The artist Jeong Seon(1676–1759) lived at the foot of Mt. Bugak and frequently painted mountains such as Mt. Geumgang and Mt. Inwang. He created the ‘Gwandong Palgyeong-do-byeong’ (‘Folding Screen of the Eight Scenic Views of Gwandong’) to capture the region’s breathtaking natural beauty. While interpretations vary—ranging from a desire to escape reality and commune with nature to an intent to allow viewers to experience—through art—places that were difficult to visit in person—the work stands as a masterpiece of jin-gyeong sansuhwa (true-view landscape painting) that elegantly yet understatedly portrays Korea’s beautiful natural scenery. Unlike traditional landscape paintings, this work freely expresses the artist’s inner spiritual aspirations grounded in the reality of everyday life. Jeong Seon’s true-view landscapes, which realistically and calmly depicted the beautiful scenery of Joseon while vividly capturing the robust spirit inherent within the landscape, also influenced minhwa (Korean folk painting) of the time, paving the way for the inclusion of landscape elements in folk art. Each panel of the ‘Gwandong Palgyeong-dobyeong’ (‘Folding Screen of the Eight Scenic Views of Gwandong’) was beautiful. Living by chance at the foot of Mt. Bugak I felt a deeper connection to his works; while gazing at the screen, which depicts the magnificent landscapes of the Joseon Dynasty, I selected a specific detail to transform into a pattern and named it “Cloud Gazing.”
* Cloud Gazing
