The Glory of the Sea

Painter Park’s oils show passion for the mythical nature of the sea as the ultimate provider for humans

Painter Park Jin-yong, well-known for his paintings related to the ocean and an artistic supporter of the Yeosu World Expo 2012, held an exhibition of his ocean paintings on May 31 in the lobby of ASEM Hall of COEX in southern Seoul to commemorate the 15th Marine Day and also to wish for the success of the upcoming world expo in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province.
Minister Chung Jong-hwan of the Ministry of Land, Transportation and Maritime Affairs, in his congratulatory statement for the exhibition, said, “We really are honored to see many of Park’s sensational artwork featuring the ocean on display, whose main themes consist of the marine environment and sea life, which he has dealt with throughout his entire artistic career.”
Harmony between humans and the ocean appear in his masterpieces, which reflect the artist’s life and his love for the sea, often touching the emotions of his fans. His masterpieces will also leave deep impressions on viewers long after the exhibition, the minister said.
“We highly value the marine environment and should tend toward the sustained development of marine resources. Through his work, we expect people to be reminded of their passion for improving the marine environment and its resources. We also look forward to enjoying painter Park’s artistic efforts,” he said.
Park has a unique background for an artist, picking up painting during his more than 30 year career as a seaman. He exhibited about 20 of his masterpieces, all dealing with the ocean and doused with his love of the sea and his future hopes.
Park made a trip to Tahiti in the South Pacific to feel the traces of Gauguin, who painted his artwork on the scenic island, becoming the first Korean to ever visit the famed island ― even before painter Chun Kyung-ja set foot on the island some 40 years ago. Park truly wants the Yeosu World Expo to be a huge success as it features the ocean as one of its themes.
Critics said his artwork shown at the exhibition should show visitors, especially foreign visitors, the artistic quality and creativity of Korean artwork, as most of the pieces include shells, seaweed, fish, and other things that come from the sea all mixed nicely in his oil work, showing off the vitality of the ocean and sensations that can only be had from the sea.
Dr. Chung In-young, who is also an art critic, said in his commentary on Park that his artwork celebrated Ocean Day with the many shapes and images of the sea as he saw them during his years at sea as an ocean guard. The underlying reason for the exhibition was to show that although the sea is sometimes regarded with a mixture of awe and fear, it is essentially the final report of the human food chain, the art critique noted.
Also, the exhibition wanted to show how the sea represents human nostalgia for its truth and beauty. Thus, when you look at his work thoroughly, you can catch the beautiful color and composition inspired by the sea. In other words, the work seem to represent the survival rules of the ocean with reality and abstraction, though it is hard to say that we can deliver the ocean’s beauty in a completely identical way.
“There are various living organisms, infinite dots and lines, object of shells, and fantastically mingled colors. Of course, I am not saying that the sea is much more beautiful than land, because art is a kind of symbol that cannot be delivered through talks or experimental analysis,” Chung said.
“For example, big fish feed on small fish and the small fish feed on plankton. When the big fish are dead, they become the plankton again. There are principles of thesis, anti-thesis, and synthesis in his work. The sea doesn’t lie. It is not for herself that the sea has waves and fearful surges and winds. Park expresses these components in his own artistic language. I believe these reasons are what mesmerizes him and makes him wander around the sea with his tool kit on his back even in his sixties,” Chung said.
“Anyhow,” Chung said, “I hope Park’s artistic understanding will be well delivered to his audience, glorifying his nickname as the one and only ocean painter.” nw

To the Sea and Future 09-2

To the Sea and Future 09-3

Sailing to the Future 09-2

Relationship Between Nature and Humans 07-11

Painter Park Jin-yong