Image of Kumgang Mountains (Geumgangsan) in Korean fine arts: tradition and modernity

В статье исследуются особенности корейской пейзажной живописи, развитие которой с начала XVIII века оказывается неразрывно связано со знаменитой горной цепью Корейского полуострова Кымгансан. Утвердившись как центральный образ в пейзажах «подлинного вида», горы Кымган со временем приобретают значение не только художественного феномена, но и знакового национального символа родной земли в корейском культурном сознании, оставаясь для художников воплощением естественных красот и сплетением разнообразной символики. Цель статьи — определить значимость образа гор Кымган в корейском изобразительном искусстве как выразителя национальной самобытности искусства Кореи и хранителя художественно-ценностных традиций. В статье изложен анализ произведений корейских художников с XVIII столетия и до наших дней. Исследуются произведения ряда современных северокорейских и южнокорейских художников, чьи работы, разные по стилю и технике исполнения, объединяет единство мировосприятия гор Кымган как духовного источника, репрезентируя стремление к этнической аутентичности, возрождение традиций и выражение патриотизма в современном искусстве Республики Корея и КНДР. Предлагается обзор тенденций в корейском изобразительном искусстве, где в данном образе проявился национальный подход, натурное видение природы родной страны и творческое переосмысление открытий великих корейских пейзажистов в контексте адаптации новых художественно-выразительных особенностей в рамках традиционной системы дальневосточной живописи тушью и творческих экспериментов с разнообразными техниками. В заключение делается вывод о важности художественного образа гор Кымган, который, утвердившись в корейском пейзаже в XVIII веке, стал прочной основой для развития корейской живописи современного периода, демонстрируя не только приверженность традициям, но и способность к новациям как в приобретении новых символических оттенков в его прочтении, так и в расширении творческих поисков для выражения его эстетического идеала в картине мира современности. The article examines the features of Korean landscape painting, the development of which since the beginning of the 18th century is inextricably linked with the famous mountain range of the Korean Peninsula Kumgangsan (Diamond Mountains). Having established itself as the central image in landscapes of “true appearance”, the Kumgang Mountains over time acquire the significance of not only an artistic phenomenon, but also an iconic national symbol of the native land in the Korean cultural consciousness, remaining for artists the embodiment of natural beauties and the interweaving of various symbols. The purpose of the article is to determine the significance of the image of the Kumgang Mountains in Korean fine art of past and present eras, as an exponent of the national identity of Korean art and a keeper of artistic value traditions. The main objective of the article is to study the image of the Kumgang Mountains based on the analysis of the works of Korean artists from the 18th century to the present day, with the definition of its role and place in the contemporary fine arts of Korea. The article analyzes the works of a number of modern North Korean and South Korean artists, different in style and technique of execution, but similar in perception of the Kumgang mountains as a spiritual source, representing the desire for ethnic authenticity, the revival of traditions and the expression of patriotism in contemporary art of the Republic of Korea and the DPRK. The article provides an overview of trends in Korean painting, where this image manifests a national approach, a natural vision of the native country and a creative rethinking of the discoveries of the great Korean landscape painters in the context of adapting new artistic and expressive features within the traditional system of Far Eastern ink painting and creative experiments with various techniques. It is concluded that the artistic image of the Kumgang mountains is important as it has established itself in the Korean landscape in the 18th century, and become a solid foundation for the development of Korean painting in the modern period, demonstrating not only adherence to traditions, but also the ability to innovate, both in acquiring new symbolic shades, and expanding artistic and expressive means to display its aesthetic ideal in the picture of the world of our time.

Artists in Korea

A Korean idol group “BTS” made history with its tenth week at No. 1 on the Billboard Artist 100 Chart. Dramatic developments in the music industry of Korea demonstrate how important it is for artists to enjoy freedom of expression and economic incentives like copyright. Although both freedom and copyright are ideas imported from the West, Korean artists have absorbed them quite differently than Westerners. Even as artistic freedom is taken for granted in the West, individual artists in Korea seriously fought for and achieved that same freedom. Korean artists have also realized that the theory of Western copyright law does not apply well in Korea in reality. Despite increasingly strong protection of copyright, the status of Korean artists has not improved much in either copyright law or reality. Although much of Korean music and film is well-known around the world, it is not widely known that some Korean artists have become victims of unfair contracts. While Korea’s Internet technology impressed the world with its speed, Korean artists and fans turned out to be another victim on the Internet. Copyright trolls also demonstrate how different the Korean art industry is from the Western one.