphere for creative artists and non-Korean translators.

I would also point out Korea's failure to establish a review mechanism-a kind of watchdog device- especially in the performing arts. The lack of any organization or system to evaluate performances has been a significant shortcoming.

Reforms in the educational system are also urgently needed. Traditional music, dance and drama must be included in the basic curriculum from the earliest years.

CHOE: One final issue I would like to raise is the globalization of Korean arts and culture. In this age of diversification and the rapid globalization of information, what tasks lie ahead for Korean culture and art?

KIM B: As I noted earlier, the globalization of Korean literature requires active institutional and financial support.

At the same time, serious literature must be protected. Clearly the most immediate globalization issue is transla-

tion. We are still far behind other nations in this area. This problem cannot be solved by the literary community or authors alone, however. It requires a joint effort by government and nongovernment organizations, universities and businesses.

Another urgent problem is the issue of universality. Korean literature must develop the depth and breadth to transcend national boundaries and deal with problems facing all people. Our literature and culture must be broadened to attract world interest.

KIM M: If we are to actively introduce Korean culture overseas, we need more effective international networking-cultural diplomacy, so to speak.

Only when the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Education, Culture and Information work together can we promote Korean culture and arts systematically and efficiently. That doesn't mean the government should monopolize cultural programs, however. Non-government organizations, of which there are already many, must be involved.

We must also examine our cultural exchange programs. Are they skewed toward Western nations? Personally I believe we need to promote cultural exchanges with nations of Asia and the Pacific Rim, in their native tongues. A lot of work has already been achieved in English. Now it is time to diversify into other languages. We should also consider developing closer ties with Australia as a counterbalance to the dominant role now played by the United States and Japan.

While there is something to be gained from a greater emphasis on the similarities between Korean culture and other cultures of the Asian region, when dealing with the West we must also underscore the differences between our culture and the cultures of Japan and China. Ultimately, the foundation of globalization must be laid at home, within our own culture. Priority must be given to the building of a foundation for, an environment conducive to, quality culture that can be

enjoyed by Koreans everywhere.

LEE: Active international exchanges and the absorption and accommodation of international currents are essential to the generation of new culture and art. I believe Korea's modern art is already globalized. It is recognized in the international community. However, there is no denying the fact that our reservoir of domestic-talent is still somewhat shallow.

P AK: Looking back over the last fifty years, it is clear how effective long-term policy planning was in achieving rapid economic growth and industrialization. The Economic Planning Board and systematic government planning played an important role in transforming Korea from an undeveloped country to the economic powerhouse it has become today. A similar systematic transformation is urgently needed in the cultural field. By establishing a "Cultural Planning Board" coordinating cultural and economic policy-an organ more comprehensive than the existing Ministry of Culture and Sports-we would achieve more rational and effective cult ~al development.

With the rapid development of information technology in the coming century, I believe we will see the emergence of a world culture. National boundaries will be blurred. We may see the introduction of global art networks2.perhaps a cable television network serving the East Asian countries that share the use of Chinese characters. Active participation in such enterprises is one way of responding to the new international environment. . CHOE: Thank you for your many insights. The last half century has been a turbulent period in Korean history.

We have experienced the joy of independence only to suffer the pain of national division. But despite the many disappointments and frustrations, the Korean people have endured. Let us close our discussion recalling what we have gained over the last fifty years and what we have to look forward to in the next century. + 23

In Search of aCommon Kim Moon-hwan Drama Critic/Professor of Aesthetics Seoul National University

his year's celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of liberation from Japanese colonial rule is rousing the Korean people's aspirations for national reunification. The sudden death of North Korea's "Great Leader" Kim 11-surig last summer stirred hopes for a breakthrough in the unification process, but editorials jointly run in the New Year's editions of North Korea's major publications-organs of the Workers' Party, the military and youth organizations-reveal just how unrealistic these hopes are.

The official North Korean view remains firm: "The imperialist and reactionary scheme to isolate and choke the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is growing more intense with each passing day . . . However, juch'e (self-reliance) socialism will never fail under the Great Leader, Comrade Kim Jong-il."

The North Korean authorities see this year's anniversary of liberation as an important milestone, but place equally great emphasis on the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party. "Party organizers must fortify ideological education to better arm party members and workers with revolutionary consciousness and juch'e ideology.

We must solidify our revolutionary line bonded in the blood of the Great Leader, the Party and the masses," assert the joint New Year's editorials.

The editorials stress the North Koreans' desire to realize national unification in the 1990s. To achieve this goal, "Koreans in the North and .south and our compatriots overseas must unite under

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Cultural Identity the 'ten principles of grand national unity', overcoming differences in party, organization, government and religion, and contribute what they can to the task ¡o f national unification."

As for the joint editorials which essentially reiterate the policy direction contained in Kim Il-sung's New Year's message for 1994, South Korea's Unification Board sees them as an indicator that North Korea intends "to focus on stabilization and maintenance of its system, and to continue its existing policy, rather than risking a change amidst a global trend toward reform and liberalization." South Korea believes North Korea will "adhere to its policy of 'our style of socialism'," and therefore questions the prospects for 1nter-Korean dialogue, exchanges and cooperation for the time being. .

The South Korean government has, however, reiterated its commitment to enhanced economic cooperation w ith North Korea. A growing number of South Korean businessmen are visiting the North. In a television appearance, the American ambassador to Korea even suggested that North Korea may have abandoned its juch 'e ideology.

Amidst this uncertainty, the South Korean Christian community has annOunced a jubilee for national unification in 1995, citing the Old Testament admonition that all debts be written off after fifty years. I too hope that the momentum toward national unification will increase this year. However, we must define what our "debts" are before we can write them off. The North Ko-

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The cultural gap between North and South is evident in their interpretations of traditional dances.

At ieft, a performance by a North Korean dance troupe; at right, a performance b y a South Korean troupe.

rean authorities have announced the fortification of ideological education programs this year, and we must understand what that means for culture and the arts.

Revolutionary Theater What do the North Koreans mean by "ideological education?" This is easily understood by looking at the arts, or more specifically the theater, than abstract theory. For an example, let us consider the revolutionary drama Cele-

bration (Kyongch'uk daehoe).

Celebration combines a touch of par26

ody in its first half with aspects of traditional theater in its final scenes. North Korean experts attribute this combination of parody and tradition to Kim Jong-il. O f course, this was done to "more clearly dramatize the profoundness of the work's basic philosophy, which predicts the inevitable downfall of the imperialistic aggressors at the hands of the people who fight w ith the spirit of national self-reliance." North Korean experts praise Kim Jong-il for pointing out the value of parody "when presented as a traditional dramatic form, without exaggeration."

Celebration is one of five "classical revolutionary masterpieces" produced and staged during the period of armed s.truggles against the Japanese. It was rep roduced as a "revolutionary drama" and staged on April 15, Kim 11-sung's birthday, by the national theater company in 1988, the fortieth anniversary of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. According to North Korean experts, the drama is important because it accurately portrays the theories expressed in Kim jong-il's Theory on the Cinema. In this treatise, Kim states "Our writers and performers m ust have a firm under-

standing of the role of class in the characterization of our enemies in order to clearly depict their reactionary nature and their inherent vulnerability. Our enemies must be portrayed accurately."

This drama tells of "a grand celebration held by the Korean people's revolutionary army after they expose a deceitful celebration planned by the Japanese imperial aggressors." The Japanese army hides the fact that they failed to subjugate the Korean forces, and an opposing group within the Japanese government attempts to expose this. This internal paradox is also carefully planned by un-

The teachings of Kim n-sung and

Kim]ong-il call for nationalist theater infused with socialist content, theater that is !xJth "human-centered and reflective ofsocialist realism. "

derground agents of the revolutionary army, therefore, adding an element of parody to the piece.

The drama emphasizes historical lessons and modern values by questioning the importance of modern weapons and troop size. More important, however, is "the grand anti-imperialistic, self-reliance ideology that destroyed the Japanese imperialists and is now driving the American imperialists from their position as the world's mightiest country."

The North Koreans claim the drama will enhance.the ideological educational process.

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North Korea emphasizes the importance of stage design and music, as well as acting, in the creation of works portraying "socialist realism." Here again, Kim Jong-il's thoughts on "truth" (chinshil) are embraced as a basic principle.

"In all theater, including parodies, the story must offer the audience natural humor. It must not try to make people laugh with comic acting alone." Kim seems to be stressing the need to avoid the exaggerated and superficial acting techniques of the New Theater. He goes on to say, "Actors should penetrate their characters' w orld and experience their lives after carefully analyzing their true identity." Celebration is generally thought to have realized this goal.

An Ideological Tool This revolutionary drama is clearly an attempt to remain faithful to realism, while upholding Kim Il-sung's admonishment that art serve as "a beloved tool of the people." A similar attempt was made in the film The Secret En voy Who Never Returned. Although it was largely the work of Shin Sang-ok and Ch'oe Un-hUi, both South Koreans w ho were abducted to the North at the instruction of Kim Jong-il, the film reflects a change in the content and form of North Korea's ideological education projects The revolutionary drama Celebration reflects the three principal elements of the North Korean authorities' views on art and ideological education: the masses, the working class, and the party. It also strictly adheres to the teachings of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il by infusing a national art form with socialist content and introducing "techniques that are human-centered and reflective of socialist realism."

In the 1990s, there has been a change in the North Korean approach to art, at least in theater. While the teachings of the Great Leader are still emphasized, artists are turning to traditional Korean subject matter, borrowing from classic works such as the Tale of Ch 'unhyang.

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As part of an effort to reinforce the regime's Korean superiority policy, nationalist operas are being staged.

The operatic adaptation of the Tale of Ch'unhyang I saw in Fukuoka, Japan, in the fall of 1991 was loyal to certain elements of revolutionary theater. It was marked, however, by relatively few class or partisan elements and was quite pleasant to watch. I may have missed something because the performance was scaled down slightly for overseas use, but generally the opera seemed less ideological than earlier North Korean efforts.

The opera was perfo rmed by the Pyongyang Art Troupe, w hich has its own large theater in Pyongyang. Kim Jong-il made specific instructions ¡to the troupe for this performance: "A void language based on difficult Ch inese characters and make the dialogue conversational with both emotional and philosophical depth"; create songs that "appeal to the sentiments of modern people, especially to young people's sense of beauty." "Melodies should be beautiful," he added, "without being prisoners to the scene." Kim also instructed the producers to replace some "outmoded" songs from the original Tale of Ch 'unhyang with new ones, "more suitable to the new national theater." As a result, North Korean critics laud the new Tale of Ch 'unhyang as a milestone for successfully "carrying on the national cultural tradition, while suiting modern tastes."

The Japanese press noted that many melodies resem bled th ose o f the Japanese enka, or popular songs, and appealed to the Japanese audience. In my opinion, a South Korean audience, accustomed to traditional musicals performed at the Seoul Arts Center, would also appreciate this work

Cultural Heterogeneity This is not to say that overcoming the cultural heterogeneity or differences between South and North Korea, the product of fifty years of national division, w ill be easy. In his study of

North Korean literary trends in the 1990s, Kim Jae-yong noted a reversal in the 1990s of the literary progress made in the p revious decade. During the 1980s, North Korean writers concentrated on domestic issues, being rather oblivious to the international situation.

They focused on exposing social contradictions and problems that had been hitherto ignored. This trend w as reversed in the 1990s, however, as socialism declined worldwide. There were, of course, limits on what they could write, even in the 1980s. The party line was absolute, but sometimes reality was allowed to surface, contradicting official organs and irritating the authorities.

Writers seem to feel a greater obligation to follow the party line in the 1990s.

Kim sees a link between this trend and the national crisis that North Korea faces today. The North Korean authorities cannot afford to loosen their grip on literature w hen the future seems so uncertain, and therefore ask writers to follow party policy more closely.

On the one hand, North Koreans are promoting the "Korean superiority" concept through traditional dramas relatively free of ideology. On the other hand, they are tightening their control over literature, w hich might expose internal contradictions, because of their fear of international trends toward reform and liberalization.

There is clearly a difference in the two Koreas' understanding of culture and art. In South Korea, where freedom and democracy are the professed ideals, art is supposed to criticize social realities and expose social contradictions. There has, of course, been a call for the infusion of socialist content in national art forms over the past thirty years as South Koreans struggled against the military dictatorship, but this was largely a means of opposing the authoritarian regime and cannot be compared to the North Korean policy of systematic artistic indoctrination.

North Korea's rigid rationalization of its system is the major cause of the cui-

I

I.

I

tural gap between the two Koreas. Art is no exception. There is clear evidence of this in a book commemorating North Korea's ninth annual National Art Exhibition in October 1966. The book made the following twelve points: 1. Develop revolutionary art based on

national forms with socialist content.

2. Portray the revolutionary path and the people's heroic struggles.

3. Contribute to class awareness through the portrayal of exploitative society.

4. Proclaim the joy of life under socialism.

5. Develop art based on Korean painting (chos6nhwa), but do not reject the artistic trends of other countries.

Develop oil painting and woodblock printing techniques as well.

6. Uphold juch'e ideology in art.

7. Base your painting on Korean traditional art, but do not simply copy traditional paintings. Rather, master traditional clarity and simplicity, and develop it to fit modern requirements.

8. Select the right subject. This means subjects that can help educate the masses in communism and inspire them to revolutionary struggle and construction.

9. Develop not only paintings but also cinemagraphic art, stage art, industrial art, sculpture, embroidery and crafts based on Korean forms, and refine them to fit the sentiments and goals of the builders of socialism.

10. In capitalist society, art tends to be subjective, formalistic, and naturalistic. It is therefore distant from the lives of the masses and is not loved by them.

11. Artists must live in reality if they are to produce the art needed by the party and loved by th e m asses.

Therefore, they should go to the factories and farmlands and work with masses.

12. Popularize artistic projects and nurture new generations of talented artists.

in the pursuit of homogeneity. Cultural hom ogeneity cannot be restored through a better understanding of traditional art and culture either, because the North Koreans have transformed traditional forms in their own doctrinaire manner. The only way to narrow the differences between the South and North is to take a future-oriented approach; that is, by recognizing the nature of art activities and embracing achievements made by both sides. Otherwise, the two Koreas will remain a "broken nation-state," divided forever. tJ Korea has failed to form a unified e; nation-state for two reasons: Cold War "' ÂŤ pressures after World War II, and the split among sociopolitical forces at The only way to nan-ow the home. Korea came to an awareness of national identity relatively late, under differences between Japanese colonial rule. As a result, Koreans' national identity was that .of a rethe South and North is to take a sistant nation ( Widerstandsnation ).

This awareness was later shattered as the nation split into nationalist and sofuture-oriented approach, cialist camps, and the division between to recognize the nature of art classes and factions intensified. Ultimately, the two Koreas were divided and absorbed by their respective Cold activities and embrace War patrons.

We must overcome this division if the achievements of both sides.

Korea is to form a normal nation-state.

