• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
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• v.96
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• pp.89-122
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• 2019

In this paper, I argue that the Handscroll of a Sightseeing Trip to the Hangang and Imjingang Rivers by Jeong Su-yeong (1743~1831, pseudonym: Jiwujae) is a record of his private journeys to several places on the outskirts of Hanyang (present-day Seoul) and that it successfully embodies the painter's subjective perspective while boating on these rivers and going on outings to nearby mountains. Around 1796, Jeong Su-yeong traveled to different places and documented his travels in this 16-meter-long handscroll. Several leaves of paper, each of which depicts a separate landscape, are pieced together to create this long handscroll. This indicates that the Handscroll of a Sightseeing Trip to the Hangang and Imjingang Rivers reflected the painter's personal subjective experiences as he went along his journey rather than simply depicts travel destinations. The Handscroll of a Sightseeing Trip to the Hangang and Imjingang Rivers features two types of travel: boating and mountain outings on foot. Traveling by boat takes up a large portion of the handscroll, which illustrates the channels of the Hangang and Imjingang Rivers. Mountain outings correspond to the sections describing the regions around Bukhansan, Gwanaksan, and Dobongsan Mountains. Jeong Su-yeong traveled to this wide span of places not just once, but several times. The fact that the Hangang River system are not presented in accordance with their actual locations shows that they were illustrated at different points. After visiting the riversides of the Hangang and Namhangang Rivers twice, Jeong Su-yeong delineated them in fourteen scenes. Among them, the first eight illustrate Jeong's initial trip by boat, while the other six scenes are vistas from his second trip. These fourteen scenes occupy half of this handscroll, indicating that the regions near the Hangang River are painted most frequently. The scenes of Jeong Su-yeong's first boating trip to the system of the Hangang River portray the landscapes that he personally witnessed rather than famous scenes. Some of the eight scenic views of Yeoju, including Yongmunsan Mountain, Cheongsimru Pavilion, and Silleuksa Temple, are included in this handscroll. However, Jeong noted spots that were not often painted and depicted them using an eye-level perspective uncommon for illustrating famous scenic locations. The scenes of Jeong's second boating trip include his friend's villa and a meeting with companions. Moreover, Cheongsimru Pavilion and Silleuksa Temple, which are depicted in the first boating trip, are illustrated again from different perspectives and in unique compositions. Jeong Su-yeong examined the same locations several times from different angles. A sense of realism is demonstrated in the scenes of Jeong's first and second boating trips to the channels of the Hangang River, which depict actual roads. Furthermore, viewers can easily follow the level gaze of Jeong from the boat. The scenes depicting the Imjingang River begin from spots near the Yeongpyeongcheon and Hantangang Rivers and end with places along the waterways of the Imjingang River. Here, diverse perspectives were applied, which is characteristic of Imjingang River scenes. Jeong Su-yeong employed a bird's-eye perspective to illustrate the flow of a waterway starting from the Yeongpyeongcheon River. He also used an eye-level perspective to highlight the rocks of Baegundam Pool. Thus, depending on what he wished to emphasize, Jeong applied different perspectives. Hwajeogyeon Pond located by the Hantangang River is illustrated from a bird's-eye perspective to present a panoramic view of the surroundings and rocks. Similarly, the scenery around Uhwajeong Pavilion by the Imjingang River are depicted from the same perspective. A worm's-eye view was selected for Samseongdae Cliff in Tosangun in the upper regions of the Imjingang River and for Nakhwaam Rock. The scenes of Jeong Su-yeong's mountain outings include pavilions and small temple mainly. In the case of Jaeganjeong Pavilion on Bukhansan Mountain, its actual location remains unidentified since the pavilion did not lead to the route of the boating trip to the system of the Hangang River and was separately depicted from other trips to the mountains. I speculate that Jaeganjeong Pavilion refers to a pavilion either in one of the nine valleys in Wooyi-dong at the foot of Bukhansan Mountain or in Songajang Villa. Since these two pavilions are situated in the valleys of Bukhansan Mountain, their descriptions in written texts are similar. As for Gwanaksan Mountain, Chwihyangjeong and Ilganjeong Pavilions as well as Geomjisan Mountain in the Bukhansan Mountain range are depicted. Ilganjeong Pavilion was a well-known site on Gwanaksan that belonged to Shin Wi. In this handscroll, however, Jeong Su-yeong recorded objective geographic information on the pavilion rather than relating it to Shin Wi. "Chwihyangjeong Pavilion" is presented within the walls, while "Geomjisan Mountain" is illustrated outside the walls. Handscroll of a Sightseeing Trip to the Hangang and Imjingang Rivers also includes two small temples, Mangwolam and Okcheonam, on Dobongsan Mountain. The actual locations of these are unknown today. Nevertheless, Gungojip (Anthology of Gungo) by Yim Cheonsang relates that they were sited on Dobongsan Mountain. Compared to other painters who stressed Dobong Seowon (a private Confucian academy) and Manjangbong Peak when depicting Dobongsan Mountain, Jeong Su-yeong highlighted these two small temples. Jeong placed Yeongsanjeon Hall and Cheonbong Stele in "Mangwolam small temple" and Daeungjeon Hall in front of "Okcheonam small temple." In addition to the buildings of the small temple, Jeong drew the peaks of Dobongsan Mountain without inscribing their names, which indicates that he intended the Dobongsan peaks as a background for the scenery. The Handscroll of a Sightseeing Trip to the Hangang and Imjingang Rivers is of great significance in that it embodies Jeong Su-yeong's personal perceptions of scenic spots on the outskirts of Hanyang and records his trips to these places.

• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
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• v.96
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• pp.54-88
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• 2019

The Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains comprises sixty real scenery landscape paintings depicting Geumgangsan Mountain, the Haegeumgang River, and the eight scenic views of Gwandong regions, as well as fifty-one pieces of writing. It is a rare example in terms of its size and painting style. The paintings in this album, which are densely packed with natural features, follow the painting style of the Southern School yet employ crude and unconventional elements. In them, stones on the mountains are depicted both geometrically and three-dimensionally. Since 1973, parts of this album have been published in some exhibition catalogues. The entire album was opened to the public at the special exhibition "Through the Eyes of Joseon Painters: Real Scenery Landscapes of Korea" held at the National Museum of Korea in 2019. The Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains was attributed to Kim Eung-hwan (1742-1789) due to the signature on the final leaf of the album and the seal reading "Bokheon(painter's penname)" on the currently missing album leaf of Chilbodae Peaks. However, there is a strong possibility that this signature and seal may have been added later. This paper intends to reexamine the creator of this album based on a variety of related factors. In order to understand the production background of Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains, I investigated the eighteenth-century tradition of drawing scenic spots while travelling in which scenery of was depicted during private travels or official excursions. Jeong Seon(1676-1759), Sim Sa-jeong(1707-1769), Kim Yun-gyeom(1711-1775), Choe Buk(1712-after 1786), and Kang Se-hwang(1713-1791) all went on a journey to Geumgangsan Mountain, the most famous travel destination in the late Joseon period, and created paintings of the mountain, including Album of Pungak Mountain in the Sinmyo Year(1711) by Jeong Seon. These painters presented their versions of the traditional scenic spots of Inner Geumgangsan and newly depicted vistas they discovered for themselves. To commemorate their private visits, they produced paintings for their fellow travelers or sponsors in an album format that could include several scenes. While the production of paintings of private travels to Geumgangsan Mountain increased, King Jeongjo(r. 1776-1800) ordered Kim Eung-hwan and Kim Hong-do, court painters at the Dohwaseo(Royal Bureau of Painting), to paint scenic spots in the nine counties of the Yeongdong region and around Geumgangsan Mountain. King Jeongjo selected these two as the painters for the official excursion taking into account their relationship, their administrative experience as regional officials, and their distinct painting styles. Starting in the reign of King Yeongjo(r. 1724-1776), Kim Eung-hwan and Kim Hong-do served as court painters at the Dohwaseo, maintained a close relationship as a senior and a junior and as colleagues, and served as chalbang(chief in large of post stations) in the Yeongnam region. While Kim Hong-do was proficient at applying soft and delicate brushstrokes, Kim Eung-hwan was skilled at depicting the beauty of robust and luxuriant landscapes. Both painters produced about 100 scenes of original drawings over fifty days of the official excursion. Based on these original drawings, they created around seventy album leaves or handscrolls. Their paintings enriched the tradition of depicting scenic spots, particularly Outer Inner Geumgang and the eight scenic views of Gwandong around Geumgangsan Mountain during private journeys in the eighteenth century. Moreover, they newly discovered places of scenic beauty in the Outer Geungang and Yeongdong regions, establishing them as new painting themes. The Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains consists of four volumes. The volumes I, II include twenty-nine paintings of Inner Geumgangsan; the volume III, seventeen scenes of Outer Geumgangsan; and the volume IV, fourteen images of Maritime Geumgangsan and the eight scenic views of Gwandong. These paintings produced on silk show crowded compositions, geometrical depictions of the stones and the mountains, and distinct presentation of the rocky peaks of Geumgangsan Mountain using white and grayish-blue pigments. This album reflects the Joseon painting style of the mid- and late eighteenth century, integrating influences from Jeong Seon, Kang Se-hwang, Sim