Women’s News | Kim Hyun Jung, the Woman Who Paints ‘Naesoong’

A woman in a beautiful hanbok lies half-reclined, her thigh exposed. Judging by the empty bowl of jjajangmyeon in one hand, she looks full. On top of a ramyeon box used in place of a table sit a heap of sweet-and-sour pork and dumplings. It looks far from the picture of a demure young lady. This is one of the paintings in the 'Naesoong' series by artist Kim Hyun Jung (26), known as the 'idol of Korean painting.' Her work set a complete sell-out record at the 'Naesoong Story' exhibition held last year at the Seoul Arts Center. An exhibition held in June at Gana Insa Art Center drew a record 3,451 visitors.

"When I looked it up in the dictionary, I found that 'naesoong' describes when a person's outside and inside are different. My work expresses the honest emotions and behavior hidden behind naesoong. At first, I began painting because I disliked how people's fronts and backs differed, but as I became my own model, my own likeness naturally emerged. Doesn't everyone have a bit of naesoong in them?"

She began learning to paint in third grade, and started painting on the theme of 'Naesoong' from her sophomore year majoring in Oriental Painting at Seoul National University. She has painted it in earnest for the past two years. She paints women in hanbok using ink-and-light-color technique, applying brightly colored hanji (traditional Korean paper) onto paintings rendered with a delicate brush. Her ideas come from everyday life. From an artist's life often spent working through the dawn and a thought that "I should exercise," came 'Naesoong Olympics.' The work depicts a 'naesoong girl' rock climbing, doing sit-ups, and playing billiards and golf.

"The idea came to me watching the older women exercising at the neighborhood park near my studio. I loved seeing people in different outfits with different faces, all absorbed in exercise. Until then, my only 'exercise' had been breathing, but thanks to them I started thinking I should exercise too."

She often wears hanbok. Whether attending outside events, giving lectures, or viewing exhibitions, she always insists on hanbok. As someone who paints hanbok, she felt she needed to understand its qualities well.

"My mother, who loved wearing hanbok, had a big influence on me. There were many family events where hanbok was worn often. I think you need to wear it often to truly capture its beauty in painting. In particular, the wide skirt of the hanbok is a secretive space. You can't tell if I'm standing with my weight shifted to one side underneath it. (laughs)"

Though noted as a promising young artist, she too, like any twenty-something, has had her share of worries about the future. "I wondered if being an artist meant going hungry. A senior who heard my worries told me to paint as diligently as a 'Samsung employee' works. Since then, I've painted more diligently than anyone else. Everyone carries some anxiety, but I hope people don't feel too crushed by it." She teaches at Anyang Arts High School, and often has conversations like this with her students, building common ground.

Her dream is to break down the barriers of art.

"It saddens me when people think art is 'difficult.' When you see a somewhat challenging painting, don't think of yourself as 'ignorant' or feel 'embarrassed.' If you keep looking and enjoying, you'll come to feel something, and eventually want to own the work. Going forward, rather than focusing on how I appear to others, I want to become an artist who expresses herself as honestly as possible, exactly as she feels."

Reporter Lee So-young, greensso@womennews.co.kr

[Photo caption] 'Naesoong: Life Is Beautiful' (left) and 'Pomsaengpomsa: A Chaste Woman.'

Written by — Lee So-yeong