Canvas - Rocks in the Sea from Changdeokgung Palace

Rocks in the Sea, Panoramic View of Chongseokjeong (총석정 절경도)

• Kim Gyu-jin | 1920 | Color on silk
• 195.5 × 882.5 cm | Nationally Registered Cultural Heritage

This mural decorated the eastern wall of the Huijeongdang Hall in Changdeokgung Palace in Seoul, South Korea. In a panoramic format, it depicts the scenic pavilion Chongseokjeong and the spectacular coastal landscape surrounding it in Tongcheon, in present-day Gangwon-do Province. Chongseokjeong is considered one of the Eight Famous Scenic Views of Gwandong (관동팔경).

Unlike most older depictions of Chongseokjeong, in which the landscape is viewed from land toward the sea, Kim Gyu-jin chose an unusual perspective here: The viewer is on the sea, looking toward the land. A calm expanse of water stretches across the foreground. In the background, the bizarre rock cliffs of Chongseok are arranged side by side in a largely horizontal formation.

This composition corresponds to the perspective of a photograph of Chongseokjeong published in 1913 in the “Geumgangsan Photo Album” (조선금강산사진첩). It can therefore be assumed that Kim Gyu-jin (1868–1933) may have used this photograph as a model or reference.

Kim Gyu-jin was an artist with extensive knowledge of the Geumgangsan Mountains and personal experience of the area. In 1919, he published a series in a newspaper titled “Sketches of Geumgangsan”. After being commissioned in June 1920 to create the murals for Huijeongdang Hall, he traveled to the region again to observe and sketch the landscape directly on site.

To obtain an especially accurate view of Chongseokjeong as a whole, he even ventured out to sea by boat to observe the rock formations from a greater distance. Drafts and a handwritten inscription by the artist from this working process have survived. As a result, the painting’s history of creation can now be reconstructed with relative precision.

While traditional court painting often repeated symbolic motifs and established pictorial forms, “Panoramic View of Chongseokjeong” follows the tradition of realistic landscape painting (실경산수화) more closely. The actual landscape is rendered as accurately and vividly as possible.

The work also combines traditional elements with modern influences in its painting style and representational techniques. The mountain in the background, depicted in the style of blue-green landscape painting (청록산수화), the schematically rendered waves, and the densely placed dots on the rock faces reveal the decorative character of traditional court painting.

At the same time, gray-brown and gray-blue tones, extremely fine lines, and distinct contrasts of light and dark are used for the Chongseok rocks, as well as the clouds and waves. This gives the depicted forms greater three-dimensionality and a more realistic appearance. These features demonstrate the influence of Western painting techniques, which were increasingly adopted in modern Korean art.

The bizarre rock cliffs of Chongseok stretch across the pictorial surface like a massive curtain of stone and dominate the entire composition. The precise linework and contrasts between the different hues vividly convey the structure, surface, and texture of the individual rocks.

The title “총석정 절경도” (“The Magnificent Landscape of Chongseokjeong”) appears in the upper left of the composition **. Beside it are the ink-written signature “김규진근사” (“Carefully painted by Kim Gyu-jin”) and his seal.

This handwritten signature and personal identification of the work reflect an important shift in modern Korean painting: While the individual artist often receded into the background in traditional court art, the artist’s personal presence and identity became increasingly important in modern painting.