To do this, the ruling elite on both Otherwise, the two Koreas will sides must first acknowledge their exploitation of this divided structure to remain divided forever. rule their respective societies. They then must work to restore the Korean people's sense of national homogeneity, liberate their people from all unThese basic principles have circum- equal structures, and nurture demoscribed North Korean art, making it a cratic potential based on mature cititool of the party and revolution. The zenship. doctrinaire principles that have preArt, so often called culture in the vailed in North Korean society and the narrow sense, will only contribute to single-minded pursuit of juch 'e thought, the formation of a unified Korean first introduced in 1967, have resulted in state when it is included in the unificaa significant gap between the art of tion process. Many people argue that North Korea and that of the South, states formed around national culture where relative autonomy has been al- will be less important in the twentylowed. first century, but it would be wrong to Clearly, cultural differences accumu- make empty calls for globalization lated over a half century cannot be while our people still suffer the pain erased by simply imposing uniformity of national division. + 29

CONTEMPORARY KOREAN ART BORN OF LIBERATION AND WAR Lee Yil Art Critic/Professor of Art History

Hong-ik University

' .

ny discussion of contemporary Korean art requires an examination of the historical background which gave rise to its development. Looking back, there were two major historical events which influenced the formation of Korea's contemporary art-liberation from Japanese colonial rule in 1945 and the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. The effects of these two events were, of course, not limited to the field of art; however, their impact on art does hold uncommon meaning.

The liberation of Korea was a cultural milestone for it brought home artists who had been studying in Japan during the years of colonial rule. The Korean War forced the country open to outside influences and Korean artists be-

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Awake to the vanity of aitificiality, young avant ga1de artists rejected all traces of shape or image. They sought to confmn life in the most basic urges ofhumanity. Theirs was an art of exdamation, an art of existentialism which sent humanity back to its origins.

gan to open their eyes to the art of the world. As a result, new art movements began to develop and a new generation of artists gave birth to contemporary art in Korea. (Indeed, the term "contemporary art" should probably be seen as a Western concept here.)

When examining the formative background of Korean contemporary art, on a broad scale the issue is the general historical framework, while on a narrower scale the issue is contemporary art's place in the flow of art history. Needless to say, the latter issue is linked to modern art. We cannot ignore the tradition and development of modern art if we are to understand the circumstances which gave rise to contemporary art.

To a great extent, as far as Korea is

I

concerned, modern art meant European art which came to us filtered through Japanese influences. Thus modern art was transplanted here in a fragmentary and eclectic fashion with no clear sense of continuity or line of succession.

Still, this is a form of proof to the contrary that Korean contemporary art had no tradition to inherit or legacy to reject. If there was a gap between contemporary art and the art that went before it, it could be seen as a kind of marginal space. That margin was not simply a blank space but a hiatus filled with endless possibilities. Paradoxically, Korean contemporary art found its ¡raison d'etre in that space.

The development of Korean contemporary art may well fit a "transcendental logic." Put another way, this means a "logic which transcends logic," a logic which can be viewed from two

different perspectives: from that of art history and that of a formative conception. In the end, though, these points are one and the same as far as our contemporary art is concerned.

Artlnfoe~v

The "Art Informel'' movement of the late 1950s is generally regarded as the launch pad for contemporary art in Korea. At the core of that movement were young artists in their twenties, commonly known as the "Korean War generation." This period corresponds to the postwar generation in European history in that the spiritual wounds left by the Korean War on the nation's youth are comparable to those suffered by the youth of Europe after World War II. True, there is a difference of five to ten years between the two events, but the point is not so much the

timing as the "sympathy of circumstances." It was amidst these similar circumstances that abstract expressionist art surfaced in Korea, thus giving birth to a strong avant-garde group consciousness.

It is not hard to understand why the young artists who had experienced the Korean War enthusiastically embraced the Art Informel movement. For them it was a reflection of their personal experiences. Bearing the scars of war like a medal of youth and embracing their wounds and uncontrollable sense of futility, the young artists chose to obey the sounds of the inner world of confusion and their own basic instincts.

Awake to the vanity of all artificiality, the young avant garde artists sought the extreme in their art by expelling all traces of shape or image. They sought confirmation of life in the most basic

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LeeJoong-seop, Fighting Roosters, 1955, oil (28x40an) 31

urges of humanity. Theirs was an art of exclamation, an art of existentialism which sent all humans back to their origins.

Generally speaking, the Korean Art Informel period lasted from 1957 to 1965. During this time, artists began to actively participate in the international art scene at the Paris Biennale (a forum for artists under 35). From 1959, the first year of the Biennale, to 1965, all of the Korean participants were of the Art Informe! school.

These artists were bound by their exclusion of all formative elements from the canvas. Instead of formative elements, they emphasized the medium and the traces of action impressed therein; in a word, they endeavored to capture a physical collision with the canvas.

Judging not from the perspective of pure art history but from the circumstances which gave birth to this type of art, there was also embodied in their art the consciousness of a bond to fate.

This spiritual and ethical climate was shared by the youth of post-World War II France and the Korean youth of the post-Korean War period.

Second Wave of Abstract Art By the latter half of the 1960s, Art Informe! reached a state of saturation in Korea. Abstract Expressionism had lost its initial vigor and, as a form of avant garde art, had degenerated into empty mannerism.

Through over-emphasis, the medium came to displace substance, raising the problem of formative order.

Thus Art Informel eventually gave way to the emergence of the second wave of abstract art w hich concentrated on geometric and restorative art. Although the influence of Art Informel as a group consciousness diminished, from the point of view of aesthetics and artistic trends, it holds an important place in Korea's art history Chronologically, the last two years of the 1960s witnessed the opening of yet another page in the history of contemporary Korean art. At the time, I had a!32

ready judged the unfolding art trend to be a movement toward the coexistence of "restoration" and "expansion." To say these two opposing concepts coexisted suggests the complexity of the contemporary art scene at the time. As mentioned earlier, the second wave of abstract art was at the core of this situation.

An examination of this second wave, namely geometric and restorative art, shows that in this area we have no tradition. Though taking a leap in logic, this could mean that we have no modernist tradition. All that is left to say is that this was the fate of contemporary art in Korea. Geometric art, with its aspirations toward simple clarity of pattern and structure in color, was the first study of modern theory for Korean art.

At the same time, the fact that this logic was born of compromise and thus had its limits cannot be ignored. Despite its limits, there is no denying that this art was a reaction to the impassioned abstraction ¡of the Korean War generation and was an inevitable answer to the demands of the times.

The second wave of abstract art was a manifestation of the fervent demand for visual clarity and basic formative order that had been rejected earlier. The frontrunners of this movement were successors to the postwar generation, the April 19, 1960 Student Revolution generation. As the restorative art of the April 19 generation appeared, a splinter group of the same generation gave rise to an expansionist art which in many ways ran contrary to the former. The term expansionism primarily refers to the enlargement of artistic concepts and territory;, its expression in concrete form was the art of found objects. Experiments in this field began in 1910 with the Dada movement, represented

by Marcel Duchamp and h is "readymades." With these new artistic investigations, the world of art began to expand into the world of everyday life.

Art began to be less about creating something new from scratch and more about forging links between extant ob-

jects. "Objet art," often called the "aesthetics of the meeting between man and object," opened new artistic horizons.

Some of the resulting movements were installation, assemblage and later performance art. Such art, w hich was intrinsically experimental in nature and had "anti-art" inclinations, became Korea's new avant garde art. It was a matter of no small interest in the local art scene to note that it developed coincidentally with restorative art from the late 1960s to the mid 1970s.

Unique Korean Abstract Art If geometric, restorative art was the main current of the second wave of abstract painting in Korea, a new set of circumstances arose in the late 1970s, giving birth to what could be called the "third wave." This new art had all the marks of minimalism in the style of the West, but a distinction must be made between the two. The third wave of abstract art being discussed here was very different in substance to the minimalist art of America ?nd Europe.

Looking at the overall current of Korean contemporary art, no traces of the minimalist aesthetic can be found in its beginnings. Rather, the distinguishing character of our minimalist art comes from the transcendence of rational logic and systemized form and has as its base our own particular indigenous view of nature. For this reason, minimalism in its Korean fo rm should perhaps be called post-minimalism or pan-naturalism. The French art historian Henri Focillon described pan-naturalism as art that embodies the "the unity of the secret workings of nature and the creativity of man." (It is in this light that the exhibition of "Six Contemporary Korea n Painters" at th e Liverpool Tate Gallery in 1992 was subtitled "Working w ith Nature.") By rising above the severity and standardization of pure minimalism, Korean minimalism gains its distinctiveness.

Earlier I referred to our "indigenous view of nature." In a broad sense, I

Kiin Whan-ki,Jar, 1955-1956, oil (65x80cm)

mean an Oriental view of nature. The basis of this view is the idea that nature is not the object of conquest, control or possession but the fountainhead of life, living and breathing in concert with humanity. It also contains the idea that nature is a mirror of the self and a world of meditation which gives life, restoring all things to their proper state.

It is this concept that gave rise to a unique Korean abstract art, the world of monochromatic painting.

Of course, monochromatic painting, which was strongly pursued b y a group of local artists in the late 1970s and 1980s, was not unique to Korea nor was it anything really new. The roots

Korean minimalist art is distinguished by its transcendence of rational logic and systemized form. It is based in the Korean people's indigenous view of nature.

probably go back to the 1910s and the "Suprematism" of Kazimir Malevich.

Later in the 1960s, Yves Klein and his "blue monochrome" work was another marker in the road. Art historian Wolfflin once proclaimed that monochromatic art was an expression of a "noble and refined spirituality."

Korean artists revere monochromatic art for its unification of the spiritual and the material in a natural manner. It can also be said that the material world converges on the spiritual. If th e monochromatic a rt of Europe a nd America was a return to a single color of emotion and substance, that of Korea was from the onset a transcendence 33

of materiality to monochrome as the fountainhead. To put it another way, in Europe and America, monochromatic art stood for material space, whereas in Korea, it stood for spiritual space.

In the preface of a catalogue on Korean monochromatic art, Japanese art critic Yasuke Nakahara makes an important point. He states that Korean monochromatic art "is not an expression against the issue of color but above the concern of color." So in truth, the monochromatic art of that time was not an expression of disinterest in color. Like Oriental ink painting, Korean monochromatic painting encompassed all the colors in what could be called "fundamentalism."

Fundamentalism suggests a return to nature. It means going back to the original basic structure of painting, that is, returning to the surface of a, plane.

When it comes to painting, this is both the starting point and the conclusion; the act of drawing sho uld not run counter to this. All the lines, colors, forms, images and additional elements painted on the surface must be assimilated into this basic structure. Included in this is the factor of spatial illusion.

The outcome is actually the removal of illusionism. Starting from the post-minimal, monochromatic art of the late; 1970s, which surpassed and expanded beyond a single generation of artists, Korean contempo rary art found its own place and identity in the international art world.

Park Soo-keun, Grandfather and Grandson, 1960, oil (146x98cm)

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Immense Potential Entering the late 1980s, Korean contemporary art began to take on a very different aspect. It began to fall in with international trends, and experiments were made in the area of pluralism, leading to a new generation of artists.

Earlier I mentioned expansionism; it was at this time that the concept of expansionism began to take shape in a pluralistic form. Under the proposition of overcoming formalism, the domain of art expanded, giving rise to significant changes. In a more encompassing

definition, regardless of schools of thought or trends, all these movements can be pulled together under the umbrella of postmodernism. Never in the history of Korean contemporary art had there been so many branches as in the last ten years.

Under the circumstances, the art of contextualism rose in response to the aesthetics of formalism based o n monochromatic art. It developed mostly in two directions: the first focused on the recovery of painting principles, the second focused on the importance of the message within the art. The former, in one sense, refers to the reappearance of a complex relationship of form, image and color. In another sense, it means the expansion of the artistic domain to encompass all manner of installations, from environments and land art to video art. The latter assumes a greatly enlarged artistic perspective. The artistic perspective is nothing less than a perspective on life. Art thus assumes diverse aspects according to the methodology by which life is approached.

"Life" here refers to reality and takes on various forms according to the spirit of the times. As so often mentioned these days, life today is about the condition of human estrangement. The central theme of postmodern art is a protest against this situation.

In contextualism, the form by which a message is expressed comes first. It is at times ideological, at times socially accusing. On an even wider scale it satirizes the w hole of civilization or approaches the reactionary world of virtual reality. Whether dealing in participation or an escape from reality, today's artistic territory is more abundant and diverse. I believe the possibilities of Korean contemporary art are great and the potential immense.

Today we live in an information society and era of internationalization.

This does not mean we can afford to lose our own unique place in the world.

To guard our position at the crossroads of the vertical and the horizontal, the historical and the international, we must

reconfirm our topology. The reasoning is the same when it comes to our contemporary art. In order to maintain our identity we must arm ourselves with a firm vision of the past and the present, or, as Julio Carlo Argan suggests, break away from our dependence on the authority of the past and critically reexamine it to gain a healthy confidence in the conditions of today. +

Park Seo-bo, Ecriture, 1981, oil (193.5x259.5an)

Lee Man-ik. A Young Married Couple, 1980, color on paper (72. 7x91an)

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KOREAN PAINTING OYEARSOF 1\NDERING Pak Yong-Suk Art Critic/Professor of Art History

Dongduk Woman's University

f it is true that countries develop a tradition of painting uniquely their own, then Korea is no exception. That is, well before the influx of Western civilization, several homegrown painting traditions-in the broadest sense-had already been long established. Paintings by literati and professional artists, and even ancient tomb murals, w hether products of Confucian, Buddhist or shamanist traditions, all comprise "Korean painting."

The two most important genre of Korean painting would have to be literati ink paintings and tomb murals.

Literati painting was the dominant form of art under the k wag6 civil service examination system which was introduced in the Koryo Dynasty (918-1392)

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and maintained through the Chason Dynasty (1392-1910). Tomb murals were the original color paintings. They developed from Korea's aboriginal culture and maintained its character, despite the influence of Buddhist art which came later. Shamanic images and folk painting were an outgrowth of that tradition, which was strengthened through its association with populist movements.

If literati painting can be called "inkstick" painting, then tomb murals deserve the name "color" painting. The former was the art of the upper classes, while the latter were the art of artisans.

Thus, the two traditions represent the ruling class on the one hand and the alienated classes on the other. However, strictly classifying Korean painting as one or the other diminishes the signifi-

cance of works displaying characteristics of both. Ink painting is a study of time and the mind, whereas color painting is spacial and seeks to describe life's vivid realities and p rescribe certain norms. Whatever the period or society, both formats are indispensable. And, if we are to make sense of the past fifty years of Korean painting, we should start with an examination of the history of each tradition.

First, the concept of "calligraphy" as practiced by the literati must be defined.

A brush rather than a pen is used. Instead of free-flowing ink, an ink-stick is ground into powder and mixed with water. Words or pictures are draw n on absorbent Chinese drawing paper.

In the West a clear distinction is maintained between calligraphy and

painting, and accordingly, a difference in the tools: calligraphy is the art of words, requiring pen and ink; painting is the art of images, requiring a brush or knife and colors. For Koreans, forms of expression have never been strictly divided between text and image, whereas in the West, the disciplines developed independently. For this reason, Korean painting must be approached differently from Western painting, both visually and academically.

The world's earliest alphabets were pictorial characters. But none of them surpass Chinese characters in their ability to express meaning-even compound meanings-so clearly and comprehensively. For this reason, classical scholars of Chinese texts make no distinction between writing text and drawing pictures. A character that conveys a meaning is at the same time a picture that evokes an image.

From this tradition arose what is called the S6hwa Ilch'i philosophy, in which letters and paintings are considered one. This in turn gave rise to two schools: ink painting and literati painting. Most paintings of these genres convey both text and image. As an example, after the Four Gracious Blossoms (plants which signify gentlemanly qualities) or rivers-and-mountains are drawn, their meaning is written in the margin as a single line of verse, which also serves as the title. The verse's meaning requires a scholar's deep knowledge of Chinese characters, and is thus lost to the average person.

