IF JESUS HAD BEEN KOREAN by Woon Bo aka Kim Ki Chang.

Unul dintre cei mai importanți pictori moderni coreeni este Kim Ki Chang. A avut mai multe perioade în activitatea lui de pictor, de aceea mie mi-e destul de greu să recunosc tablourile sale. Una dintre perioade a fost religioasă, a pictat cam 30 de tablouri pe această temă, 20 dintre ele fiind cuprinse într-o serie intitulată ”Dacă Iisus ar fi fost coreean”

I found some biography data...

”Kim Ki-Chang was born in Seoul in 1914. At the age of 7 he suffered from typhoid fever and, following poor treatment, lost his hearing ability and was half mute for the rest of his life. At 17, he studied under the painter Idang Kim-Eun-Ho, and exhibited his first work six months later.

His artistic evolution can be divided into five periods: realism, religious painting, social landscapes, abstraction and, in his own words, "idiot" landscapes.

Kim Ki-Chang's first works date from the 1930s. During this period he painted in a traditional oriental style and mostly focused on the expressions of his Korean figures. He started moving towards Impressionism and Symbolism in the 1940s but, at the start of the 1950s, turned towards religious painting, after having an apparition of Christ during his dreams. In the second half of that decade he moved away from his religious works and began a more abstract period, during which he created works like the Mou-ak at UNESCO. Kim Ki-Chang passed away in 2001.”

Source http://www.unesco.org/artcollection/NavigationAction.do?idOeuvre=2955

Kim Ki Chan s-a născut în Seul în 1914. La vârsta de 7 ani a suferit de febră tifoidă și din cauză că nu a fost tratat cum trebuie a rămas surd și pe jumătate mut tot restul vieții. La 17 ani a studiat cu pictorul  Idang Kim-Eun-Ho și a expus primele sale tablouri câteva luni mai târziu.

Evoluția sa artistică poate fi divizată în cinci perioade: realism, pictură religioasă, peisaje sociale, abstractă și, după propria lui expresie ”peisaje idioate”

Primele lucrări ale lui kim Kim Chang datează din 1930 (la coreeni se consideră că un copil a împlinit un an de la naștere dacă această dată e înainte de Anul Nou Lunar). În această perioadă a pictat în stil oriental tradițional și s-a concentrat mai ales pe expresiile figurilor coreene. În 1940 a început să se îndrepte spre Impresionism și Simbolism dar, la începutul lui 1950 a început să se îndrepte spre pictura religioasă, după ce i-a apărut Hristos în vis. La jumătatea acelei periaode a părăsit subiectele religioase și aînceput o perioadă mai abstractă când a creat lucrări ca Mou-Ak aflată la sediul UNESCO. Kim Ki Chang a murit în 2001.

Mou Ak UNESCO                            
                                 IF JESUS HAD BEEN KOREAN   

01. Anunciation.

02.  Nativity

03.  Adoration of Magi

04. Flight in Egipt

05. The Baptize of Jesus

06. Jesus calls his first disciples

07. The feeding of the 5000

08. Jesus walks on water

09.Jesus and the woman caught in adultery

10. Woman washes Jesus’ feet with her tears

11. Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem

12. Jesus’ agony in the garden of Gethsemene

13.The Last Supper

14. Jesus’ trial before Pilate

15. Jesus is scourged at the pillar

16. Jesus carries his cross

17. The Crucifixion

 18. Jesus’ body is taken to the tomb

19. The Resurrection

 20. The Ascension

Descrierea tabloului Mou -Ak...E în engleză, nu mai traduc...E vorba de reprezentarea abstractă a mai multor dansuri tradiționale coreene.

This painting, although a figurative work, was created during Kim Ki-Chang's abstract period, in the second half of the 1950s. During this period, the artist painted a series of works dedicated to the kummando and masked dances, his thick, expressive brushstrokes taking on more of an abstract significance rather than specific form and movement. In its representation of a traditional dance, Mou-Ak is hence more of an illustration that groups together characteristics stemming from various traditional Korean dances.

Korean dance can be divided into three categories: the traditional court dance, modern dance and traditional folk or ritual dance. The latter includes two very popular dances, among which the farmer's dance (Samulnori), accompanied by drums. The soloists for this dance traditionally wear hats from which flow long, white silk ribbons; these ribbons are depicted here above the figure. Another popular traditional dance is the 'masked dance', or pansan, which is a satire of society. Kim Ki-Chang also refers to this dance in Mou-Ak, thanks to the mask drawn in the lower left section. Lastly, the Buchae-chum, or dance of the fans, is represented here; it is traditionally the last dance at shows.

Traditional dances have a very festive connotation, which Kim Ki-chang expressed here through his use of color and the figure's posture. Despite the multitude of color the painting remains harmonious and, aided by the artist's simple, expressive lines, gives off an impression of joie de vivre.