[One Thousand Characters a Day] Jeong Yeoul's 'Art Museum Only for Me' <4>

Editor's Note“I do not provide commentary. I do not analyze logically. I only wanted to write about the complete feeling at the moment when art speaks to me.” The paintings in ＜A Museum Just for Me＞ were carefully selected by writer Jeong Yeoul based on her own criteria: ‘paintings I want to hang nearby and look at whenever I need inspiration and hope for life, a heart that wants to love, and the courage to live tomorrow,’ rather than their art historical significance. She opens the door to dialogue by honestly and bravely sharing personal wounds, pain, and healing experiences along with the stories behind the paintings. Through each painting filled with the joys and sorrows of life, we can read every moment of life. Word count: 1110 characters.

‘Reading and writing’ was an interesting and precious experience, unlike the rigid study for entrance exams. Back then, printed media were not as abundant as they are now, so encountering texts outside of textbooks was a much more fascinating experience than it is today. However, now that I am exposed to far more texts and images than before, I somehow feel that I am losing the ‘power of words.’

Reading poet Hwang Insuk’s ＜The Power of Words＞ makes me reflect on how I am forgetting the power of each word and each sentence. Yes, pleasant words are simple and humble. Blue, white, clean, fresh, crisp, thrilling, refreshing, sweet, cozy. Ice cream, ice, wind, aah, loving, precious, running, rain! I had been forgetting the solid texture of these transparent words that contain primitive experiences. That’s right, pleasant words should not just be read with the eyes but pronounced aloud one by one.

It is precisely by slowly stroking, biting, chewing, and licking each printed word that tactile pleasure arises, and I had long forgotten this. Watching how people in the past read and wrote revives the simple ‘joy of tasting printed letters’ that had been forgotten long ago. I want to cherish the countless texts we encounter every day with more affection.

Habriel Meshu, , 1662-1665, National Gallery of Ireland

In this painting by Meshu, the ‘joy of writing’ is fully expressed. The man writing a letter naturally blends with all the objects around him. The pen he holds in his right hand, the letter paper he touches with his left, the chair he sits on, the hat hanging on the chair, the desk he leans on, the Persian rug spread out lavishly on the desk, the silver writing set, and even the huge globe visible behind the window?all seem to say, ‘This is who I am.’

He could be a merchant or a scientist, or a passionate young man interested in scholarship and art. But more importantly, he appears to genuinely enjoy ‘reading and writing.’ The joy of reading, writing, studying, and understanding is a vital driving force that sustains life. An always open mind toward something new is what saves us from boredom and monotony.

- Jeong Yeoul, ＜A Museum Just for Me＞, Woongjin Knowledge House, 19,000 KRW