Without the cosmological awareness of our ancestors, we cannot fully appreciate the historical background of the words or pictures. The picture depends on the text, and the text to some extent depends on the picture, forming a mutually complementary relationship.

They make up for each other's deficiencies, since neither word nor picture can fully convey the meaning alone. For this reason, the brush for writing characters can also be used to sketch a picture, and the brush for painting images can be used to write words.

It is important to remember that this duality led to the development of the two schools of ink painting and literati painting. Since a painting done by a brush for writing can be enhanced with a color or two, and since the intensity of ink can be gradated, eventually the word came to supersede the picture. Of course, literati painting thrived under the civil service examination system.

Written culture developed to the extent that it did under the civil service examination system because of the up per class.

Under the system, in which applicants for civil positions were required to compose sentences on the spot, all students of the Chinese classics could not but be skilled in both calligraphy and painting. As such, literati painting flourished in Korea, particularly during the Confucian-oriented Chason period.

Thus, the past fifty years of Korean painting must be considered in terms of the abolishment of the civil service examination system.

Spirit of Literati PaintJng

Ink p ainting is a study of time and the mind, whereas color painting is spacial and seeks to describe life's vivid realities.

With the collapse of the dynasty, ink painting and literati painting lost their purpose, much like a game that has rules but no action. What happens to a game when even the rules cease to exist is as self-evident as the process of stylistic change that occurred from traditional painting after the end of Confucianism to modern styles.

The parity that existed between ink painting and color painting served as the basis for the dual aesthetic of modern Korean painting. If the brush was used to express kiun saengdong, the flow of energy, then color painting traditionally portrayed details of the mundane world or its standards. In other words, if brush painters grappled with the absoluteness of the powers that move the world, then color painters sought to expose the powers with extra clarity or to contrast them with the textures of actual life. For that reason, the ancients used to compare brush painting to the moon, and color painting to 37

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the sun. Accordingly, though color painting may be considered the lesser aesthetically, it should be understood as a reflection of the human world and its everyday concerns-in diametric contrast to ink painting, which reflected the unworldly.

Ink painting and landscape painting were cultivated by the literary elite, whereas murals and screen paintings were developed by craftsmen and artisans. It is the task of modern Korean art to assess and reconcile the influence of both traditions; that it has failed to do so is emblematic of the past fifty years.

Paradoxically, if Korean painting is to truly recover its essence, a deep understanding of the spirit of literati painting must first be developed, but to do that would require reviving the philosophy and spirit of monarchical society. Indeed, the mental spirit of literati painting is as closely identified with monarchical society as enlightenment is with democracy. In a society rushing to westernize, reviving only the spirit of the literati without that of the monarchy would render it ineffective as a cultural force for the new generation. Stripped of the power of the monarchy and that culture as its backbone, Korean painting turned to Western culture. This shift seems to have been an inevitable surrender to historical destiny, rather than a conscious choice.

In 1930, the Tongy6nsa group adopted as its slogan "Images for and of Our Own Generation." Unfortunately, the movement was not particularly fruitful, but it did squarely address the importance of looking back on the history of

Lee Ung-no, Untitled,

1986, ink on paper (136x69an) 38

Korean painting in fostering its independent development.

When we compare the works of Kim Dn-ho, Yi Sang-born, Ho Paek-ryon, Pyon Kwan-shik, No Su-hyon' and other masters with the paintings of dynastic society, the differences are obvious. But as they represent nothing more than a transitional period, the only accurate thing that could be said of the group as a whole is that their works make up a catalog.

Transitional Painters

In general, what the paintings of this transitional group had in common was the rendering of mountains and water in a Western style. Painters of the literati painting tradition portrayed nature from a cosmological viewpoint, using techniques such as writing the meaning in the margin and organizing space by a unique macroscopic threepoint perspective system-methods that eventually fell out of use in the transitional period. Rather than depicting natural subjects such as boulders, trees, and mountains macroscopically, the transitional painters tried to capture them as felt in daily life. This approach reflects the impact of the modern Western concept of self-consciousness.

This is not to say that this group w anted to completely overturn the framework of their predecessors, or that the new approach was not criticized.

More important is how the philosophy of kiun saengdong, the foundation of literati painting, would be interpreted by the newer generations. For, a thorough understanding of this philosophy would be a source of inspiration or a supporting frame as applied to modern Western art.

Cockfight by Pak Pong-su (1940) was the first attempt to consciously interpret kiun saengdong in a modern way. This painting is a unique fusion of the philosophy w ith Weste rn a bstractio nism.

That is, although it depicts a traditional subject in an abstract style, Cockfight would not be mistaken for a Western abstract work. Rather, it is a modern in-

Kbn Ki-ch'ang, SOs angdo I, 1984, colors on paper (B4.4xl03.6crn)

terpretation of Eastern values-the coexistence between narrative and spirit, or the coexistence between the seen and the unseen. Writers call this the "dualism" of Korean painting. This dualism contrasts with the Western preference to choose one side, or to see both sides in confrontational terms. In any case, Cockfight was a striking landmark for modern Korean painting, both in its own time and for later generations.

Th e works of Lee Ung-n o, Kim Yong-gi, Kim Ki-ch'ang, So Se-ok and

others in the 1950s and 1960s represent a conspicuous trend in experimenting with dualism. Lee's Deer and Rival Fish, first exhibited in 1958, portray fresh subjects without losing the dualism of modeling with ink. The intensity of the ink, an inherently monotonous medium, was controlled to maintain both meaning (or concept) and flavor (or rhetoric).

However, this dualism is more closely related to abstractionism than to the kiun saengdong philosophy. This divergence is also evident in the w orks of 39

in ink adopted this sensibility and care- shilgy6ng sansu, and genre painting arisChang U-song, Pak No-su and So Se-ok.

Taking up this theme, SO's Opus (1962) fully weaned themselves off abstinence ing in response to the realism moveprovides an early glimpse at deconstruc- from color, forming two schools. One ment of the seventeenth and eighteenth tionism. Ink bled on one side of Chinese school used ink and color in parallel to centuries known as shilsa kushi Howdrawing paper leaves vague marks recall- evoke an abstract image rather than por- ever, even though the object of interest ing a stroke of calligraphy. But the lines tray a conceptual image; the other raised for painters like Kim Hong-do and Shin do not actually form a legible character. color to the stature of ink in order to Yun-bok- genre painters- was a social The work can be read as a form whose boldly depict a narrative. Experimenta- and historical expression of kiun saengmeaning is destroyed. The work maxi- tion with ink and color led to w hat is dong, their own works lacked originality mizes the effects of controlled ink appli- known as the "color-ink" movement, ac- in technique. The artists did not follow cation while establishing ink painting as tively espoused by the young generation. the tradition of ink rhythm or ink line an abstract expressionist form. The work but produced self-contained illustrations, is recognized as the ultimate expression Function of Color so to speak.

The introduction of the narrative in A similar phenomenon is seen in the of brush and paper as a medium-it can be taken no further. development of the prosaic To interpret the ink tradistyle today. A new language tion progressively and to upor technique for modeling date it for modern styles remust be created from the quires a basic understanding union of the kiun saengdong of Neo-Confucianism, the philosophy with prosaic submetaphysical system which jects. If this cannot be itself is the basis for ink achieved, then there is n o painting. Just as the Renaispoint in creating images with sance artists' study of the brush and paper, much less philosophies and systems of to insist that there is a ancient Greece created a uniquely Korean tradition of new art tradition, Korean painting. artists require the foundaLee Ung-no had already tion of their own past. Ungrappled with this problem fortunately, Korean painters in the 1950s. Works such as of the 1950s and 1960s lost Farmer, Farm Village and this focus; only from the Market are products of actual 1970s did they begin to acexperience, portraying daily tively return to their roots. life in a farming village. The Writers of the pe riod paintings of Kim Yong-gi and compared the work of the Kim Ki-ch'ang have similar fam ed calligrapher Kim themes, though with a someChong-hili to German conw hat negative slant. Pyon ceptualism, and Neo-Confu- Pak Saeng-gwang Munyo II, 1982, color.s on paper (136x 137cm) Kwan-shik and other cianism to structuralism. painters of the period seem Whether directly or indirectto have shared this concern ly, this environment shaped the modern ink painting can be seen as a shift to a with the realist tradition. sensibility of Korean painters. The prosaic style; that is, the concept of ki In fact, Lee Ung-no and his contemMungnimhoe artists of the early 1970s (energy) in the kiun saengdong aesthetic poraries tried to resolve the problem were very much related to this stream, shifted from the perpendicular/ horizon- simply as a matter of ink. But their rash for their modern usage of ink lay in the tal/conceptual sense to a more concrete attem p ts ultimately accelerated the realm of abstract expressionism. But one. The problem was that there was demise of ink painting. It is in this conw hen this movement came to a dead no pictorial form to correspond to the text that the significance of color-ink end, experiments with ink turned to- new function. The same crisis was en- and color painting comes into focus. ward minimalism, w hich emphasized gendered in the West in the early nine- For, color's function grew stronger and sensation and perception over expres- teenth century. its voice was restored. Indeed, if modIn Korea, there was the precedent of ern Korean painting was to develop, it sionism.

In the 1980s, young painters working a new realism-based landscape tradition, was not only necessary to revive the 40

narrative of the mundane world but al- Shipchangsaeng series were experiso to restore the function and expres- ments in the metamorphosis of Korea's traditional color scheme, based on the siveness of color.

The fact that Kim Ki-ch'ang surfaces yin-yang principle and the five basic elenot in the ink painting tradition but in ments. Themes from Korean history color painting may seem a consequence and myths appeared in works like Birth of the prevailing trend of his generation, of Tan-gun and Tonghak, but they but it can also be seen as a result of Kim were not so much historical paintings in Dn-ho's influence. That Japanese the Western sense as revivals of ancient painters had developed an original tomb murals.

He experimented not only with color painting style, having been exposed to the color tradition from close contact conceptualism, but with abstractionism with Western culture, may have been a as well. In the 1960s, Kim Ki-ch'ang and factor, but only indirectly. More likely Pak Nae-hyon had already dabbled with Kim Ki-ch'ang's color painting was an attempt to overcome the limitations of ink painting through Japanese painting.

If ink is the symbol of a written culture, and color the symbol of pictures, then Kim's Autumn and Ch6nbokdo and other early works were positive representations of the mundane world. But after this period, he attempted to revive written culture and his works thereafter fall in the color-ink mode.

Song Chae-h y u's career took a similar route though by a different process. He used color to achieve striking effects in his works of the 1950s and 1960s, but later turned to ink. In the self-conscious use of ink to define structure or kolgi, skeletal energy, his ink paintings of the SOSe-ok;People, 1983,inkonpaper(l61x138cm) 1970s showed almost the same force as his color paintings. However, he could not master the the (Western) abstract style using traditional media, and in the 1970s Lee Ungessential functions of color.

On the other hand, the paintings of no, An Tong-suk, An Sang-ch'ol and othPak Saeng-gwang and Ch'on Kyong-ja ers carried on this trend. As a result, display a sure understanding of the however, abstract painting departed function of colors. Pak's work from the from the dualist tradition, leaving Kore1980s, in particuiar, is a landmark in Ko- an painting open to the same criticisms rean painting for its mastery of color. In as before. the mid-1980s, he used techniques such as joining two faces as if with a wall, bordered by a rim.

His Munyo (Female Shaman) and

Generation of Wandering

Above I have summarized the history and subsequent development of

both ink painting and color painting over the last fifty years. Broadly speaking, the synthesis of the two traditions approached abstract expressionism on the one hand, and lyrical abstractionism (Orphism) on the other. But as this paper has disregarded certain salient factors of color painting descending from the mural tradition, there remains the problem of distinguishing color painting's development as a decorative art from the kitsch style of the 1990s.

The one thing we can say conclusively about Korean painting styles from the past fifty years is that the kiun saengdong philosophy, the fr amework for ink painting, is actually quite similar to the latest theories of modern physics. Likewise, the mural and oil paintjng traditions share a foundation in mythology.

Both themes require further study and exploration if Korean painting is to survive as a. unique tradition and to gain international recognition.

In truth, the past fifty years can be characterized as a generation of wandering. This applies to both painter and critic. Young painters are simply drifting with the times. They lack the con viction that comes fr o m an und e rstanding of the issues.

To insist that Korean painting is the art of paper and ink no longer holds true. To use traditional paints or color schemes does not necessarily make it a "Korean" painting.

These are only basic materials. In other words, we must connect the kiun saengdong philosophy with modern physics, just as we must link mural painting to our mythological system.

Only by addressing these issues can Korean painting survive and take its place on the world stage. + 41

Developments in Korean Literature

From Liberation to, Kim Yoon-shik Professor of Korean Literature Seoul National University

erhaps the most obvious distinction of Korea's modern literature has been the internalization of the concept of nation. Following the Japanese annexation of Korea in 1910, the concept of national culture overshadowed that of the nation-state, and as a result, the history of modern literature has, in a sense, been a history of the Korean people'svstruggle to recover their national identity or sovereignty. Literature has focused on the recovery of national sovereignty, rather than the issue of nation-building, and consequently many imp ortant points related to the building of a nation have been ignored.

Deep within the literature of this period are the tales of tragic writer-heroes participating in their country's history, songs of indescribable longing for a lost nation. While this intellectual trend was, of course, limited, it was to a certain extent related to the debate over capitalism. The literature of the Japanese occupation period w as diverse: the conservative world view of an impartial middle class represented in the w orks of Yom Sang-sop or Ch'ae Man-shik, proletariat literature, which introduced the concept of class-consciousness, and many more.

These various intellectual trends, to the extent that they were closely linked to the Korean expe rience un der Japanese rule, form the historical framework for modern Korean literature.

That is to say, the nature of modern Korean literature, focused as it is on the recovery of natio nal sovereignty, is founded on a value-neutral attitude, which places its highest priority on intellectual context, and a class conscious-

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ness derived from that attitude. Liberation from Japanese rule in 1945 was an opportunity to rectify this situation.

Post-Liberation Literature The Korean nationalist movement originated in the late nineteenth century and remained active both at home and abroad until 1945. Korea's liberation from Japanese rule came at the hands of outside powers, however. As a result, the Korean people's lack of a clear conception of nation-state endured in the post-liberation period, a three-year period lasting until the establishment of separate governments in the North and South in 1948. On the one hand, this provided a unique opportunity for ideological choice, that is to say, an openness that seemed to invite a new world. However, this ideal was soon betrayed by cold reality, and military governments run by the Soviet Union and the United States took over the North and South, respectively.

The post-liberation era was a transitional period. In other words, if the historical and philosophical focus of Korean literature under Japanese colonial rule was on the recovery of national sovereignty, post-liberation literature focused on combining that task with the quest for nation-building. In this transitional period, "self-criticism" w as the first order of business for writers.

This trend toward self-criticism is evident in Yi Tae-jun's "Around Liberation" ( H aebang Ch 6nhu, 1946) and Ch'ae Man-shik's "National Criminal" (Minjok ui choein, 1948). In "Around Liberation," we catch a glimpse of the psychological process by which the author broke away from the "pure" (sun-

the 1990s su) literature movement and came to

join the leftist Korean Writers League (Munhakka Tongmaeng). Ch'ae's "National Criminal," on the other hand, is an attempt at self-examination and self-criticism.