Sa-jeong, Jeong Chung-yeop(1725-after 1800), and Kim Hong-do. In particular, some paintings in the album show similarities to Kim Hong-do's Album of Famous Mountains in Korea in terms of its compositions and painterly motifs. However, "Yeongrangho Lake," "Haesanjeong Pavilion," and "Wolsongjeong Pavilion" in Kim Eung-hwan's album differ from in the version by Kim Hong-do. Thus, Kim Eung-hwan was influenced by Kim Hong-do, but produced his own distinctive album. The Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains includes scenery of "Jaundam Pool," "Baegundae Peak," "Viewing Birobong Peak at Anmunjeom groove," and "Baekjeongbong Peak," all of which are not depicted in other albums. In his version, Kim Eung-hwan portrayed the characteristics of the natural features in each scenic spot in a detailed and refreshing manner. Moreover, he illustrated stones on the mountains using geometric shapes and added a sense of three-dimensionality using lines and planes. Based on the painting traditions of the Southern School, he established his own characteristics. He also turned natural features into triangular or rectangular chunks. All sixty paintings in this album appear rough and unconventional, but maintain their internal consistency. Each of the fifty-one writings included in the Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains is followed by a painting of a scenic spot. It explains the depicted landscape, thus helping viewers to understand and appreciate the painting. Intimately linked to each painting, the related text notes information on traveling from one scenic spot to the next, the origins of the place names, geographic features, and other related information. Such encyclopedic documentation began in the early nineteenth century and was common in painting albums of Geumgangsan Mountain in the mid- nineteenth century. The text following the painting of Baekhwaam Hermitage in the Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains documents the reconstruction of the Baekhwaam Hermitage in 1845, which provides crucial evidence for dating the text. Therefore, the owner of the Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains might have written the texts or asked someone else to transcribe them in the mid- or late nineteenth century. In this paper, I have inferred the producer of the Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains to be Kim Eung-hwan based on the painting style and the tradition of drawing scenic spots during official trips. Moreover, its affinity with the Handscroll of Pungak Mountain created by Kim Ha-jong(1793-after 1878) after 1865 is another decisive factor in attributing the album to Kim Eung-hwan. In contrast to the Album of Famous Mountains in Korea by Kim Hong-do, the Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains exerted only a minor influence on other painters. The Handscroll of Pungak Mountain by Kim Ha-jong is the sole example that employs the subject matter from the Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains and follows its painting style. In the Handscroll of Pungak Mountain, Kim Ha-jong demonstrated a painting style completely different from that in the Album of Seas and Mountains that he produced fifty years prior in 1816 for Yi Gwang-mun, the magistrate of Chuncheon. He emphasized the idea of "scholar thoughts" by following the compositions, painterly elements, and depictions of figures in the painting manual style from Kim Eung-hwan's Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains. Kim Ha-jong, a member of the Gaeseong Kim clan and the eldest grandson of Kim Eung-hwan, is presumed to have appreciated the paintings depicted in the nature of Album of Complete Views of Seas and Mountains, which had been passed down within the family, and newly transformed them. Furthermore, the contents and narrative styles of Yi Yu-won's writings attached to the paintings in the Handscroll of Pungak Mountain are similar to those of the fifty-one writings in Kim Eunghwan's album. This suggests a possible influence of the inscriptions in Kim Eung-hwan's album or the original texts from which these inscriptions were quoted upon the writings in Kim Ha-jong's handscroll. However, a closer examination will be needed to determine the order of the transcription of the writings. The Album of Complete View of Seas and Mountains differs from Kim Hong-do's paintings of his official trips and other painting albums he influenced. This album is a siginificant artwork in that it broadens the understanding of the art world of Kim Eung-hwan and illustrates another layer of real scenery landscape paintings in the late eighteenth century.