Photo Exhibition of 'Lighthouse and Territorial Sea Markers' by National Language, Math, and English Island Culture Exploration Writer

'Lighthouse, the Earnest Name I Call'

At Sansok Lighthouse Art Museum, Until the 27th of Next Month

"Lighthouse is a Memory, Spreading Wings to the Island"

"Deungdaeseom boldly shakes off the familiar world it has known so far, and perhaps it is an unknown time to be met only through clumsiness, a season of suffering in life."

The lighthouse photo exhibition by island culture exploration writer Guk Young-su, titled 'The Earnest Name I Call the Lighthouse,' will be held at the Sansok Lighthouse Museum from the 8th until the 27th of next month. Located in Soyang-myeon, Wanju-gun, Jeollabuk-do, the Sansok Lighthouse Museum was selected this year for the Jeollabuk-do Cultural Tourism Foundation's private cultural facility planning program contest.

Artist Guk Young-su was born in Seoul in 1965 and worked for a long time in public relations-related jobs. For 27 years, he was swept along with the waves, and through a chance encounter, he deepened his heart with the sea and lighthouses, forming a bond. He visited 27 places with maritime boundary markers installed to publicly indicate the starting points of South Korea's territorial waters, having found 334 white lighthouses nationwide.

The lighthouse photo exhibition "Lighthouse, The Earnest Name I Call" by island culture exploration writer Guk Young-su will be held at the Sansok Lighthouse Museum from the 8th until the 27th of next month. The photo shows the Dodaebul in Pyeongdae-ri, Jeju, a purely domestic traditional lighthouse.
[Photo by Guk Young-su]

This exhibition captures every corner of Korea's coastline through photography. It features compositions of lighthouse-grade markers located in strictly protected areas that are difficult for the general public to access. It showcases 20 works by Guk Young-su, imbued with beautiful backgrounds such as sunsets, clear weather, and sea fog.

In particular, the maritime boundary marker works are photos taken based on uninhabited islands. Among Korea's territorial waters, the exhibition presents markers from places rarely seen nearby, such as Ganyeoam at the southwestern end of the territorial waters, the maritime boundary markers of Sogukheuldo on Gageodo, the westernmost point, and Soryeongdo at the western end of the West Sea.

Director Won Tae-yeon said, "I hope this exhibition will be an opportunity to experience in a unique way at the Sansok Lighthouse Museum the territorial waters we cannot visit and the passion poured into maritime boundary markers and lighthouses over a long time."

Meanwhile, the exhibition opening event on the 8th at noon will feature wonderful performances including Yullyeo dance by Lee Gwi-seon, Pansori by Shin Ina, poetry recitation by Choi Young-hee, and music by Yani Kim Do-yeon. The exhibition is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Island Culture Exploration Writer Guk Young-su Lighthouse Photo Exhibition. Memorial Beacon.
[Photo provided by Sansok Lighthouse Art Museum]

◆ To the artist, Deungdaeseom is

"A lighthouse is a memory, a gene of a nostalgic taste etched in memory. As I grow older, instead of forgetting, I ultimately spread my heart’s wings toward the island."

The artist visited 329 out of 334 white lighthouses in Korea with travel groups 'Rainy City Florence' and 'Island and Garden' that seek lighthouses. Among them, many lighthouses share the commonality of being essential places on islands and the most beautiful spots, which he explored on foot one by one.

Over 20 years of traveling to find lighthouses, time passed swept along with the waves. The sea and lighthouses, which became a bond through a chance encounter, remain the same, but the artist himself reflected on how he has reached the age of sixty, realizing how fast time flies.

Deungdaeseom is a continuous wait. There were many days when he waited for the ferry to the island and was trapped on the island. He simply waited for the strong wind to stop. The artist came to understand that Deungdaeseom means enduring time.

Poster for the lighthouse photo exhibition "Lighthouse, The Earnest Name I Call" by island culture exploration writer Guk Young-su. The lighthouse in the background is the territorial sea marker of Sogeukheuldo. [Photo provided by Sansok Lighthouse Art Museum]

◆ Life given by lighthouse & island travel

The joy of lighthouse travel is no less. Curiosity toward new lighthouses and longing for the home to return to coexisted, which made him deeply immersed in lighthouse travel.

Rousseau said, "Walking is a solitary thing, an experience of freedom, an inexhaustible source of observation and reverie, a happy act of enjoying a path full of unexpected encounters and surprises." The artist engraved this in his travels. Because of this, he felt how happy he was while visiting Deungdaeseom.

This happiness came from learning that the moon rising over Deungdaeseom appears differently every day according to the time, providing a kind companion for weary travels. The moon rising at dawn illuminated the path ahead, and the late-rising moon soothed loneliness. He was overwhelmed to hold in his heart precious scenes that are impossible to know in the city night.

Island Culture Exploration Writer Guk Young-su Lighthouse Photo Exhibition. Topmeori Port Breakwater Lighthouse.
[Photo provided by Sansok Lighthouse Art Museum]

◆ Capturing the beauty of Deungdaeseom

The 'Manjaedo Lighthouse,' which he visits once or twice a year. The artist felt that all the beauty remains in place, but only he himself is changing. Sometimes the comfort given by the lighthouse is surprisingly great. It offers solace by simply being together in the middle of the sea rather than through countless words. Meeting a new lighthouse after leaving a confined heart is the greatest gift given to the artist.

He also recalls the autumn 'Jukguldo Lighthouse.' Walking up the stairs, he hears the sound of rustling fallen leaves, listening to the sounds of late autumn. Like an unfinished variation, he slips a little while paying attention to the sound of leaves underfoot. He looks at the fallen leaves basking in the autumn sunlight while rolling near the lighthouse.

The fallen leaves evoke a charm that gently brings out forgotten emotions. Perhaps these small feelings remain in the heart, old memories that cannot be touched by hand. The longing for what cannot be held remains as a sense of emptiness.

Thus, the artist’s autumn Deungdaeseom may be a season of suffering in life, an unknown time to be met only through clumsiness, boldly shaking off the familiar world known so far.

Island Culture Exploration Writer Guk Young-su Lighthouse Photo Exhibition. Buan Port East Breakwater Lighthouse.
[Photo provided by Sansok Lighthouse Art Museum]

◆ A lingering regret in the heart, asking each shot

While visiting Deungdaeseom every weekend, the artist felt firsthand that the threads of heart connecting him to acquaintances he had known gradually fell away.

Weekend travels caused him to miss the time to continue relationships. There was pain in the severing of ties due to lack of contact and meetings. However, the artist hopes to remain a person with a deep fragrance as time passes.

He suddenly recalls the contents of Yeolha Ilgi (The Jehol Diary). The diary states, "The pain of parting increases depending on where the place of parting is. Places with water are exactly such places."

But for the artist, the lighthouse is a place where he always parts with the sea when leaving the island and brings new encounters, so he returns again. The lighthouse is always a watercolor painting in the heart that lights longing rather than pain.

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