In the post-liberation period, two round table discussions provided opportunities for Korean writers to make declarations of conscience. The first was held on August 17, 1945, just two days after Japan's surrender; the second, the Ponghwanggak round table, was held in December 1945. These gatherings were not so much forums for selfcriticism as venues for mutual criticism and personal justification. All they confirmed was the popularity of declarations of conscience in a politically emotional period. Before any works based on self-criticism were actually written, the writers' sense of mission to the construction of a national literature took over.

As a result, the literature of this period developed under the banner of national literature (minjok m unhak) and exhibited sharp ideological antagonism.

A number of literary organizations were active in the post-liberation period. The first to be established, in August 1945, was the Literary Construction Center (LCC, Munhak K6ns61 Ponbu).

The pro-Pak H6n-y6ng (communist) faction was later identified as the political cornerstone of this organization, centered around Im Hwa, Kim Namch'on and Yi Won-jo. A month later, Yi Ki-yong, Song Yong and others formed the Korean Proletariat Artists Federation (KAPF, P'uro yesul yonmaeng) in opposition to the LCC. The LCC soon expanded to form the Central Council 43

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for Cultural Construction, exposing a rift in the left. Around the time that the Chang-an Faction joined forces with the Pak Hon-yong faction, the Korean Writers League (KWL, Chos6n Munhakka Tongmaeng) was formed. The AllKorea Writers Association (A W A, Chonchoson Munp'ilga Hyophoe) was soon founded in opposition to the KWL. The Central Culture Association (CCA, Chung-ang Munhwa Hyophoe), established in September 1945, was the first organization founded by writers of a nationalist or liberal slant who rejected the left-wing writers' organizations.

It soon formed the core of the rightwing cultural community with the founding of the AW A under Chong Inbo in March 1946.

Following the Writers Conference organized by the KWL, PAF was eliminated from the League and moved to the North where it was recognized as the legitimate literary authority. Following the unsuccessful October Rebellion of 1946, the influence of the South Korean Workers Party, led by Pak Honyong, declined rapidly, and the CCA took control of the local literary community.

The tumult of the literary community reveals two important features of post-liberation literature: the controversy that arose when literature and politics met, and the debate over literature for literature's sake versus literature for ideological ends. The debate arose between the writers of the Young Writers Association (YW A, Ch'ongnyon Munhakka Hyophoe), represented by Kim Tong-ni, Cho Yon-hyon and Cho Chi-hun, and the KWL, represented by Kim Tong-sok, Kim Mu-san and others.

Kim Tong-ni advocated literature defending humanity, speaking for rightwing nationalist writers. His "The PostHorse Curse" ( Y6kma, 1948) arose from this ideology.

The KWL advanced the superiority of class-conscious literature in response to the right-wing YW A. The debate was decidedly simplistic, and when it returned to a practical dimension, na44

tionalist literary theory was lost. Technique was again internalized in ideology, and there was no choice but to enhance its density. The left did not have the time f or such internalization, whereas the right did.

Chang Yong-hak, who wrote "The Heliocentric Theory" (Chidongs61, 1950) and "The Poems of John the Baptist" (Yohan shijip, 1955), introduced many allegorical elements to the Korean novel. This is obvious throughout his works, including the full-length novel

Postwar Literature The Korean War (1950-1953) can be viewed from several angles: as a tragic war in which two million people were killed, as a Cold War proxy battle, or as a class struggle, both at home and on the world stage.

For South Korean writers, one of the main activities of the Korean War was the formation of military writers corps.

The corps gave birth to several military literary journals, including Frontline Lit-

Legend of the Round (Wonhy6ngui ch6ns61, 1962). "The Poems of John the

erature (Ch6ns6n Munhak), The Navy (Haegun) and Blue Skies ( Changgong),

and a two-volume literary anthology called Wartime Anthology of K orean Literature, put out by the Ministry of Defense's Troop Information and Education Bureau.

Postwar literature was founded on the war experience. Pak Yong-jun's "The Sea Off Yongch'o Island" (1953) depicted the experiences of prisoners of war exchanged after the cease-fire in July 1953. Kim Tong-ni's "Withdrawal from Hungnam" (1955) vividly portrays the exodus of North Korean refugees in its depiction of an evacuation operation in Hungnam. Hundreds of stories dealt with refugee life and the human h o ming instinct. Man y offered a glimpse at the relationship between war and the artist's world. However, they did not represent any departure from conventional technique.

The postwar generation brought an abundance of writers and unprecedented literary variety. Among these writers was Son Chang-sop, author of "A Rainy Day" (Pi onun nal). His stories reflect his response to the dreary social en vironment. This inclination may have originated in the writer's personal character, but linked as it was to the war, it belongs to the postwar literary genre.

Baptist" was innovative in its ¡USe of interior monologue and confused time sequences. Kim Song-han's "Snail" (Talp'aeng1), "In Five Minutes" (Obungan) and "Frogs" (Kaeguri) were extremely intellectual and opened new territory with their innuendo based on realism. 0 Sang-won showed his mastery of the relatively new stream of consciousness technique in "The Respite" (Yuye).

In short, one of the most important characteristics of postwar literature was the relationship between serious subject matter and fresh technique, for it was impossible to w rite about the war experience using existing methods.

While this experimentation wii;l new writing techniques and language was a huge success, as time passed, critics emerged. The publication of Son-u Hwi's "Flame" (P'ulkkot) in 1957 marked the climax of this debate. Among the writers interested in traditional writing techniques were Yi Ho-chol, auth'"~ r of "Leaving Home" ( T'alh yang, 1955) and "Nude" (Nasang), Yi Porn-son, author of "The People of Crane Village" (Hakm aul saramdul , 1957) and "Misfire" (Obaltan, 1959), 0 Yu-gwon, author of "Young Widows" (Ch6lmun holomidul, 1959) and Kang Shin-jae, au tho r o f "Foam" (P'omal, 1955).

Briefly turning to poetry, we should note the appearance of modernism, in opposition to the traditional stance represented by the "Green Deer Group" (Ch'ongnokp'a), after liberation. A group of poets, including Kim Kyongrin, Im Ho-gwon, Pak In-hwan, Kim Suyong and Yang Pyong-shik, who collectively published New City and the Citizens' Chorus (Shindoshiwa shiminui hapchang, 1949), took up the banner of

modernist poetry from the 1930s. The modernist poetry movement was even more active during and after the Korean War, perhaps suggesting something about the tragic nature of the ¡war itself.

The poems of Pak In-hwan, Kim Kyong-rin and Cho Hyang are fine examples of modernist poetry, while ChOn Pong-goo's "Barbed-wire Fence" ( Ch '6ljomang) linked the war experience to this trend.

The rise of modernism does not necessarily denote a decline in traditional poetry. Yu Ch'i-hwan, Cho Chi-hun, Pak Chae-sam, Yi Tong-ju, and Pak Huijin remained actively committed to traditional poetry.

The critics community was divided between advocates of humanism and critics experimenting with analytic criticism. Kim Yong-gwon pioneered "New Criticism," Yi 0-ryong rhetorical criticism, and Kim U-jong metaphorical method, while Yu Jong-ho focused on language. These critics brought life to a previously barren field.

poy6durimnida, 1971). When. the lines

of oppression are made clear, literature is a natural channel for political release.

Nothing stimulates literature more than a ban on political activities, for it is during such periods that literary perception must take up the slack The fog, omnipresent in Kim Sungok's work, and the salty water and hunger pervading Yi Ch'ong-jun's stories provide an important clue to understanding the Korean political situation in the 1960s and 1970s. Literature became a substitute for political activity, and as a result, there was great literary

In the 1960s, literature was a substitute for political activity, and, as a result, there was great literary progress. When

The 1960s: Imagination and Cognition The publication of Choi In-hoon's The Square (Kwangjang, 1960) marked the beginning of the 1960s for Korean literature. In this novel criticizing the ideological positions of both South and North Korea, readers sense the historic meaning of the April 19, 1960 Student Uprising, an abstract representation for freedom for many Koreans. The hero's suicide suggests that freedom is no more than an omen, an indicator. Korean society was not mature enough to understand the April 19 Student Uprising's meani11t;; The military coup d'etat that followed a year later was inevitable.

Literature in the 1960s began with a recognition of the frustration that followed the April 19 Student Uprising and an attempt to counter this frustration. Representative of this genre were Kim Sung-ok's 'journey to Mujin" (Mujin kihaeng, 1964) and Yi Ch'ong-jun's "Wall of Rumor"(Somunui py6k, 1971) and "I Will Show You the Stars" (Py61ul

the lines of oppression are made clear, literature is a natural channel for political release.

progress in this period. An internalized space, where only literature could venture, was created. It was for this reason that the debate over "pure" and "activist" literature surfaced again in the 1960s and 1970s.

In the critics' circle, the debate raged between activists, such as Kim Pyonggol and Kim U-jong, and advocates of pure literature, such as the poet-critic Yi Hyong-gi, Kim Sang-il and Won Hyonggap. It led to a "Writers and Society" seminar sponsored by the Cultural Freedom Council in November 1968.

The debate actually originates in the

dual nature of literature itself, however.

Literature has two functions: imagination and cognition. Theoretically speaking, one function cannot defeat the other. The question is: How are we to interpret the historical, social and class restrictions of a given era? Imagination and cognition are emphasized on an alternating basis, depending on the nature of the restrictions imposed in a certain era.

In the 1960s, the prevailing sentiment was frustration with the limits on freedom achieved after the April19 Student Uprising. Freedom was internalized and surfaced as a kind of nihilism in literature. On the other hand, modernization and a growth in popular consciousness enhanced the power of the common people. "Pure" literature theory tended toward nihilism, whereas activist writers based their literature on this new-found popular consciousness.

Literature in the 1970s During the 1970s, the problems arising in the course of rapid economic growth and modernization gave birth to acute contradictions within the traditional social structure. National literature remained the prevailing literary trend. Earlier debates-over pure and activist literature, realism and anti-realism, mass ideology, historic consciousness, alienation, and the gap between rich and poor-were now viewed from the perspective of nationalism.

The literature of the 1970s may best be represented by poet Shin Kyongnim's "Farmer's Dance" (Nongmu, 1971) and Hwang Sok-yong's short story "The Road to Samp'o" (Samp 'o kan un kil, 1973) and epic novel A Strange Land (Kaekchi, 1973). "Farmer's Dance" uses the image of traditional folk dance to depict the collapse of community spirit in rural society. "The Road to Samp'o" was, in many ways, typical of the literary reaction to industrialization in the 1970s.

Critics also embraced national literature. Paik Nack-chung, who has played an important role in nationalist literary 45

theory, focused on the anti-colonial and anti-feudal tradition. Nationalist critics believed that Korea's national literature deserved recognition as world literature. Paik's Literature and Reality of the Third World (1979) is one of many critical works attempting to support this literary direction.

Agrarian literature, labor literature, mass literature and realism were also actively pursued in the 1970s. Shin Kyong-nim's Literature and the Masses (Munhakkwa minjung, 1973), Yom Muyong's Literature in the Age of the Masses (Minjungshidaeui munhak, 1979) and similar critical works reflect social changes in the 1970s. The work of social and economic historians and the emergence of literary sociology contributed to this new critical direction.

More important, however, were the literary works by authors sharing these views, such as Hwang Sok-yong's A Strange Land, Cho Sehi's A Dwarf Launches a Small Ball (Nanjangi-ga ssoaollin chagun gong), Hong Songwoo's North and South (Namgwa buk) and the works of Yi Mun-gu , Yun Hung-gil, Chon Sang-guk and Ch'oe Ilnam. The rise of the realism debate in the early 1970s also suggests social changes. The debate, in a sense a rematch between the purists and activists of the 1960s, began with a round table discussion sponsored by the monthly Sasanggye in April 1970. In the discussion, critics Ku Chung-so, Yom Muyong, Kim Pyong-gol, Kim U-jong, Kim Hyon, Kim Yang-su and Won Hyonggap considered a reinterpretation of realism in the context of national literature. Kim Hyon saw realism as a schematic technique and therefore took a negative view toward its application to Korean literature. He felt that writers should give more importance to imagination, although he recognized the importance of the cognitive function.

The 1980s and Beyond The 1980s began with the Kwangju Rebellion of May 1980 and ended with 46

the lifting of governmental bans on political activities. It was an era of oppression and relaxation, which was also characterized by an explosion of political imagination suppressed since the division of the nation. The link between politics and literature peaked during this period and, for that reason, the notion of literature as a means of resistance was more persuasive and had greater influence than the purist "literature as art" argument. The sudden emergence of workers and farmers as a political and social force and the expansion of a mass base in literature were

The 1980s was an era of oppression and relaxation when political imagination, suppressed since the division of the nation, bloomed. The

link between politics and literature peaked, making the notion ofliterature as a means ofresistance more persuasive than ever. also important characteristics of this era.

The 1980s saw a shift away from national literature in the field of criticism and the emergence of a new mass nationalism. Again, critics w ere influenced by trends in society and embraced mass ideology and a combative spirit. There was also vigorous debate on values in industrialized society and ideology.

During the 1980s, more attention was given to labor issues in fiction, and many epic roman -fleu ves examined Korean history. Perhaps the best examples of the trend toward epic works

were Park Kyung-ree's The Earth ( T'oj1) and Cho Jung-rae's The T'aebaek Mountains (T'aebaeksanmaek). The latter epic, which depicted Korea's turbulent modern history, questions the meaning of ideology and ideological confrontation. The Earth, on the other hand, depicts the period stretching from the late Choson Kingdom to the Japanese colonial period through a collapse of an aristocratic family.

Rich variety marked the poetry community during this period. Among the new trends were mass poetry based on the practicality and emotion of the common people, and intellectual poetry lamenting the dehumanizing nature of urban life. These two genres were strangely complementary. Poets paid careful attention to language and its use in the 1980s, creating a new aesthetic for the post-industrial age.

By the 1990s, clearly post-industrial society had an enormous influence on literature. The grand issues of the 1980s were declining to be replaced by a new sentimentalism born of the information era. Post-modernism was a heated issue during the early 1990s, and novels recalling the ideological conflicts of the 1980s dominated the literary community. Stylistic experimentation was also a prominent feature of the period.

In the half century since liberation, Korean literature has paralleled history in its development, responding to the issues of the day. Interestingly, the major literary trends have come at ten-year intervals, clearly showing how difficult the journey to establish a national literature has been. ¡ Despite the many hardships, however, the flexibility w ith which Korean literature deals with social issues, the depths of its psychological analysis, and its handling of the problems of the downtrodden attest to its considerable maturity. Only through continued development can our national commitment to unification be confirmed and the significance of Korean literature as part of a larger world literature be asserted. +

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CLOSE-UP

Park Kyung-ree Looking Back as She Completes The Earth Zeong Hyon-kee Literary Critic/Professor of Korean Literature Yonsei University

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t began as a serialized novel in the September 1969 issue of Hyundai Munhak. Twenty-five years later, on August 15, 1994, The Earth (T'oji) was finally completed. Most writers do not take twenty-five years to finish a novel, but Park Kyung-ree was not idle. On the contrary, the writing of this epic novel was a long and arduous process, which forced Park to rise to the challenges of the world in which she was living.

Park Chung-hee's military dictatorship was tightening its hold over Korea in 1969 when she began the novel. In the early 1970s, he decreed the Yushin constitution, making himself president for life and blatantly usurping the people's basic rights including the freedom of speech. Many pro-democracy activists fighting against this injustice were arrested or imprisoned. There was no such thing as human rights. It was as if Korea had returned to the time of Japanese colonial rule.

