A spoonful of old paintings that become a comma in life

There is a ‘star’ in the world of ancient art who is called ‘the next Yoo Hong-jun’ and is a huge hit at every exhibition he organizes and who excites the audience at every lecture. Tak Hyeon-gyu is a former researcher at the Kansong Art Museum. There are several reasons why his explanations of old paintings are so popular.

First of all, it’s fun. His trademark is sensuous yet easy explanations that are suitable for SNS hashtags such as #Wolmae is Chunhyang Road Manager, #Sister is so pretty #Hanyang Gisaeng Association Workshop. Second, it brings ancient art into present-day life and explains it. Regarding Jeong Seon’s painting [Apgujeong], “Hyundai Apartment Building XX currently stands where that large pavilion used to be. “Apgujeong has the best view of the Han River, both then and now!” he explains. Third, the highlight of his explanation of old paintings is the look in the eyes of a noblewoman who makes eye contact with a strange man beyond a low stone wall between the splendid movements of a shaman dancing excitedly, or the expression of a scholar who is focused only on the gisaeng sitting next to him. It awakens the true taste of Korean paintings through detailed explanations of paintings that were not easily found in our old paintings. Listening to his explanation, the prejudice that ‘antique art is difficult and boring’ is completely destroyed.

In this book, “A spoonful of old paintings that become a comma for life,” he collects and explains the paintings of three genius painters of the Joseon Dynasty: Kim Deuk-shin, Shin Yun-bok, and Jeong Seon, and describes their characteristics as follows.

“Shin Yun-bok’s paintings are the most outstanding Joseon high society dramas. It's such a fun drama that you'll be hooked on endlessly. In it, Shin Yun-bok turns each character into an actor who is faithful to their respective roles. And the drama is completed with only the eyes of a character who is just a dot. On the other hand, Kim Deuk-shin's paintings are documentaries of the common people, like [Extreme Jobs] and [Korean's Table] at the time. The intense and beautiful stories of the labor and lives of the common people are captured in his paintings. Jeong Seon's paintings are the pinnacle of wayu (playing while lying down) and the best way to enjoy the landscape and gain energy even from your room. “When you admire the numerous mountains and rivers in his paintings, you come to the moment when you realize the true beauty of Mt. Geumsugang.”

The reactions of countless people who have heard his lectures at the end of his lectures are always the same. “I didn’t know our art was this fun and good.” We hope you will feel “an inexplicable attraction that you could not feel in Van Gogh or Gauguin” through the paintings of Joseon’s genius painters who showed off their talents to the fullest during the reigns of King Yeongjo and King Jeongjo, when late Joseon culture was the most beautiful.