개인의 취향：조선 후기 미술후원과 김광국의 회화비평

Abstract

Kim Gwang-guk (1727~1797), an art collector of middle-class jungin status, was a critic-patron who brought greater value to Joseon painting. He belonged to what is known as the third period of Korean art criticism, in the 17th and 19th centuries, a time of exposure to Ming and Qing art and Western influence. He was fond of the arts of literati from Seoul and the adjacent Gyeonggi region, and fascinated by Yuan and Ming scholarly trends. He located the value of painting in the theory of the Southern and Northern schools (南北宗論), yipin (逸品), moxi (墨戱) and the “Three Perfections” (詩書畵三絶), using items in his own collection to testify to the development of Joseon literati painting and the richness of the art world in his day. Kim claimed to admire 18th century literati artists such as Jeong Seon, Sim Sa-jeong, Jo Yeong-seok and Gang Se-hwang, great painters in the landscapes, genre paintings and Four Gentlemen styles, who had continued a Joseon tradition of literati painting that began with Gang Hui-an in the time of An Gyeon and was inherited by Kim Jeong, Sin Saimdang, Yi Jeong and Jo Seok. Yun Deok-hui, Kim Yun-gyeom, Yi Yun-yeong and Yi In-sang were adding new ground to the world of literati painting with their outstanding talents at this time, while Kim Eung-hwan and Kim Hong-do also fell into this category. Kim Gwang-guk elevated the status of these artists to a par with the great masters of Chinese literati painting. By passing on the rich world he enjoyed to future generations, he tried to broaden the experience of Koreans and to instill a sense of nostalgia for the great artists of his time. These actions, the products of personal taste, became the basis for discussing the history of Korean painting. The range of works he collected, his preference for paintings of his own time and his pursuit of Joseon literati paintings are surprisingly close to Joseon art historical narratives today. I hope that thorough research will eventually rescue his image and significance from the obscurity in which they have languished for so long.