Few people realize that Park Kyungree's only daughter, Kim Y6ng-ju, is married to the renowned dissident and poet Kim Chi-ha, who spent several years in prison. One can easily imagine the anguish the novelist must have felt at her son-in-law's persecution.

The Earth is grounded in Park's profound love of life. The epic novel re-

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The Earth is grounded in

Park's profound love of life. The epic novel revolves around one basic question: How do good people cope with injustice and suffering?

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volves around one basic question: How do good people cope with injustice and suffering? It spans the era from the early 1900s to 1945, a time of despair and uncertainty for Koreans living under Japanese rule. As poverty and hunger swept the peninsula, many lost direction and could do little more than writhing for survival. The Earth probes these "gestures," examining Koreans' responses to the violence of the Japanese colonial period.

Some people flowed with the historical tide, cooperating with the Japanese, taking power into their own hands, and shamelessly flaunting it before their compatriots. In The Earth, Cho Chungu, who seizes the Ch'oe family's property, Kim Tu-su, who commits unspeakable acts as an inform ant of the Japanese police, and My6ng-hui's mother, who is only interested in satisfying her greed, are opportunists. Park relentlessly probes the ugly choices that these people make because of their existential circumstances.

The ultimate goal of any literary work may be the evaluation of one's own existence, an appraisal of personal integrity. Many characters in The Earth are consistently good. They endure life's hardships and try to do the right thing in spite of the violence raging around them. Yong, Pong-sun, Old

Man Kong, Y6ng-p'al, Kim Hun-bang and Chu-kap defend their integrity and struggle to lead an upright life despite the trying circumstances in which they live.

Of the 730-plus characters depicted in The Earth (more than 430 appearing as major characters), the majority are virtuous, innocent people-good-hearted farmers, laborers and intellectuals.

One could say they are prototypes of the loyal Chos6n citizens who refused to betray their compatriots or cooperate with the Japanese.

In her intense portrayals of so many characters, Park Kyung-ree imparts three basic philosophical principles, which she deems essential to survival in times of tribulation.

The first principle revolves around the author's constant questioning of humanity's fate: Why are humans.born to such desperate living conditions? Why do evil people dominate the virtuous?

How could brutal Japanese forces believe they were more worthy than the innocent Koreans they oppressed? The Earth asks these questions over and over again. The actions of every character beg these questions. Why does evil prevail over good so often? Can the righteous and honorable ever overcome the evil forces intent on satisfying their greed? The artistic value of The

Earth lies in these questions. Despite its great length and many characters, the novel maintains the reader's interest with these questions.

The dignity of all living things is a second underlying principle. For Park, dignity is the basic right of all living creatures. This principle, also apparent in Confucius' spirit of moderation, is an important touchstone in evaluating our relationships with others. The characters in The Earth reveal their personalities in their actions, and remind the reader that Japanese imperialism lurks behind the cowardice of the evil characters. Through its many ingenious story lines, The Earth portrays the beauty of those who never lose their dignity, who never bend in the face of punishment, and the ugliness of those who gloat at their own superiority, who make the mistake of believing in the corrupt power protecting them.

The third and final principle found in The Earth is the belief that love is, in fact, creation. This principle is, of course, the highest virtue taught in Christianity. Loathing, contempt and hatred destroy humanity. This principle, revealed in the character of Im Myong-hui, bestows a special beauty to this novel. It is here that Park achieves her goal: The story resonates with her belief that creation is, in fact, a matter of devotion, of striving to do our best for those we love. For Park, this is a universal value, applicable to all humanity. When My6ng-hUi realizes that her life is a failure, empty for her preoccupation with worldly interests, she decides to recreate her existence, to find meaning and worth. She finds the strength to do this in her boundless love for all beings.

A Distinguished Career Park Kyung-ree is one of Korea's greatest writers, loved for her use of the Korean language. The Earth is a tower of our national language, tall and majestic, yet finely constructed. The term "national language" is not meant to suggest any sort of superiority or inferi49

ority in relation to other nations. No nation or people can be superior to another for each has its own rules, its own culture based on the principle of dignity, which cannot be-compared.

Throughout The Earth, Park denounces the Japanese for seeking to obliterate another people's rules and culture. In her view, Japan violated its own laws by occupying Korea.

Park's literary appeal lies in her uncompromising integrity. She refuses to compromise in the face of coercion or evil. Her unshakable integrity and relentless rebellion against all absurdity have made her a great writer. She has undergone three major hardships in her life. As she wrote The Earth, 11 other novels, and many novellas and short stories, these hardships have been decisive influences on her personal character and writing.

The first crisis came in her youth.

As a young girl, she was threatened with conscription into the "comfort women corps" by the Japanese army.

Without a vast store of spiritual strength, she never could have survived this horrifying threat. I believe this spiritual strength later served as the life's blood of her writing.

The second was the painful loss of both her husband and son in the Korean War. Fate dealt her this awful blow when she was still in the flower of her youth. Only a person who has loved deeply can begin to understand the agony of losing both husband and son. This painful experience seems to have been a source of great inner strength, a strength manifested in a certain luster of life, something her son-in-law Kim Chi-ha calls kunul ("shadows").

The third was related to that of her daughter. There is no escaping them.

Park's son-in-law, active in the prodemocracy movement, was once sentenced to death for his anti-government activities. Anyone who has lived under the military dictatorship of the 1970s can probably imagine the depth of her despair. She was a parent helpless in 50

the face of the regime's organized violence. Inevitably innocent people are sacrificed in such violent times. Park and her family had no choice but to endure. In this respect, The Earth was clearly a product of the 1970s. She once said:

I used to sit up all night and write, despondent at evil's power. I had to stay up writing if I was going to feed my family and prove to myself that I would not succumb to illness. I was desperate and terrified, a deer running from a band of hunters. "How can this be happening?"

I cried as I wrote. "How can you let this happen'" The pain tha t Park exp erie nced through her life surfaces in The Earth.

Still, the reader is startled by the coolness in which the author expresses her passion. The Earth betrays common literary convention in structure. Paradoxically, Park's departure from established literary techniques is anchored in the traditional sensibilities of the Korean people.

Her radical departure from convention is most evident in the novel's length. Addicted to Western literary sensibilities, modern Korean readers are almost dogmatic in their belief that there is an appropriate length for literary works. In Poetics, Aristotle says all works of literature must have a "beginning, middle and end." He argues that art is an imitation of man's actions and therefore must be of an "appropriate" length. This theory was introduced to Korea from the West and is applied to all literary genres, especially in fiction. Park boldly shattered this idee fix e, how ever. Th e Earth consists of 16 vo lumes, each more than 450 pages long.

A second unique feature of Park's novels is the generous approach she takes toward her characters. She does not distinguish between major and minor characters. Most popular novels evoke reader interest by m aking a clear distinction between the principal

and minor characters. This, however, is also a Western concept, based on a rigid view of good versus evil. In the early part of the novel, Kim Hwan (or Ku-ch'on) is a minor character, but later he emerges as a leading character with significant philosophical depth as he is dragged away by the Japanese police.

Nearly 430 characters assume important roles, rich with human vitality and integrity.

Park rejects the realistic approach, which ruled the Korean literary community for much of the 1970s. When "realism" becomes the yardstick for literary quality, the stick seems to take on magical qualities, expanding and shrinking at the whims of the person wielding it, whether it is a Western critic or a Korean imitator. The Earth does not fit the standard framework. It does not depict characters as they should be.

It depicts them as they really are. In my view, this is what makes The Earth unique.

So w hy has Th e Earth been so profoundly moving to so many readers?

Why has the novel s9ld more than one million copies? The answer lies in Park's consistency: She has never let go of her unchanging love for all beings struggling to live a sincere existence, nor has she allowed her rebellious spirit to bend before injustice.

Her choice of words also has considerable appeal. Her language is intimately linked to the Korean people's traditional mentality, their sensibilities, valu es an d se nse o f refineme nt.

Throughout Th e Earth we find tearful melodies from p 'ansori, tales of h an, tlle vague sense of grief that lingers in the Korean heart, scenes of men reciting from traditional texts in the quiet of their studies, and above all, the dignified etiquette of traditional Korean society.

I believe that The Earth deserves to be called the treasure trove of the Korean national language, and I hope that all readers will experience Park's intense love for all living creatures in this fine novel. +

KOREAN ARTISTS ABROAD

A PERFECTIONIST'S VISION: KOREAN-AMERICAN SCULPTOR

HAN YONG-JIN Kim Hyung-kook Professor of Urban Planning Seoul National University

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ears have the power to move people's hearts. We are often moved by a woman's tears, but when a man cries it hurts, probably more. This is because men are inherently less sensitive than women, and tears seem unnatural for men, having been brought up in an environment that frowns upon men crying.

In the summer of 1994 I met Han Yong-jin for the first time in two years at his atelier near New York. I will never forget the image of this big old man, soon to celebrate his sixtieth birthday, exclaiming as tears streamed down his face, "The world is becoming more and more opportunistic. Many people tell me to give in, but that just makes me angry. An artist should follow his vision even if it is the hard way..."

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Round Stone 94-5 (77x58x 33crn)

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just as our ancestors left a few persimmons on the tree for the magpies, Han leaves part of the stone uncut to maintain harmony with

nature. His philosophy is: "The world may not need

stones. But they exis~ they are the backbone supporting the world. "

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Han is a man of principle. Like masons of the past, Han moves his own stones, working the old-fashioned way.

Usually, a sculptor's studio is a cross between a blacksmith's shop and a stone quarry, with assistants helping the sculptor move the stones. Han, how ever, works alone.

He w orked alone two years ago when he moved into his new atelier. At that time, he paved the alley to the main road all by himself. He used Belgian stones which had been used as ballast in European ships years ago. He discovered the stones at a bargain price in secondhand stores.

This was not the first tim e Han worked on his own. Han took me to a village he used to w ork in, and over lunch we talked about his independent

working style, and how he had once been inspired by the words of a fellow artist, Kim Whan-ki.

Kim and Han became friends in the 1960s, when both settled in¡ New York.

Kim Whan-ki came to New York after participating in the seventh Sao Paolo Biennale (1963) as a commissioner. Han exhibited his work at the Biennale but did not go to Sao Paolo. The two Koreans became friends easily. They were artists working in the same field, living in a foreign city far from home.

Kim often visited Han in Dobbs Ferry. After dinner, the two would take a blanket and a bottle of whiskey to a nearby park where they would drink and talk, often all night. Han recently took me to the park and told me of their conversations.

One evening, while looking at the autumn leaves, Kim reminisced about Korea's paulownia trees, which are often used to make chests. The wood is dipped in a solution of boiled paulownia

leaves w hich creates an even color on the interior and exterior. Han used the information when he was adding a new studio to his home in Irvington. His neighbors were extremely helpful in the rennovations.

Irvington is a suburb of New York City where everyone takes an interest in creating an attractive neigh borhood.

Such interest would seemingly make the neighborhood an ideal environment for an artist. However, the neighborhood also caused some inconveniences.

Han did not want to disappoint his neighbors while setting up the studio.

He first created an airy studio with high ceilings for his wife, a painter, on the upper floor of the house. But building his own studio in the basement presented enormous problems. Part of the basement lay upon a massive rock formation which extends all the way to Manhattan. He had to dislodge the rocks manually with a jackhammer because dynamite might disturb the neighbors.

The Menhir on the grounds of the Olympic Apartment cmnplex in Seoul

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Once I noticed a large gray stone covered with narrow w hite lines resembling a fish in front of Han's house. In a sculptor's studio, every piece of stone looks like a work of art. I asked if Han' had created. He said that he had discovered many broken rocks while building his studio and decided to display them.

Harmony with Nature That his art could be mistaken for simple rocks is a measure of how close Han's work is to nature. At his most recent exhibition, the first in ten years, most of the sculptures looked like uncut rocks. Han's work stands in contrast to that of Japanese-American sculpto r Isamu Noguchi, who is famous for the deliberately artful and human element he applies to natural stones.

In another sense, Han's sculptures look like the face of a crumbling stone pagoda. The remaining structure may be manmade, but the crumbling pieces symbolize a return to nature. In Han's

sculptures, a part of the stone is always left uncut. Just as our ancestors left a few persimmons on the tree for magpies, he leaves part of the stone uncut to maintain harmony with natu're.

Han's work offers infinite interpretations and aspects. He is considered an abstractionist, who took inspiration from Korea's first abstract sculptor, Kim Chong-yong. Kim encouraged future generations of artists, including Han, while teaching at Seoul National University. He taught that a sculptor becomes a genuine artist only when he is able to recognize the thousand faces of a woman.

Han left for the United States in the

1960s, and did not visit Korea for many years. In the early 1980s, he held his first exhibition in Seoul. He sent me a letter at the time. That was when I learned of his early experiences abroad.

Sitting here quietly reminiscing about the past, I cannot help but smile . . . In 1959, I graduated from Seoul National University, majoring in sculpture. I taught art at Chung-ang Girl's High School for two years from 1961 to 1963. In 1964, while teaching at Ewha Womans University, I visited the United States at the invitation of an international education foundation.

While I was enjoying my first year in the United States, I was invited to participate

in a workshop for contemporary artists organized by Denmark's Aage Damgarrd.

I left for Denmark and taught at the University of Heming for a year. In Denmark, I completed about fifty works. The university has since been transformed into the Heming Museum, and my work is kept there.

I had saved up some money, and thinking it was time for me to leave, I took a train for Paris on August 15, 1966. I walked around so much that I got holes in my shoes. I had worn those shoes since I left Korea. The soles were made of rubber from car tires. I bought new oxfords and felt like I was walking on air, so I wanted to travel again. When au-

Standing Stone 94-3 (56x18x38cnJ) (above); Stone Pagoda at Posong High School in Seoul (facing page).

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tumn came, I began to miss my friends in Korea. I told a friend from New York it was time for me to return home. This friend suggested that, instead of going back and living the easy life, I 'come to New York to work under more challenging conditions. This appealed to me and I came to New York. I remember this was in May 1967.

Much later in 1981, Han held a private exhibition at Seoul's Won Gallery. Later, he participated with other artists in joint projects for the 1988 Seoul Olympics. I was introduced to Han for the first time

by Chang Uck-chin. Soon after our meeting I visited Han at the stone quarry in Konjiam, where he was working on a sculpture for the National Museum of Contemporary Art. This was in the summer of1986.

Dressed in tattered overalls and looking very much like a strong mason, Han was absorbed in his work. As he explained his work, I was struck by his large hands. They were as wide as a spade but with long agile fingers. I thought that all sculptors' hands should look like his. Caressing the stone with his large hands, Han said, "Isn't it fun to play with stones . . ." The words were uttered so lightheartedly it was easy to forget the harsh working conditions and the scorching sun.

The sculpture made in Konjiam is now standing in the gardens of the Museum of Contemporary Art. I am convinced that Han's work must be felt I also feel closer to this sculpture because I saw it being made. That is why, every time I visit the museum, I try to take a closer look, sometimes even touching it.

The sculpture is a modernized stone pagoda. Personally, I think the traditional pagodas found in mountain temples are the most developed form of art. The vertical pagodas stand taller than the horizontal roof of the temple's main hall, in harmony with the high mountain peaks surrounding them. The lines of the pagoda contrast with the lines of the roof, while blending with the flowing lines of the mountains.

Museum documents note that Han's sculpture is officially titled Black Stone in but I doubt that this name was the Nigh~ given by the artist. Five square stones are piled on top of one another. From a distance the stone blocks stand tall, but on closer inspection, fine lines have been carved where the stones touch, enlivening the sculpture.

