Ilche Yushimjo 一切唯心造 - Mongwoo Joseph Kim - 4F - 2017
Today’s featured masterpiece is Everything Is Created by the Mind 一切唯心造, painted by Mongwoo Joseph Kim in 2017.
Under a sky filled with countless stars, a man sits beneath a stone pagoda in the lotus position, quietly enjoying a cup of tea. As he does, the fragrance of spring flowers seems to flow down from the mountains toward him. During this period, the artist drank tea every day, and for him tea became much more than a simple beverage.
He titled this work Everything Is Created by the Mind because tea represented a state of mind, inspiration, purification, and spiritual practice. Earlier in life, he preferred sweet instant coffee and knew very little about traditional tea. Through museum directors and art collectors who owned his paintings, he was introduced to the culture of brewing green tea and Pu-erh tea with traditional teaware.
At first, the flavors seemed plain and unfamiliar. But over time, tea gradually quieted his restless thoughts and helped him look inward. Warming his body and mind, it also warmed his spirit. In those peaceful moments, he found it easier to forgive, understand, and embrace both himself and others.
The pagoda in the painting carries its own symbolic meaning. It recalls the legend of Princess Heo Hwang-ok from the ancient Indian kingdom of Ayuta, who sailed to Korea to marry King Suro. When violent winds threatened her voyage, a stone pagoda placed upside down on the ship was said to calm the sea. It later became known as the Wind-Calming Pagoda.
For the artist, that pagoda represents the inner strength to calm our own emotional storms. When life shakes us like waves upon the sea, true peace comes from building a wind-calming pagoda within our hearts. The stars symbolize joyful blessings, the falling petals represent grace, the seated figure reflects inner balance, and the tea expresses the richness of a life lived with calm appreciation.
#MongwooJosephKim #EverythingIsCreatedByTheMind #TeaMeditation #KoreanArt #ContemporaryArt #InnerPeace #ZenArt #MongrimdangGallery
Under a sky filled with countless stars, a man sits beneath a stone pagoda in the lotus position, quietly enjoying a cup of tea. As he does, the fragrance of spring flowers seems to flow down from the mountains toward him. During this period, the artist drank tea every day, and for him tea became much more than a simple beverage.
He titled this work Everything Is Created by the Mind because tea represented a state of mind, inspiration, purification, and spiritual practice. Earlier in life, he preferred sweet instant coffee and knew very little about traditional tea. Through museum directors and art collectors who owned his paintings, he was introduced to the culture of brewing green tea and Pu-erh tea with traditional teaware.
At first, the flavors seemed plain and unfamiliar. But over time, tea gradually quieted his restless thoughts and helped him look inward. Warming his body and mind, it also warmed his spirit. In those peaceful moments, he found it easier to forgive, understand, and embrace both himself and others.
The pagoda in the painting carries its own symbolic meaning. It recalls the legend of Princess Heo Hwang-ok from the ancient Indian kingdom of Ayuta, who sailed to Korea to marry King Suro. When violent winds threatened her voyage, a stone pagoda placed upside down on the ship was said to calm the sea. It later became known as the Wind-Calming Pagoda.
For the artist, that pagoda represents the inner strength to calm our own emotional storms. When life shakes us like waves upon the sea, true peace comes from building a wind-calming pagoda within our hearts. The stars symbolize joyful blessings, the falling petals represent grace, the seated figure reflects inner balance, and the tea expresses the richness of a life lived with calm appreciation.
#MongwooJosephKim #EverythingIsCreatedByTheMind #TeaMeditation #KoreanArt #ContemporaryArt #InnerPeace #ZenArt #MongrimdangGallery
