KOREA FOUNDATION

What kind of image comes to your mind when you hear the word banishment? You would usually picture a person who, having been forced to leave their family and friends, is struggling hard to lead an isolated life somewhere remote. Since the olden times, Jeju Island has been one of the most notorious destinations for banished people, including more than a few well-known figures.

King Gwanghaegun of the Joseon Dynasty was deposed in a coup d’état dubbed the Injo Banjeong, or Injo Restoration, and was forced to move from one place to another through Taean, Ganghwa Island, and other areas before finally settling on Jeju Island. As his official name, Gwanghae, denotes, he was the first Joseon monarch who sailed through the “sea of light” to set foot on Jeju and led an exiled life under his birth name Yi Hon. For four years until his death on July 1, 1641, by the lunar calendar, he lived in detention in a house surrounded by thorns as required by the wirianchi punishment to which he was sentenced. Every year, around the anniversary of Gwanghae’s death, Jeju often experiences heavy rainfall; people called this gwanghae-u, meaning “Gwanghae rain.”

Kim Jeong-hui’s Sehando (Winter Scene). Painted in 1844. 23.9ⅹ70.4 cm, Total width: 1469.6 cm. Length: 33.6 cm. Diameter: 2.0 cm. / Courtesy of the National Museum of Korea.

Kim Jeong-hui, widely known by his pen name, Chusa, was one of the most famous artists forced into exile. Born to a prestigious family, he lived a life of envy but was suddenly branded a rebel. He spent some nine years in Jeju, turning the time of ordeal into the pinnacle of his artistic career. While on the southern island, he completed his masterpiece Sehando (Winter Scene) and developed his own style of ink writing, called Chusache. Kim painted Sehando as a present to Yi Sang-jeok, one of his students. Working as a government interpreter, Yi often went to China as a government envoy, and each time he went there, he collected rare books and delivered them to Kim after returning home. Kim was deeply touched by the thoughtful gifts and expressed appreciation through the painting of a pine tree and a cone pine tree, both conifers that remain green even during cold winters. On the right of the trees, he left a seal reading “Jangmusangmang,” meaning “Let’s not forget each other forever.”

For those in exile, the endurance to beat the pain of forced isolation came from their families and friends who cared for them despite their degradation, and from artistic and academic pursuits. The Joseon-style punishment of exile is no longer in effect, but the lives of those in exile still give us wisdom and consolation as we face difficult moments in our lives. Nowadays, with social distancing having become a new normal, how about sending our wish for “Jangmusangmang” to friends and relatives? Or, we could keep the wish in our hearts and indulge in reading books, listening to music, and appreciating paintings at home.

Written by Woo Jiwon, Senior Program Officer, KF Arts and Culture Department

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