Traditional Painting: Window on the Korean Mind

Korean painting reveals a connectivity with nature that parallels the Korean traditional world view. Living in a dramatic landscape of rugged peaks, deep valleys and broad rivers, Koreans have long held nature in deep reverence. This respect, this yearning for nature is immediately apparent in Korean paintings, whose aesthetic is likened to an “artless art” of gently lines, generous shapes and naturalistic colors. Beauty is found in the big picture rather than the details; paintings exhibit a naturalness that moves the viewer with its humility.

Many Korean paintings were painted not by artists, but by ordinary nobles and even commoners. For the people of old Korea, painting was often a part of life, a way to express their inner spirit. Perhaps it is this that makes Korean painting so approachable, so human.

• Robert Koehler, Author

  Robert Koehler, born and raised on Long Island, New York, has lived in Korea since 1997. He was the editor-in-chief of SEOUL, Seoul Selection’s monthly lifestyle and travel magazine, from 2006 to 2018. He spends his days exploring new neighborhoods, sitting in cafés, and shooting photographs.