운양 김윤식의 서화 감상과 미술 활동

Abstract

This essay discusses the artistic activities and the aesthetics of “Unyang” Kim Yun-shik, who was a high-ranking official in the Korean government in the last years of the Joseon Empire. Having studied and mastered the characteristics of drawings and paintings of all genres and eras in China, Korea, and Japan, Kim left his critical remarks in poems and proses. The art works he critiqued can be mainly divided between the older art works dating back to periods prior to the 20thcentury, and the contemporary art works that were created during Japanese occupation. Kim’s remarks regarding the for mere vince a certain kind of pride in takes in being an heir to the learned culture and tradition of Joseon. Kim’s remarks regarding the latter reflect the intellectual's growing interest in the modern civilization and his role in the cultural diplomacy between Korea and JapanKim was favored as an advisor on a number of organizations of artists, and also actively served as a father figure in the art community in Korea, organizing exhibitions of paintings himself. Kim's critical works and aesthetics show both a conservative attachment to tradition and an open and active embrace of new contemporary artistic trends. Most importantly, the support he provided for the foundation of artistic research institutions in the first two decades of the 20thcentury paved grounds for modern art education in Korea. The poems and proses Kim wrote upon encountering and appreciating artworks are therefore not mere reviews, but embody the unique perspective of a learned man with strong backgrounds in the classics and history and undergoing an unprecedentedly tumultuous time.