[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] Pen drawing master Kim Young-taek passed away on the afternoon of the 13th due to a chronic illness. He was 76 years old.
The unfortunate news came while he was preparing for the 'Kim Young-taek Pen Drawing Exhibition,' organized by the Ghana Cultural Foundation and sponsored by the Cultural Heritage Trust. The Ghana Cultural Foundation announced on the 14th that the 'Kim Young-taek Pen Drawing Exhibition' will be held as scheduled from the 20th of this month to the 15th of next month at the Insa Art Center.
He expressed ancient architectural structures from Korea, Japan, and around the world with delicate pen strokes. Unlike the brush culture developed in Asia, including Korea and Japan, Western countries developed a pen culture, which allowed the advancement of documentary art. Inspired by this fact, he pioneered a new genre of 'documentary pen drawing' by drawing tens of thousands of fine lines with a 0.03mm pen tip to verify ancient architectural cultural heritage from Korea, Japan, Europe, and other parts of the world.
After graduating from the College of Fine Arts at Hongik University, he initially worked as a creative director at an advertising company. He founded Hongin Design Group and managed it for 20 years. In 1993, he was selected as one of the 54 'Design Ambassadors' awarded by the International Trademark Center (ITC), an international design organization, to the world's top designers. The following year, he participated as an invited artist at the 1st World Design Biennale held in Ostend, Belgium, hosted by ITC. During this time, he visited the Louvre Museum in France and was captivated by the pen drawings of the French painter and illustrator Gustave Dor? (1832?1883) depicting the Bible. Afterward, he left his business behind and lived as an artist. He did not adopt Western pen drawing techniques, which are fundamental to pen art, nor the Japanese techniques popular at the time, but consistently created his own uniquely Korean pen drawings.
Kim Young-taek 'Seoul Seokpajeong Yususeong Junggwanpungnu', India ink on Paper, 36x50cm Photo by Gana Cultural Foundation
Kim Young-taek 'Seoul Changgyeonggung Okcheon Bridge Dragon Face Statue', India ink on Paper, 36x50 cm [Photo by Gana Cultural Foundation]
He also serialized his works for over ten years in the JoongAng Ilbo under the title 'Kim Young-taek's Pen Drawing Journey.' Instead of drawing damaged architectural cultural heritage as they appeared, he restored them in his drawings, embedding the wisdom and value that can be felt from the ancestors' architecture into his works.
The 'Kim Young-taek Pen Drawing Exhibition' will display about 40 works, including over 10 pen drawings depicting Korean landscapes such as Seoul Cheonggyecheon Jongmyo Jeongjeon, Seokpajeong Yusu Seongjungwan Pungnu, Incheon Cheonggwan Paeru, Haenam Daeheungsa Muyeomji, and Japanese ancient architectural restoration works like Nara Horyuji Golden Hall and Five-story Pagoda, Osaka Castle, Kyoto Heian Shrine Taiheikaku, as well as world-famous sites such as Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy, France, the Roman Colosseum, and Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
The late artist's funeral is being held at the Incheon Cheonggiwa Funeral Hall. The funeral procession will take place on the morning of the 15th.
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