Today Is the Greatest Gift - Mongwoo Joseph Kim, Landscape 山水 (Serenity, Gift)
Today’s masterpiece is Landscape 山水 (Serenity, Gift), painted by Mongwoo Joseph Kim in 2018.
The gentle green mountains and blooming flowers resemble a lost paradise from an ancient legend, a place where only peace and happiness remain. At the bottom of the painting, colorful lines inspired by Na Tae-joo’s poem Gift appear across the canvas.
The poem tells us that the greatest gift we receive beneath the sky is today. Deeply moved by this idea, the artist transformed the emotion of gratitude into a landscape filled with light, flowers, and quiet joy.
This work belongs to a distinctive series of landscapes that Mongwoo began developing in middle age. After experiencing a long period of obscurity and many difficulties in life, he often went outside and quietly looked toward the distant mountains. Their stillness seemed to comfort him, as if they were saying that his troubles were not as overwhelming as they appeared.
From the height of a mountain, human anger, hatred, fear, and disappointment all seem small. The mountains remain calm while our emotions constantly rise and fall.
Mongwoo therefore began painting mountains as a way to settle the movement of his own heart. His earlier mountains were powerful and dramatic, but over time they became warmer, softer, and more peaceful.
Look closely and you may notice the form of a whale hidden within the mountain. It reinterprets the final image of Na Tae-joo’s poem, the joy of embracing an entire sea.
By accepting today as a gift, the artist discovers a place where pain loses its power and serenity begins.
#MongwooJosephKim #LandscapePainting #KoreanArt #ContemporaryArt #Serenity #GiftOfToday #MountainPainting #MongrimdangGallery
The gentle green mountains and blooming flowers resemble a lost paradise from an ancient legend, a place where only peace and happiness remain. At the bottom of the painting, colorful lines inspired by Na Tae-joo’s poem Gift appear across the canvas.
The poem tells us that the greatest gift we receive beneath the sky is today. Deeply moved by this idea, the artist transformed the emotion of gratitude into a landscape filled with light, flowers, and quiet joy.
This work belongs to a distinctive series of landscapes that Mongwoo began developing in middle age. After experiencing a long period of obscurity and many difficulties in life, he often went outside and quietly looked toward the distant mountains. Their stillness seemed to comfort him, as if they were saying that his troubles were not as overwhelming as they appeared.
From the height of a mountain, human anger, hatred, fear, and disappointment all seem small. The mountains remain calm while our emotions constantly rise and fall.
Mongwoo therefore began painting mountains as a way to settle the movement of his own heart. His earlier mountains were powerful and dramatic, but over time they became warmer, softer, and more peaceful.
Look closely and you may notice the form of a whale hidden within the mountain. It reinterprets the final image of Na Tae-joo’s poem, the joy of embracing an entire sea.
By accepting today as a gift, the artist discovers a place where pain loses its power and serenity begins.
#MongwooJosephKim #LandscapePainting #KoreanArt #ContemporaryArt #Serenity #GiftOfToday #MountainPainting #MongrimdangGallery
