The Sea Scenery That Discloses Our Own World
Kim Lee Cheon, Art Journalist
The sea is often compared to the mother’s womb. The Chinese word which means the sea is made of two characters; the water(?) and the thick grass that contains the figure of a mother wearing an long ornamental hairpin. In French, the word of mother (Mère) and the word of sea (Mer) have not only similar spellings but also the same pronunciation. Therefore, the sea embraces the image of the mother who conceives and rears a baby and who forgives and tolerates everything for her child. In this context, Simcheong, the heroine of the traditional Korean story, came back to life after falling into the sea of ‘Indangsu,’ and Venus (or Aphrodite), the goddess of love, was born in the sea.
Moreover, the close relationship between the sea and the mother has been scientifically proven; the first life cells were emerged on the earth two billion years ago. They were formed in the sea water which had ingredients similar to the amniotic fluid in the mother’s womb. On the other hand, the ancient origin of human race was known as Pikaia of a chordate which had neither shell nor spines to protect their own body. They were chased by Nautilus of the notorious predators in the sea, and then they have been evolved to fish, amphibians, reptiles and finally mammals in which human beings are included.
Yun, Woo Seung has been painting the fish in the sea that conceives and rears lives like the mother’s womb. He reflects his daily lives and himself on the canvas drawing the fish swimming freely and dynamically in the sea. They mingle in the anonymous crowd and lead a peaceful life trusting in provision of nature. They are ordinary social existences.
The artist does not illuminate the dark side of the modern society suffering from division and confusion. On the contrary, he looks enviously at ancient scholars hanging loose and draws the elegant fish swimming in the broad sea. Against this backdrop, his blue sea reminds us of the utopia filled with peach trees, which was dreamed of by Anpyeong Prince (who was a literary man admired by the public and was killed by his elder brother, King Sejo) and then drawn by the legendary Korean artist Gyeon Ahn. The viewers in this exhibition will be delighted to discover the peaceful paradise in which numerous lives are born and nursed.
The fantastic illusion of monotone all-over painting and repeated realistic images makes a fresh and beautiful impression. Yun’s artworks on the scenery of the blue sea will satiate the viewers with the mystical monotone color, the panoramic images of fish, mother’s boundless and blind love, the spirit of the ancient scholars living free from worldly cares, and the peace in the natural world.
