성호 이익의 실학적 회화미학

Abstract

Study of Seongho Yi Ik (1681～1763) is truly extensive and profound. This thesis is to develop Seongho’s realist epistemology as a scholar of the Realist School of Confucianism (Silhak) and pragmatic painting theory based on his epistemology. Seongho’s epistemology considers that Xing (性) is an inborn attribute within Hyeonggi (形氣, human’s external shape and spirit) by differentiating Xing (性) and Li (理) and that one’s life is of publicness and virtue while Hyeonggi is of privateness and both virtue and vice. Art from his perspective, therefore, is to express virtue with public nature of Li. In addition, he differentiated Li and Xing and newly reinforced functions of mind (心) which replaces Xing even without giving Xing’s presiding role. Seongho’s such thinking acts as one factor to form painting aesthetics. Seongho’s painting spirit puts emphasis on expression’s visual effect with candid description of real landscape. That formative sense of his was to overcome negative effects incurred due to stress on expressing one’s inner feelings. Even though he did not deny the expression of inner feelings itself, he was deeply negative to a point that it is against an object’s true shape. Such imitating spirit worked as a chance of self-reflection on imitative and conceptual idiom. Seongho regards painting as a means of order to reach the realm of Confucian ethics (入道次第). That he was interested in Muido (武夷圖) and Dosando (陶山圖) with Xhu xi’s and Toegye’s vows means that Xhu xi and Toegye were of equivalent status to him and that Seongho expressed respect for their studies as well. Seongho’s painting aesthetics can be considered as relative values based on Confucian ideas rather than ones on painting itself.