Along with the piece displayed at the museum, Seoul is home to two other works by Han. The Menhir is on display at the Olympic Apartment complex, and a stone pagoda commemorating poet Yi Sang was recently moved to Posong High School in Seoul All three pieces reflect Han's artistic world. We are able to read in them his philosophy: "The world may not need stones. But they exist, for they are the backbone supporting the world:' Han is himself like a stone. He is the same person inside and out. What we see outside is the same as what is inside.

That is why he has always been very dear to me.

There are times when a person feels melancholy remembering old faces.

When this happens, I always think of Han, although he is far away and I rarely meet him. It is uplifting to think about Han because he is such a genuine person.

It is said that human beings are mystical animals, and that our thoughts can be transmitted by telepathy. I believe there is some truth in this. Last autumn, Han suddenly called me to say he was sending me some branches of a juniper tree.

He had cut down a tree in his garden and was keeping the trunk for a sculpture, but he wanted me to have the branches.

He suggested that I chop the branches into pieces to use in traditional memorial rites for ancestors. Deeply touched by his gift, I wrapped the branches in paper and put them in my wardrobe to preserve their scent.

This is what life is about- the crossconnecting of good faith. Devoting his whole heart to the working of the stones, Han is an artist whose life and art are one. +

Han works with stones and in many ways is like a stone himself He is the same person inside and out What we see outside is the same as what is inside.

57

KOREAN ARTIFACTS ABROAD

Korean Relics in the Museu1n Kim Kwang-on Professor of Folklore, Inha University Director, Inha University Museum

orean cultural relics were taken out of Korea in great numbers during three periods: the late nineteenth century, the early twentieth century, and the mid-twentieth century. The end of the nineteenth century was the dusk of the Chos6n Dynasty when very few people took heed of cultural relics. During the period from the early twentieth century to the mid-twentieth century, Japan occupied Korea by force and plundered a truly enormous number of priceless cultural treasures. Then, in the mid-twentieth century, Korea was ravaged by war and a great many antiquities were taken out of the country.

All three periods were marked by intense social turmoil. During the Korean War (1950- 1953), in particular, most of the country's cultural relics, not only in private collections but also in public museums across the country, suffered tremendous damage.

It is interesting to note, however, that the kind of objects and the way in which they were taken abroad differ in each period. The objects taken out of Korea at the end of the nineteenth century were mostly folk craft objects which were collected by foreign diplomats with an interest in Korean culture or a simple curiosity for exotica. The relics taken to Japan, on the contrary, were mostly high-priced Kory6 celadon, Chos6n porcelain and ancient paintings.

These were literally plundered.

During the Korean War, relics were taken out of the country by foreign diplomats, civilians and military officers 58

Many people lament the fact that so many priceless Korean

cultural relics are in museums overseas, but we must remember that it is thanks to their expatriation that we can see them today How many of them would have swvived had they not been taken abroad?

Peabody Essex Musewn

with some understanding of art. With a collector's eye and taste, they generally acquired objects through legitimate transactions, though it is moot to question whether the prices they paid were anywhere near their worth in the international market. However, we are in no position to fault them because we did not care enough about what was happening nor did we have access to enough information at the time.

According to a survey of Korean cultural assets overseas conducted by the Korea Foundation since 1986, the Peabody Essex Muse.um, the National Museum of Na tural History of the Smithsonian Institution, both in the United States, and the Leipzig Ethnographical Museum, the Hamburg Folklore Museum, and the Bremen International Museum, all in Germany, have the largest collections of Korean relics. Many are also found in Russian museums, the Vienna Folklore Museum and other museums around the world. They are not remarkable in quality or quantity.

The Korean collections in the National Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Institution and th e Peabody Essex Museum are extremely well-preserved. The collection in the Leipzig Museum is in poor condition, which is quite understandable considering the long division of Germany and the financial difficulties of East Germany.

Folk objects do not last long without thorough preservation treatment because most are crafted of fiber, leather or wood. In many institutes, they are

grossly neglected and sometimes in danger of total disintegration due to a scarcity of specialists or an indifference on the part of collectors. To certain extent, this is understandable since they are of little monetary value, unlike celadon or porcelain objects.

In the course of the Korea Foundation survey, advisory committee members, including this writer, visited the Peabody Essex Museum in 1986 and in 1987. Our visits prompted vigorous discussions on the possibility of opening a Korean gallery at the museum and resulted in a special exhibition of the Peabody Essex Museum Korean collection at the National Museum of Korea from November 1994 through January 1995. Though Korean art objects have been exhibited in the United States and European countries on a number of occasions, it was the first time for Korean art objects from abroad to be brought back to Korea for public display. In this sense, it was a significant occasion in itself.

Largest Collection More than 2,500 Korean folk objects are in the collection of the Peabody Essex Museum, the largest single collection known to us. (The Hamburg Folklore Museum collection is believed to exceed 2,000 items, but their quality is not known because they have not been placed on public display.) The Peabody Essex Museum is indebted to Dr. Edward Sylvester Morse (1838-1925), who was once its director. The biologist developed a deep interest in Northeast Asian cultures during a trip he made to Japan to collect materials to support his theory of evolution. Though he had never been to Korea, he was so fascinated by Korean ethnology that he asked his Korean acquaintances in Japan to donate their daily accessories to the museum when they returned to Korea. He also requested diplomat and missionary friends bound for Korea to acquire folk objects for his museum.

Interestingly the first Korean objects Morse acquired were the name cards of

A ramie shop bMWer

59

the leaders of Korea's enlightenment movement. In his travelogue japan Day

by Day, Morse notes his encounter with several Korean delegates aboard a steamship from Kobe to Tokyo in 1882.

The men, Kim Ok-kyun, So Kwang-bom and Tak ChOng-shik, were jovial, pleasant and easy to befriend. He was even able to sketch them without them noticing. The three men's name cards are in the Peabody collection.

In October of the same year, w hen Yun Dng-yol, who had been staying in Japan with his son Yun Chi-ho, visited Morse to say good-bye before returning to Korea, Morse said, "If you have any Korean things of no particular use, please give them to me for my museum." He acquired eight objects including a pipe from Yun. P. G. von Mollendorff, a familiar figure in late nineteenth century Korean history, also collected Korean artifacts.

Morse met Mollendorff in Shanghai in 1883 on his way to America from Japan.

The German, who had been in the diplomatic service in China, was on his way to Korea to become a special advisor on foreign affairs in the court of King Kojong. Mollendorff was persuaded by Morse to collect items for the mu-

seum, and he subsequently sent some 250 Korean objects of various kinds.

Valued at $150 at the time, they included kitchen wares such as bowls, pots and spoons, accessories, smoking paraphernalia, money, and weaponry.

Morse wrote in the museum's 1883 Annual Report: "... a hearty acknowledgement is due him (Mollendorff) for the intelligent way in which he gratuitously carried out the commission. . .

As far as I know this is the first collection of Korean objects ever sent from that country."

I think we Koreans should join Morse in acknowledging Mollendorff.

We need not go into detail about his work to help the declining kingdom with its diplomatic affairs, bu t we should point out the efforts he made introducing Korean folk arts to Morse's museum and many museums in Russia, Germany and the Netherlands. The sig-

nificance of his efforts are amplified by the fact that his name almost always comes up when we delve into the history of Korean collections in most European museums. Respect is also due him for his insight in concentrating on collecting folk objects w hich were of no commercial value at the time.

The Korean diplomats who visited the United States in 1883 donated many of their personal belongings to the museum. Yu Kil-chun donated his robe, shoes, padded socks, wide rimmed hat, fan, even his underwear! Needless to say, the donations were made on the request of Dr. Morse.

The Peabody collection grew with the help of Americans w ho traveled to Korea. They included Percival Lowell, the escort and interpreter for the first Korean delegation to America, Dr. Gustavus Goward, a member of the U.S. Legation, and Edwin Morgan, a U.S. envoy to Seoul.

In 1892 Korea participated in the Chicago World's Fair held in celebration of the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus. When the fair closed, some of the Korean exhibits including a large flute, taegum, and a two-stringed

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Alnong the wealth ofrelics at the Peabody Essex Musewn:-a punch'ong vase (left), a teacup set, remarkably still intact (above), and fron1 the near right, a brass lock w ith silver thread decoration, a jade pillow end, a rush pillow, a pair ofbronze scissors, a hand lanlp, a sedge cushion, and a portable copper winetJask.

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fiddle, haegum, were transferred to the Peabody Essex Museum.

The museum's efforts to build a Korean collection stalemated after Japan's annexation of Korea in 1910, and especially after Morse's death in 1925. Only a few items, such as a child's multi-colored coat and some court uniforms and robes, were added through purchases from Japanese dealers in the United States after Morse's death.

By far the most eye-catching of the Peabody collection is a banner that once hung over a ramie shop in Chongno, Seoul. The colorful silk and velvet banner is four meters long. We can imagine how thriving and spectacular Chongno Street was, lined with shops of various kinds, each with a large, multi-colored banner like this fluttering over it.

The Banquet to Welcome the Governor of P'y6ng-an-do, an eight-panel screen-painting, is another outstanding relic of the Chos6n period. Collected

by Edwin V. Morgan, it was recently donated to the museum by his descendants. The painting is an outstanding work of art which depicts in exquisite detail the spectacular scenes of the governor's parade and banquet. It is also a

valuable resource for folk art scholars because it features countless people of diverse backgrounds and attire in different settings.

A Chos6n court uniform is also noteworthy. It was worn by an official of Grade 2 or above, probably a cabinet minister or premier, on special occasions of national importance. An ornamental plate with tassels draped on the back of the robe is enhanced by exquisitely embroidered cranes and two gold rings.

Bronze key charms, which had the dual function of talismanic protection and holding keys, usually have strings of coins streaming from their many hangers. The center of the key holder is adorned with longevity symbols in supplication of a long life for its owner and prolonged prosperity of the family.

A key holder symbolized the power of the mistress of the house and was passed down to her daughter-in-law, together with the leadership of the household management.

The collection includes an adorable multi-colored coat. Worn by a boy on his first birthday or during annual festivals, the coat is in five colors that symbolize the four compass points and the

center, hence its nickname "five direction coat." The use of color was prompted not only by aesthetics but by wishes for good fortune and a comfortable life for the wearer.

Surprisingly a horseshoe-shaped plow blade, a storage gourd and a trowel are included in the collection. Few people in the/past or today would believe these items deserve inclusion in a museum collection, and yet the collection's diversity is what makes it so valuable.

Many of us deplore the fact that so many priceless Korean cultural relics are kept abroad. We must remember, however, that, in the case of folk objects at least, it is thanks to their expatriation that we can see them today.

How many of them would have survived had they not been taken abroad?

We must also remember non-Koreans can learn more about Korean culture from these exhibitions.

Rather than trying to recover Korean cultural relics from abroad, we should be assisting museums and collectors abroad, public and private alike, to take better care of their collections. We should also help more scholars study Korean culture. +

61

. O:n the Frontline of a Divided Korea

A History of Sadness The plain at Ch'orwon is the broadest in Kangwon-do Province. The T'aebaeksan Mountains form the backbone of the province, surrounding the plain like a sturdy fortress and stretching southward to the heart of central Korea. As we walked across the fertile fields, we noticed a deep, earth shaking rumble. It was the rapids. The Hant'an-gang cuts right through the middle of the plain.

We followed the sound to find the river coursing down a deep gorge, evidence of volcanic activity long ago.

Like most people, we approached Ch'orwon along Highway 43 from Uijongbu. To the right as we passed through Unch'on, we saw Myongsongsan Mountain, a 923-meter-high peak that the local people call "Crying Mountain" (Urumsan). The mountain received its nickname in the early tenth century when the Shilla renegade Kungye established a rebel capital in this region. After taking control of much of what are now Kyonggi-do, Kangwon-do and Hwanghae-do Provinces, Kungye was overthrown by one of his own officers, Wang Kon, who established the Koryo Kingdom in 918.

According to local legend, Kungye, himself a traitor, cried bitterly at Wang Kon's betrayal, giving the mountain its

64

In Ch'orwon one

confronts the beauty ofcentral Korea and the bitter history of national division. At

right, the abandoned train station in old Ch'orwon Township; below, Chikt'ang WaterfalL

65

name. Sadly, Crying Mountain stood silent witness once more when the Korean War swept this region a millennium later.

Heading westward from the town of New Ch'orwon, which was built after the war, we came to Sungilgyo, a bridge arching across the river. Construction on the bridge began under the North Korean leader Kim 11-sung before the war, but was completed by the South Korean government under its first president Syngman Rhee (Yi Sungman). Many people believe that the bridge's name is a combination of the two leaders' names, but it was actually named in memory of Pak Sung-il, a South Korean commander who was killed while fighting the Chinese communist forces.

To the west of Sungilgyo is Kosokchong, hideout of the famous rebel Im Kk6k-ch0ng, immortalized in Hong Myong-hui's epic novel of the same name. Born to a lower-class family in the mid-Choson period, Im was a Robin Hood-like figure who led his gang of bandits across what is now Hwanghaedo, P'yongan-do a nd Kangwon-do Provinces, stealing from magisterial coffers to feed the poor. We followed a path along the narrow volcanic gorge to find the entrance to a cave. The

hole was just large enough for one man, but the cave itself can hold a dozen people. Im and his gang are said to have hidden from Chason government forces here.

During that period, the peasantry suffered terribly under the tyranny of the Chason regime. Many forsook the land for a nomadic life or joined 1m's forces to resist despotic rule. These peasant rebellions ended in failure, as have so many throughout history, but are generally seen as an outstanding instance of the popular resistance movement.

Following the road to the northwest, we discovered the turnoff to Top'iansa Temple. Because it is located in a restricted military zone, entrance is limited to Buddhist believers who are carefully screened by military police at checkpoint. Top'iansa is famous for its iron statue of the Vairocana Buddha in a seated position, National Treasure No. 63. The back of the statue bears an inscription saying that the Buddha was cast in 865 and paid for with contributions by 1,500 believers. The Buddha is relatively slender with an egg-shaped face. He seems very much an ordinary human, much simpler and more approachable than the full-bodied Buddhas of the mid-Shilla period. His h ands are held in the gesture of

Siingilgyo (above) spans the Hant'an-gang River. Kosokchong (right) was once the hideout for one ofKorea's legendary outlaws.

66

67

supreme wisdom characteristic of Vairocana, the Cosmic Buddha, who was popular among the Shilla provincial clans during the ninth century. The temple's name, Top'iansa, "Temple of the Transcendental," also derives from a belief in this Buddha.

A Constant Reminder Perhaps the most vivid image in Ch'orwon, indeed the image scorched in the minds of all Koreans, is the burnt-out train station at Wolchongni and the empty streets of Ch'orwon Township. It is not easy getting there, though. Under the guard of soldiers, we boarded a bus and crossed the Civilian Passage Restriction Line, entering an eery world that echoed with the blast of North Korean loudspeakers encouraging us to flee into the "people's embrace, free from taxes and imperialist tyranny." The road to the old town was completely deserted. There was nothing, only the occasional military road stretching into the barren foothills like a bloody gash and a startled pheasant spreading its wings to escape into the empty sky.

Little is left of W olchongni except a sea of weeds and the skeleton of an old freight car, so rusted it looks as if it might collapse at a single touch. Before the war, W olchongni was a rest stop on the line from Seoul to W onsan on the east coast, bordering northern Kangwon-do Province. Today, there is nothing left but this rusty train, bombed during the fighting, a painful reminder of Korea's partition.

