[In-Depth Look] The True Value of 'Sehando'

Ham Hyeri / Journalist · Cultural Critic

The power of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) shows no signs of waning, and with the fatigue reaching its peak due to the rainy season followed by typhoons, I recently received some heartwarming news after a long time.

It was news that Chusa Kim Jeong-hui’s Sehando has returned to the people. It was revealed through the media that Son Chang-geun (91), the owner, who had been depositing the National Treasure No. 180 Sehando at the National Museum of Korea since 2011, donated it to the museum earlier this year.

Mr. Son is the eldest son of Son Se-gi (1903?1983), a businessman from Kaesong. In November 2018, he donated 202 cases and 304 pieces of the “Son Se-gi & Son Chang-geun Collection,” which he inherited from his father and collected himself, to the National Museum of Korea. This included precious cultural assets collected through frugality, such as the first edition of the Korean book Yongbieocheonga (1447) and Chusa’s Buliseonrando. He had initially deposited these twice, in 2005 and 2011, before finally donating them.

However, the Sehando was maintained in the form of a deposit until now. This may be because of his father’s deep attachment to the piece. It is said that he cherished this work so much that “even on difficult days, when I open the Sehando, all worries disappear in an instant.”

I reflected again on where the value of Sehando, considered the greatest masterpiece of Joseon Dynasty literati painting, comes from. As is well known, this work was gifted by Chusa to his disciple Lee Sang-jeok during his exile in Jeju Island in 1844. The painting is simple, centered on a humble rural house with one window, flanked symmetrically by pine and nut pines. One might think it easy to replicate. However, the reason Sehando is regarded as a great work transcending time is not the visible painting itself but the noble spirit contained within it.

The term “Sehan” comes from the Analects, chapter Zi Han (子罕). It means “Only after the cold season do we know that pine and nut pines wither late.” Chusa, counted among the three greatest geniuses of Joseon and once flourishing, was exiled late in life to a remote island. Many severed ties with him, but his disciple Lee Sang-jeok was different. Moved by Lee’s frequent trips to China as an interpreter to obtain rare inscriptions and books for his master, Chusa wrote and painted this work.

The old pine represents Chusa himself, and the disciple Lee Sang-jeok is the nut pine that retained its greenness until the end. The dry ink and rough brushstrokes (galpil) express the physical and mental hardships and desolation faced by Chusa, who was over 59 years old at the time. The theme and expression harmonize to condense a high level of artistic energy. At the lower right of the work, Chusa stamped a red seal with the phrase Jangmusangmang (長毋相忘), meaning “Let us never forget each other for a long time.” Chusa aimed for the unity of scholarship and art. How could it be so perfect from beginning to end?

Lee Sang-jeok showed this work to Qing Dynasty literati during his diplomatic missions. They also highly valued the loyalty between master and disciple and wrote appreciation texts. The painting, measuring 69.2 cm wide and 23 cm high, became a scroll over 10 meters long with appreciation writings by 16 Qing dignitaries as well as by Oh Se-chang and Jeong In-bo.

The many efforts and stories of people who ensured Sehando safely arrived at the National Museum of Korea further enhance the value of this work. After Lee Sang-jeok’s death, the painting passed through his disciple Kim Byeong-seon and son Kim Jun-hak, then to Min Young-hwi and his descendants, before being acquired at auction by Japanese Chusa researcher Fujitsuka Chikashi. In 1944, calligrapher Son Jae-hyung persuaded Fujitsuka to bring it from Japan to Korea. Despite Fujitsuka’s refusal to sell, Son visited daily for two months like a formal greeting, and Fujitsuka finally handed over Sehando without compensation, saying “You deserve to keep Sehando.” Later, when Son Jae-hyung needed money after entering politics, he mortgaged and eventually auctioned the painting, at which time Son Se-gi purchased it.

Son Se-gi, from Kaesong and a devoted lover of cultural assets, donated 200 pieces of old books and paintings he collected to Sogang University in 1974. Son Chang-geun continued his father’s spirit of sharing. He donated 100 million won for research to the National Museum of Korea Association (2008), gifted 2 million pyeong (approximately 6.6 million square meters) of forest in Yongin that he personally planted and nurtured for 50 years to the nation (2012), and in 2017, in memory of his mother Misuyeon, donated buildings worth 5 billion won and 100 million won for research to KAIST. The National Museum of Korea is planning an exhibition showcasing Sehando around November. In these turbulent and chaotic times, there is much we must reflect on before this work.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.