Two Korean cultural heritage pieces make their way home
Two South Korean cultural heritage pieces from US museums will be shown in Seoul for the first time since their restoration.
The Korea Heritage Service and the National Palace Museum of Korea are jointly hosting the special exhibition titled "Hopes and Dreams Revealed Inside Restored Paintings" from Wednesday until July 20 at the NPMK.
The two folding screens, or "byeongpung," were brought back to Korea in October 2023 under the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation's Conservation and Utilization Support Program for conservation treatment that spanned over a year. The screens will return to the US at the end of July, according to officials.
The 10-panel "Cloud Dream of the Nine" folding screen was gifted to Marie Elizabeth Church around 1910 by the parents of an Ewha Haktang student she taught while stationed in Korea as a missionary.
Now part of the Portland Art Museum collection, the piece illustrates key scenes from the late 17th-century novel of the same name, penned by Kim Man-jung. The story, cherished by both the royal family members and the public during the Joseon era (1392-1910), was often painted on folding screens at the time.
The screen portrays the journey of Seong-jin, a disciple of Grand Preceptor Yuk-gwan, who meets eight fairy maidens, is reborn as Yang So-yu, and goes on to experience wealth, power and relationships with women.
In the final panel, Seong-jin awakens from a dream and returns to his life as a novice monk, realizing his successes are an illusion. The paintings convey a Buddhist message about spiritual devotion and reflect hopes for wealth, honor and good fortune.
Another folding screen being shown, "One Hundred Boys at Play" from the Denver Art Museum, was purchased by the museum around 1970 from the New York-based Felice Fedder Oriental Art.
The paintings depict young boys playing games such as mock battles, cockfighting, and plum blossom picking, symbolizing hopes for prosperity, success as officials, and flourishing of the family line. Popular in the late Joseon period, such folding screens were used in royal weddings, court banquets and displayed at home to bring good fortune.
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