Hanging from the train station wall, restored for tourists, is a sign: "The iron horse longs to run again." Similar signs can be found at the last southern stops on the old Seoul-Shinuiju line in the west and the East Sea line that runs up the east coast.

From W olchOngni we headed¡ for old Ch'orwon Township. Ch'orwon was an important stop on the Seoul-W onsan railroad and the departure for trains bound for the Diamond Mountains, probably the most popular recreation destination for Koreans. Before the war, Ch'orwon residents would pack a lunch in the morning, board the train, enjoy a picnic in the mountains, and return home by evening. Today the people are gone, the trains stopped. All that remains of a town that once boasted 20,000 residents and four banks are the . ruins of the North Korean Workers' Party headquarters. The streets are empty, a barren wasteland borne of war.

Nearly a half century after their country was divided, the Korean people await unification. Many residents of Kangwon-do Province, not only in Ch'orwon but also in Sokch'o on the east coast, were born in the North and fled south during the war. For nearly fifty years they have lived within sight of the mountains and rivers of their home villages, and yet they have never been able to return. For nearly fifty years they have lived with their longing for home. +

Above, the iron statue of the Vaicvca.na Buddha found at Top'ia.nsa Ten1ple.

Clockwise fronJ near right: Top'ia.nsa Ten1ple, an abandoned freight car at Wolchongni, San1puyon Waterfall. and the North Korean Workers' Party headquarters.

68

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'

DISCOVERING KOREA

IJJA Kim Tae-wook Professor of Forest Resources Seoul National University

he common camellia (Camellia japonica L.) is a small subtropi-

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cal tree found throughout East Asia. Abundant in China and Japan as well as Korea, the camellia is elosely related to the tea plant (Theasinensis var. Bohea). In fact, 82 species related to the camellia and tea tree are found in the tropical and subtropical zones of Asia, accounting for some 2,000 varieties.

The camellia was introduced to Europe in 1739 when the Czech missionary George Joseph Kamel collected a few samples on a tour of East Asia.

Soon popular in French social circles, the tree was named Camellia in his honor.

In Korea, the camellia is native to the southern coastal region and surrounding islands. Taech'ong-do Island off the coast of northern Kyonggi-do Province is the northernmost point for native trees on the west coast; Ullung-do Island is the northernmost point off the east coast. In the inland region, a grove of 800 trees known as Camellia Hill is located in Soch'on-gun, Ch'ungch'ongnam-do, but it is believed to have been planted some 400 years ago.

The camellia embodies an idealistic sense of human integrity and honor. It is also admired for its raw

Marine Character A number of well-known camellia groves are found throug h out the southern part of the Korean peninsula, testifying to the tree's marine character.

Among the most spectacular are those on the islands of Odongdo, Komundo, Hongdo and Huksando off the coast of ChOllanam-do, and Mokdo in the sea off Ulsan. According to local legend, the beautiful camellia groves of 70

grace and splendor.

This idealistic integrity and natural grace make the camellia all the more beautiful.

Odongdo grow over the grave of a beautiful woman who drowned trying to escape a vicious bandit. The tree's beauty is said to come from the legendary maiden.

Camellias are especially common on Yangsanbong, "Sun Peak," on the southern part of Hong-do in the Yellow Sea off Mokp'o. Hongdo is most beautiful when the camellias are blooming. Unfortunately, the island's residents cut down many trees for firewood in recent decades.

Mokdo, literally "Eye Island," in Ulsan is one of a very few islands off the east coast of Korea. It is often called "Camellia Island" (Clf undo) for its lush camellia groves. Komundo off the southern coast is quite large and covered with camellias. In winter, the island is awash with red blossoms floating above the deep blue sea. Sadly, however, many trees have been dug up and transplanted to pots to decorate village houses. The island is so beautiful in its natural state; it is unfortunate that the islanders feel the need to own their own trees.

Many famous temples are scattered throughout Mt. Chirisan. Yon-goksa and Ch'on-unsa are home to several camellia trees believed to be extremely old. The camellia suits the temples for its blossoms always seem to drop before their time, a reflection of the Buddhist conception of life's transience.

From the camellia blossom we realize that life's glory and suffering are separated by little more than a hair's breadth.

The gentle hill behind Todong, the main town on Ullungdo, is covered

with camellias. Gorgeous red blossoms add to the magical atmosphere of the island, a volcanic outcropping rising from whirlpools created by the convergence of frigid northern waters and warm currents from the south.

The contrast of the white snow on the top of the island's volcanic peaks and the brilliant red camellias is especially dramatic.

The camellias of Ullungdo absorb the brilliant sea sun through their thick shiny leaves. Indeed, their thick leaves seem to relish the sun, to find happiness in its rays. Perhaps this is why a branch of camellia and bamboo was often placed on traditional bridal altars, a symbol of the new couple's hopes for a life of eternal happiness in the sun's warm rays.

A Symbol of Winter Camellias have been part of Korean life for centuries. The "Practical Learning" (Shirhak) scholar Chong Yag-yong (1762-1836) wrote eloquently of the tree and its gorgeous blossoms. In fact, Chong seems to have had a special affinity for the tree. Some scholars believe that his penname Tasan-literally Tea Mountain-actually derives from 71

the camellia. For many years Chong lived in Kangjin, Chollanam-do, a wellknown tea-producing district. Most people believe that the "ta" in Tasan refers to tea, but this quotation from Chong seems to suggest that it means camellia, generally known as tongbaek.

A blossom dropping to the

San-ta [literally "mountain tea"] is a beautiful tree native to the southern regions. According to one text called Yuyang chapcho, san-ta is a tall tree that produces red blossoms more than an inch wide each December. Texts on herbal medicine note that the san-ta grows in the south, has thick leaves, and blossoms in the middle of winter. In one of his poems, Su Shi [a respected Chinese scholar-official, 1036-1101] wrote of a flame-like red flower that bloomed in winter. The oil from its fruit was prized by women who used it to make their hair shiny and soft. Indeed, the camellia is truly a marvelous tree.

Camellias that bloom in spring are called ch'unbaek [literally "spring camellia"l They are plentiful on Mt. Taedunsan in Northern Ch6lla.

considered the camellia as

ground symbolizes the end of life, a kind of downfall.

The Korean people have long

homage to the spirit of the deceased.

the camellia.

Combining splendor with calm is no easy task, but the camellia somehow manages. Gaudy flowers look like they should be on display, but the camellia's charm is in its lonely ambience. This is why there is no more beautiful flower.

Fertility and¡Prosperity

The camellia is part of the Korean psyche, the Korean experience. Its blossoms make a sound when they drop, but their silent remains fill us with pity, reminding us how quickly time passes. Most of all, for Koreans the camellia is a symbol of winter. It embodies a beauty that overcomes cold and adversity. It embodies both cool-headedness and heartlessness.

The camellia has long been seen as the representation of an idealistic sense of human integrity and honor, an ideal flower that bravely endures the rigors of winter. It is also admired for what could be called its naked beauty, its raw grace and splendor. These two elements-idealistic integrity and natural grace-make the camellia all the more beautiful.

It is hard to find a sense of peace and quiet in the flamboy ant spring forsythia, apricot or flowering cherry, but we discover a silent tranquility in 72

The Chinese character ch'un is used for the Korean word for camellia tongbaek, but if you look up the character in a Chinese character dictionary, you will find that ch'un refers to the red oak or tree of heaven (an ailanthus).

According to the great Chinese philosopher Zhuangzi (365-286 B.C.): "Man's life expectancy is nothing compared to the tree of heaven which lives through 8,000 springs and autumns." In Chinese philosophy, the tree of heaven had a supernatural, dreamlike quality. Perhaps Koreans refer to the camellia with this Chinese character for the same reason. Like all human beings, they yearn for a long life. Koreans often use the term ch'unbu or ch'undang (esteemed father) in reference to the father of a respected personage. Here, ch'un implies the speaker's hope that the older person will live a long life.

The camellia is sometimes seen as an unlucky tree, however, for its bios-

soms drop in large clumps, instead of in single petals. Perhaps this is why the term ch'unsa is used to refer to unexpected misfortune. In traditional society, people believed that pestilent spirits lived inside the camellia blossom, and when the blossom dropped, the evil spirits died with it. Thus, the camellia blossom embodied humanity's spiritual vigor and innate frailty. The idea that evil spirits which cause virulent diseases live inside beautiful flowers may seem a bit strange or illogical, but it can also be seen as a reflection of the weaker side of the human spirit, a desire to escape the pain of human existence.

In traditional society where misfortune and sickness could only be avoided through prayer and artifice, the camellia may have been an unpleasant symbol. The image of a blossom dropping to the ground symbolized the end of life, a kind of downfall.

The Korean people seem to have considered the camellia as homage to the spirit of the deceased..

At one time, Koreans used the Chinese characters for sea and willow to refer to the camellia. Perhaps this is because the sea evoked images of the West (that is China). People also believed that the willow was a symbol of fertility and a prosperous family, as were the many blossoms of the camellia tree. Thus the camellia itself came to symbolize fertility and the birth of many sons, and was believed to help women become pregnant. People believed that if a woman was beaten on the buttocks with a camellia branch she would bear a son. When a camellia branch was not available, a branch from a holly tree, a Chinese date tree, or a peach tree was used. In Han China, officials hung a sturdy camellia branch from their belt to ward off misfortune.

With its many meanings, the camellia tree continues to defy the winter cold to bloom brilliantly in the Korean spirit. +

CURRENTS

A Critic's Look at

THE YEAR OF ART LeeKu-yeol Art Critic/Director of Exhibitions Seoul Arts Center

n 1991, as part of the government's policy to enhance the Korean people's cultural awareness, the Ministry of Culture and Sports launched a ''Year in the Arts" program. It began that year with the Year of Theater and Film. The following . year celebrated dance, 1993, books, and 1994, Korean Music. The program, featuring a broad range of commemorative events held in Seoul and across the country each year, has generally been deemed a success.

This year celebrates art through the staging of many special events, seminars and symposiums, aimed at cultivating a new artistic perspective and a greater awareness of art's importance.

The Year of Art is essentially a campaign in which artists and ordinary people join to make art a part of everyday life, thus enhancing the quality of life itself. With this in mind, the Year of Art Organizing Committee, composed of distinguished members of the local art community, has adopted the slogan-"Beautiful Spirit, Beautiful Life"-to reflect the relationship between art and the quality of life.

Some have criticized the Year in the Arts program as little more than an ineffectual campaign, a handful of formalities and slogans squeezed into a fixed period. It is true: campaigns and catchy slogans alone won't accelerate cultural and artistic development.

Long-term government planning based on a commitment to cultural and artistic cooperation is essential to true cultural development. Still, campaigns and slogans have their place. That is why people are always using them.

I

The Year of Art '95 was officially launched in a ceremony on January 16 at the Sejong Cultural Center in Seoul.

The Organizing Committee (headed by Lee Dai-woti, president of the National Academy of Arts, with the executive committee chaired by Park Kwang-jin, former president of the Korean Fine Arts Association) announced the year's

The Year of Art is essentially a campaign in which artists and ordinary people join to make art a part of everyday life.

â&#x20AC;˘ THE YEAR OF ART '95 events at the inauguration ceremony.

Most prominent are several commemorative exhibitions including: "Forty Years of Korean Design" at the National 'Museum of Contemporary Art; "Korean Art Today," "Seoul Print Art Fair" and "Photography by Moon Son-ho-Image of Korean Artists" at the Seoul Arts Center; "Theme Contemporary Art" at the Seoul Metropolitan Art Gallery; the first Kwangju Biennale at the Kwangju Metropolitan Museum; and a series, "Small Painting Exhibitions," organized by the Gallery Associ-

ation of Korea.

Several interesting exchange exhibitions are also on the agenda. These include the "Modern Italian Art Exhibition" (January) and the Giacometti sculpture exhibition (August) at the.

National Museum of Contemporary Art, "Kandinsky, Malevich and Russian Avant Garde Art" (April-May) and "Modern American Handicrafts" (April) at the Seoul Arts Center, and "KoreanChinese Ink Painting'' (May) at the Korean Culture and Arts Foundation's Art Center. Korean art will head overseas with an exhibition of 30 contemporary Korean artists scheduled for November at the Museum of Modern Art in Paris.

Venice Biennale The highlight of the international art exchanges this year is the construction of a long-awaited Korean pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Four artists will represent Korea this year: Yoon Hyung-j(eun, Kwak Hoon, Jheon SooKim In-kyum. Many celechoen C~nd bratory events have been planned because 1995 is also the 100th anniversary of the Venice Biennale. Amidst this festive atmosphere, the open_ing of a Korean pavilion will surely act as a catalyst for Korean art's rapid advancement in the international arena.

All Biennale participants long for their own national pavilion. The inclusion of a Korean pavilion is tantamount to a diplomatic triumph in the international art community. Korean artists have participated in the Venice Biennale since 1986, but they are sure to hold their heads especially high this year. At the same time, many wonder 73

CURRENTS ''What looks good, tastes good:' what will be the reaction to the Koreinternational travel and exchanges.

These proverbs show the imporan pavilion and its exhibitions by host There also must be more active introtance Koreans have traditionally placed duction of art from outside Korea to and international art circles. on appearances. Today we could say, stimulate local artists, inspire new In an interview with a Korean art "If there is no difference in function modes of creation, and furnish fresh journal, video artist Paik Nam-june, and quality, choose the one that looks ideas that will eventually contribute to who put Korea in the spotlight when globalization. Such interaction is crucial better:' he won an award at the Biennale in in an international society and is in itThis is simply a matter of human 1993, noted that the pavilion would be self the aim of globalization. nature and eyesight. Food that looks too small to effectively display the good stimulates the appetite and tastes The second is an obligation to bring work of four artists. The four particibetter. Sophisticated and well-designed art closer to the lives of the people. pants have already been chosen, howappliances and furniture, cars in stylish Public access to culture must be made ever, by art critic and Hongik Universicolors and designs, and innovative areasier. Only then will the public truly ty professor, Lee Yil, who was given chitectural designs are full authority as a Bienvital if we are to realize nate commtsswner. the true substance of the Now is the time for joint Year of Art slogan, efforts to focus interna"Beautiful spirit, beautitional attention on the ful life." artists and their work With the introduction Last year, President of a full-fledged local auKim Young-sam made ton omy system this globalization in all fields year, we are witnessing a matter of national polithe opening of a new cy. The difference be"regional era" in which a tween globalization and I ffiOre even distributiOn the government's previof cultural advantages ous policy of internawill be achieved. People tionalization is still in major cities across the vague, but globalization nation are eager to see Campaigns and catchy slogans alone won't accelerate cultural is generally understood art galleries, museums and artistic development. Long-term government planning, as a broader concept geared toward building founded on a commitment to cultural and artistic cooperation, and ex hibition spaces is essential to true cultural development. b uilt in their areas so national strength in rethey will have easier acsponse to mounting incess to cultural events. This desire for ternational competition. enjoy art and recognize its importance quality culture is a natural outcome of In light of this, the Year of Art Orgaand usefulness in everyday life. This, nizing Committee is planning an interin turn, will stimulate an increased dethe expansion of educational opportunities and increased incomes. It has almand for art, which will improve the national symposium in December to so been fueled by the liberalization of discuss the "globalization of art." The quality of art works. This issue is in travel opportunities and the accumulasymposium will consider the current the spotlight because of the integral tion of knowledge gained from these role design plays in our rapidly changstate of art in Korea, discuss ways of overseas experiences. ing and developing industrial society. accelerating international exchanges, When the various concerns related Design not only has implications for and set the stage for a new approach to the genuine popularization of art are the quality of people's living environto globalization. addressed by the events and camThe globalization of Korean art may ment, but is also the key to internationpaigns planned for 1995, the Year of al economic competitiveness. well depend on two basic conditions.

One is active state support for artists, as Art will have true meaning. Otherwise, the Year of Art will be nothing well as autonomous initiative on behalf Bringing Art to the People of the artists themselves, helping them more than a handful of slogans and Koreans often say, "If it's the same develop their art through unrestricted price, choose the crimson skirt," or formalities. â&#x20AC;˘ 74

SOH KI-

A respected novelist, government official and journalist, Soh Ki-won is one of many accomplished post-Korean War author_s. This issue of KOREANA carries three stories from The Marok Biographies.

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Soh Ki-vvon Multiple Voices and Satirical Perspectives YuJong-ho Literary Critic/Professor of English Literature Ewha Womans University

oh Ki-won aspired to be a writer from childhood. His life experience impeded the steady pursuit of a writing career, however. For this reason, an understanding of his personal history is essential to an understanding of his works.

Born in 1930 in Seoul, Soh was a student at the College of Commerce at Seoul National University when he entered the Air Force as an officer at the outbreak of the Korean War. He made his literary debut in 1956 with short stories such as Theory on Euthanasia (Allaksa-non) and Amsa Map (Amsachido) while working as an economics reporter at a news agency, and estabwriter lished himself as a p~ofesinal through successive short stories depicting the consciousness of the young generation during the Korean War. He is generally grouped with other postKorean War writers including S6nu Hwi, Son Ch'ang-sop, 0 Sang-won, Yi Ho-ch'ol and Ha Kun-ch'an.

In th e 1970s, he worked as a spokesman for the Economic Planning Board, the office of the Prime Minister and the Blue House, the office of the President. During the late 1980s, he served as president of three state-funded organizations-the Korean Culture and Arts Foundation, Seoul Shinmun (a daily newspaper) and Korea Broadcasting System (KBS). Though public office hampered his literary career, he did not give up writing completely_ After retiring from public service, Soh published historical novels such as Royal Dynasty's Altar ( Wangjoui chaedan). A depiction of the political

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frustration of a reform-minded politician, Cho Kwang-jo, the novel reflects Soh 's experiences as a government administrator. In addition to this fulllength novel, he has published several collections of short stories including Woman's Legs (Yojaui tari) and The Marak Biographies (Marak yolchon).

Currently, Kwanghwamun, depicting the political life of Hungs6n Taewongun, father of King Kojong w ho ruled during the late Chos6n period, is now being serialized in the Chosun Ilbo. This tale of the hardships and challenges arising in the quest for political reform peaks readers' interest with its connotative connections to Korea's present circumstances. Soh Ki-won's experience at the center of political power leads to detailed description in his books.

Satire on Human Vanity The Marak Biographies is a collection of satirical short stories dealing with many different eras and characters, all unrelated. Soh Ki-won sees human life as a continuation of foolish behavior, and he sees humanity as absurd and idiotic. This is the logic of the fabric that binds the stories together.

In examining the writer and his reality, I have absolutely no interest in raising thematic questions nor do I have any sympathy for artificial word play. Editorials can take care of the former while the latter only seems appropriate in peaceful and prosperous times.

The presidential election is drawing to a close now. I cannot help laughing to

myself, struck by the great similarities to my book The Marak Biographies. I feel some of the stress and tension slip away as I laugh.

These remarks, from The Marok Biographies, shed light on Soh's writing style and point of view. In short, he rejects the method of starting out with a single issue or clearly defined and calculated sense of purpose. He ¡also rejects sticking to psychological description or an introspective expression of consciousness. He begins from his observations of humans and often preof a man who sents the idiotic aspe~t commits many foolish acts, emphasizing seemingly insignificant matters.

Soh Ki-won reproaches human vanity and self-deception by dealing with the historical distortion of one family.

Though this criticism is the source of the satire, the satire is closer to pity than harsh condemnation. The object of the satire is seen mostly as foolish and weak.

An Awkward Officer The Marak Biographies II is the story of a college student, Ma Rok-sam, who swims across the Han River shortly after the South Korean government blows up the Han River Bridge at the outset of the Korean War, leaving thousands to face the Red Army. Ma is arrested by the South Korean Army as soon as he crosses the river and charged with being a spy. Fortunately, a handful of classmates among the soldiers recognizes him, and he is cleared of the charges. Ma then becomes an

army officer and is assigned as an interpreter to an army unit. Lacking both conversational and listening skills, and yet faced with exigent combat situations where rapid communication is necessary, he develops psychosomatic constipation.

The tide of the war reverses after the Inch'6n Landing, and there is an explosion in the number of North Korean prisoners of war. Ma is made an interrogator at a POW camp. He soon clashes with an American officer over his treatment of the prisoners, and, with

Soh rejects the narrow focus and introspection found in much of Korea 's modem fiction. For him, human life is a continuation of foolish behavior, and humanity is absurd and idiotic.

Ma's exaggerated account of the story, the rumor-that he has beaten up the American officer-spreads among the South Korean soldiers.

After the incident, Ma comes to the attention of a famous general nicknamed the "Chirisan Tiger" and is appointed commander of a POW camp.

He is responsible for overseeing prisoners held at the front line. At the camp he discovers several former classmates and friends taken prisoner during combat after being drafted into the North Korean army. Ma takes them from the camp, ostensibly for summary punishment, then releases them, urging them to flee to Seoul. His willful release of the prisoners is a grave offense for an officer, but the Chirisan Tiger's only punishment is ordering him to cross a steel bridge in his underwear in the dead of winter. The story ends w ith Ma carrying out this absurd order under the curious gaze of a crowd of onlookers.

After Korea's liberation from Japan in 1945, the paramilitary "National Defense Guard" was created in South Korea. When the Republic of Korea came into being in 1948, the Guard was reformed to establish the Korean Army.

Because the Korean War broke out just two years later, many officers lacked proper training and skills. The Marak Biographies II depicts the various types of officers commissioned during the early days of the Korean Army. The Chirisan Tiger was modeled after a real general who was quite well-known during the 1950s. A reckless, cruel man and fearsome superior, he protected his subordinates with unexpected and startling orders. In other words, the story highlights the foolish actions of men through the comic behavior of characters who act without sufficient military training or discipline.

The story is difficult to understand without some preliminary knowledge of the circumstances of that period.

We must remember that the actions of the characters take place at the height of the Korean War. The officers act ar77

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bitrarily and spontaneously when dealing with life-and-death matters. Added to this is the soldiers' lack of combat experience, which causes them to behave foolishly. The author could deal with this taboo subject because he focused on the actions of one exceptional person.

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The Political World The hero of The Marak Biographies III, Ma Chun, is the grandson of a "conscientious" Choson Dynasty official, who struggles to gain a government position by passing the kwago state civil service examination, a tradition found in China and Korea but not in Japan. If fairly administered, the exam contributed to social stability by enhancing social mobility and cultivating outstanding people from all walks of life. It was also limited, however, because it focused on the Chinese classics and only evaluated poetry composition skills.

The title of "conscientious" official was granted by chief ministers as a reward for an exemplary life. One exaggerated folk tale tells of a chief minister of such great integrity and purity th;:~ when he read books in his r');:_;rl he held an umbrella to keep out the rain which leaked from the roof. In order to properly understand this story, it is important to know that the title of "conscientious" official brought great honor to the family name.

Ma Chun devoted twenty years of his life preparing for the state exam, but did not succeed. This was partly because of his limited intelligence and abilities, but also because the exam itself was deviled by corruption and bribery. The author does not point the finger clearly at either cause, merely suggesting various possibilities:

The decisive internal factor was not unrelated to heredity. Although the Ma family steadfastly maintained the tradit tion of the "conscientious" official, the smell of meat and fish graced their house no more than twice a year, at New Year's and at Ch'usok. And a few pieces of 78

jerky and a dried pollack was as much as they were accustomed to use for the more than ten annual ritual offerings required by the five generations of the family. Thus it could be readily surmised that the family had been afflicted by malnutrition since great-grandfather's time.

To expect bright children to be born of such parents was out of the question.

Indeed, in view of the fact that malnutrition had been going on now for two or three generations, it was quite fortunate that a complete moron had not been born into the recent generations of the family.

As Ma Chun kept failing the state exam, his father suggested that he start paying visits to a powerful politician to lobby for a position. The son, however, rejects this as unthinkable for the family of a "conscientious" official. Ma Chun was conscious of the critical intellectuals out of office and other aspirants for government positions. However, after hearing his father's dying words-that he was unbearably disappointed to die without having seen his son become a government official-Ma Chun finally begins to frequent the politician's house.

In the end, he is about to be appointed magistrate of Chongup County when a demonstration by young intellectuals and official aspirants breaks out. Upon receiving a report that one of the protesters injured himself, the politician gives the position to the injured man instead. The true thrill of the story lies in this final reversal of the situation. Ma's ironical loss to an intellectual with whom he had been friendly in the , past provides added interest.

The cynical politician thinks that the mass protest by intellectuals can be easily quelled by selectively bestowing favors on individuals.

This final reversal recalls a passage from Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels.

There are three methods by which a man may rise to be chief minister: The first is, by knowing how with prudence

to dispose of a wife, a daughter, or a sister; the second, by betraying or undermining his predecessor; and the third is, by furious zeal in public assemblies, speak against the corruptions of the court.

But a wise prince would rather choose to employ those who practice the last of these methods.

This story deals with the corruption of the political world. Though the story is set in the historical past, its significance rests in the present. Soh Ki-won's satirical perspective is aimed at every character in the story, not at any individual.

Fathers and Sons Turgenev's Fathers and Sons deals not only with the conflict between a father and son, but also the conflict that inevitably arises between the c9nservative older generation and the reformminded younger generation.

The Marak Biographies V focuses on a father who attempts to survive by collaborating with the Japanese and his son despises him for it.

Among the so-called Japanese collaborators, there were both powerful men in high positions and low-class men of little significance. Mr. Kim, a member of the Privy Council, a puppet organ composed of Koreans who served the Japanese viceroy, belongs to the first categor y, whereas Ma Yong, an informant for the Japanese police, belongs to the latter.

When his son joins an anti-colonial group, Councillor Kim tries to persuade him to change his mind, but fails. In the end, he locks up his son, arranges a fake funeral, and erases the boy's name from the family register.

Ma Yong's son, on the other hand, comes to hate school, because of his informant father. Upon learning of his son's misery, Ma Yong tells him:

It's difficult to explain this so that you can understand, but when they say these things, tell them this. My father may be friendly with the Japanese, and he may

go to the police station from time to time, but he never does anything harmful to the people of Chos6n. If they persist, say this. You son-of-bitches, do you know ariy man of Chos6n who doesn"t butter up the Japanese. From the GovernmentGeneral down- police, teachers, my6n office clerks, tram conductors even-is there anyone who doesn't have to beg for his food under the Japanese? Well, it's just the same with landlords. The police protect them and come down on the dissidents. That's how your landlords live their fine rich lives. Well, am I wrong?

of view is generally more difficult to understand than a tragedy. Aristophanes' works do not earn as many accolades as those of Sophocles or Euripides. Aristophanes' comedies have less appeal for the modern reader with their allusions to the time in which the author lived. In the same way, foreign readers may experience some difficulty appreciating the humor of The Marak Biographies. The author's elegant and

graceful writing reflects his sensitivity to the nuances of words.

The characters appearing in The Marak Biographies all bear the surname Ma. The stories are thus a collection of records detailing the foolishness of the Ma family. "Marak" is a Japanese word for "idiot" or "fool" frequently used as a curse or in criticism. Needless to say, this nuance underlies Soh Ki-won's choice of title. +

Ma Y6ng's remarks to his son are a sort of self-defensive excuse, the most frequently cited excuse by the proJapanese, who insisted there was no other way to survive under Japanese rule unless one defected to another country. Strictly speaking, like all excuses, this is not without logic. Actually, unless one was a rich landowner, it was impossible to constantly rebel against the Japanese. Colonial rule became harsher and stricter toward its end, and therefore, it is unfair to unconditionally criticize all seemingly proJapanese actions. In this context, Ma Yong's observation was an excuse as well as a reproach directed at the radical perspective, which criticized all proJapanese behavior.

Ma Yang's voice echoes many voices that resound throughout the story, heightening the effect of its multilayered implications. The author's satirical outlook is directed at all his characters, not just Ma Yong or Councillor Kim. Their sons are no exceptions. They do not show the slightest understanding of their fathers' plight or the hardships they have endured to enable their sons to lead life as they know it.

This story is set in the Japanese colonial period. During the 1970s the conflict between fathers and sons became especially poignant. The Marak Biographies V, therefore, is a story set in colonial times with hints and implications for the present era.

A comedy born from a satirical point 79

NEWS FROM THE KOREA FOUNDATION

Support for Korean Studies Programs Abroad

FELLOWSHIP FOR KOREAN S7VDIES

The Korea Foundation offers financial assistance to universities, research institutes and libraries abroad in their efforts to promote the study and understanding of subjects related to Korea. Projects submitted for consideration must be in the fields of humanities, social sciences or arts and within the categories listed below: 1) Establishment and expansion of Korea-related courses and faculty 2) Fellowships for graduate students or research grants for faculty 3) Library acquisition and cataloging Applications must be submitted to The Korea Foundation by May 31. The results of the final selection will be announced by October 15 of the same year.

For application forms, program guidelines or further information, please write to:

Applicants should complete two copies of The Korea Foundation Fellowship for Korean Studies application form and submit their academic research proposals to The Korea Foundation by May 31. The results of the final selection will be announced by August 15 of the same year.

International Cooperation Department I The Korea Foundiition CPO. Box 2147 Seoul. Korea Tel82-2-753-3464.

Fax 82-2-757-2047.2049

KOREA FOCUS A BIMON111LY ON CURRENT KOREAN AFFAIRS

In addition to KOREANA, The Korea Foundation publishes KOREA FOCUS as part of its effort to inform the world community about Korea and to enhance international understanding in this era of globalization. We believe KOREA FOCUS will serve as an important and timely reference for the world community.

KOREA FOCUS offers a comprehensive view of contemporary Korea in a wide-ranging selection of informative articles on Korean current affairs. , In this bimonthly, you will find timely reports on Korea's politics, economy, social environment and culture, opinions on world affairs, and a chronolc:gy of recent events in Korea. ...., ...... u,.

Published in English and Japanese, "'"' ,,, its articles come from leading publica.....,, ••"'tl...

1 tions in Korea, including major daily newspapers, newsmagazines and academic journals. ~·

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The Korea Foundation Fellowship Programs

FELLOWSHIP FOR KOREAN LANGUAGE TRAINING

The Korea Foundation offers grants for Korean language training to graduate students, scholars and other qualified professionals overseas who wish to learn the Korean language at a Korean university language institute for a period of six to twelve months.

Each successful applicant ill be assigned to a Korean language course at one of three major Korean universities, and will be provided with tuition and a monthly allowance during the grant period.

Applicants should complete and submit two copies of The Korea Foundation Fellowship for Korean Language Training application form to The Korea Foundation by May -31. The results of the final selection will be announced by August 15 of the same year.

For application forms, program guidelines or further information, please write to:

International Cooperation Department ][ The Korea Foundation CPO. Box 2147 Seoul. Korea leL 82-2-753-6465 Fax. 82-2-757-2047.2049

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