100 Year Photo No.82
This is a 100-year photo, where you select a photo published in a newspaper 100 years ago and find its meaning. Today’s article is about Insa-dong, Seoul, one of the representative streets for antique trading in Korea. This is the story of a citizen who says he will give away the Joseon treasures he has accumulated to society without any conditions. It was a shame that Joseon art was disappearing and being taken away by foreign powers, so I collected a lot of antiques for 10 years, but it seemed like I had no place to store them and couldn’t afford to buy and collect anymore. I complained about my situation to the reporter and tried to find someone who could help me.
Let’s take a look at the story of a collector of ancient art and antiques who lived in Insa-dong, Seoul 100 years ago. Let’s read the article. This is an article from the Donga Ilbo on October 6, 1924.
He said that he would give away Joseon’s treasures, which he had accumulated over 10 years, to society without compensation. All of Joseon’s works of art, such as writing, painting, architecture, and sculpture, that decorated Joseon in the past like a flower garden, disappeared due to a disaster and were not found because of ignorance. But it was taken away
◇ At a time when the brightness of the past was gradually disappearing, Mr. Lim Sang-jong, who was born in Yeongnam and just lived in Insa-dong, downtown, was particularly anxious for the national pride that was disappearing from a young age and spent his life. He decided to dedicate his entire fortune to the collection and preservation of Gojoseon art pieces, and for the past 10 years, he has devoted all of his enormous wealth to this, including 2,000 paintings and 3,000 poems that can be considered representative works of art, as well as the Goryeo Dynasty of Silla. We collected hundreds of types of vessels and ceramics from the Li Dynasty and dozens of other antiques, including a Buddha statue from the Three Han Dynasties and a painting of a tiger from King Gongmin of Goryeo, which cannot be saved. There is also a painting by Jang Seung-eop, which is said to be a modern myth, and a calligraphy by Kim Jong-seo.
◇ As a relic of Goguryeo, there is a copy of the monument to King Yeongnak in Gajeon-hyeon, as well as other noble works of art from Korea, such as sculptures, pottery, and copperware from the Silla and Goryeo periods. Almost all money is available, but there is a limit to the power of an individual in such a huge and difficult business. Now, Mr. Lim only has several pawn shops to make a living and a determination to preserve such treasures forever even if he starves to death. The power of money is not enough for ten thousand things. Mr. Lim is worried about what he will do if something happens and he loses even a painting or a bowl.
◇ They made a firm decision and decided to give away all of their calligraphy, paintings, vessels, etc., without sparing anything, if an individual or a private organization were to establish an organization that would permanently take charge of this work and completely preserve it as a public object for society.
◇Bunrochongong (divided labor skills) – “Sell the land to create a painting”/Mr. Sangjong Lim (interview)
After hearing this news, Mr. Lim said to a reporter who came by with an expression of great emotion, “It is true that I can no longer do anything with my own strength. Those who know will know, and those who do not know will not know, but in reality, I sold a piece of land to acquire a painting and sold some of my belongings to collect a piece of writing, which is called Bunrochongong, but now I am able to collect it all. Collecting that stuff doesn’t create food or clothes, and it actually reduces my own blessings, but is it possible to collect it only when I think about it like that? But now I only have sincerity and no strength.
◇I get goosebumps when I think of the things I’ve collected like that might disappear at the drop of a hat, or disappear, or lose a piece or two. Anyway, if there is an individual or organization that wants to gather these items in one place and build an art museum, I will hand them over to them without any compensation. It would be easy to break this down one by one, but even if I were to die, I wouldn’t be able to do that. The end of his words, “I hope that no matter what happens, they will come together and be preserved forever,” was full of infinite determination and devotion to the treasure.
●If we organize this article easily,
An article published in a newspaper a hundred years ago tells the story of Im Sang-jong, who lives in Insa-dong. He has cared for Joseon’s disappearing cultural heritage since he was young, and has been collecting antique art for over 10 years. Mr. Lim spent all his money to amass 2,000 paintings, 3,000 calligraphy paintings, hundreds of types of ceramics, and dozens of other antiques. If you make it into a table, it looks like this. It contains many truly valuable artifacts. Because it is complex, the relics collected by Im Sang-jong were organized in a table based on the types and quantities mentioned in the text.
|
Artifact type |
quantity |
explanation |
|
painting |
Approximately 2,000 wide |
Includes representative paintings from the Joseon Dynasty and early modern times |
|
Calligraphy work |
Approximately 3,000 wide |
Includes works by famous calligraphers such as Kim Jong-seo |
|
Porcelain |
hundreds of species |
Ceramics from the Silla, Goryeo, and Joseon Dynasties |
|
Buddha statue |
Buddha statue from the Three Han Dynasties |
Precious Buddha statue from the Three Han Dynasties |
|
Tapbon (塔本) |
King Yeongnak’s monument tomb |
A copy of the tomb of Queen Yeongnak of Goguryeo |
|
carving |
Various pieces collected |
Sculptures from the Silla and Goryeo periods |
|
copperware |
Collected copper coins |
Items made of copper from the Silla and Goryeo periods |
|
Picture of a tiger |
1 point |
Horyeongdo during the reign of King Gongmin of Goryeo |
|
Jang Seung-eop’s paintings |
1 point |
A work by Jang Seung-eop, a representative modern painter. |
● Interview between Im Sang-jong and the reporter
Im Sang-jong felt that the preservation of these relics was limited by his personal efforts. Currently, he makes a living by running several pawn shops, but he is very worried about his artifacts being damaged or lost. So, he decided that if there was an institution or organization that could permanently preserve these treasures, he would donate all the artifacts without receiving compensation, and was interviewed by a newspaper reporter.
In an interview with a reporter, Lim recalled that he sold his land to buy a painting and sold his belongings to collect a piece of writing. He said that it was because of his sincerity that he was able to collect relics even though he had no idea how to make food or clothes. But now, sincerity alone is not enough and I am expressing that I have no strength. He said it gave him goosebumps to think of a situation where relics could be lost at once, or in large quantities, and that if there was an individual or organization that could collect the relics in one place and build an art museum, he would donate them without receiving compensation. He said he would do it. He emphasized that he does not want the artifacts to be scattered one by one, but wants them to be preserved permanently.
● Are Lim Sang-jong collectors free from the risk of bankruptcy?
Lim Sang-jong’s story can be searched once again in the database. In the issue of July 19, 1925, there was a list of donors of “Water Fire, Same Sympathy Gold,” and even a single line of sympathy was included: ‘Lim Sang-jong, 10 won, 199 Insa-dong.’ This is in the name of one of the hundreds of philanthropists who donated flood relief while reporting on the flood damage that struck downtown Gyeongseong. After that it is no longer properly tracked. It appears that the interview with the newspaper reporter was not very helpful, as there was no article about a happy ending in which philanthropists or corporate cultural foundations came forward to create an art gallery or museum to house his collection. Unfortunately, it is.
What happened to him after the interview article came out? I was able to find the name of Im Sang-jong in Go Je-hee’s Feng Shui column (21fengshui.com).
According to the post
“As the debt he had borrowed here and there grew like a snowball, Im Sang-jong eventually entrusted the painting of old books, including Gunseondo, to Choi Sang-gyu, a moneylender, and continued to borrow money. At that time, borrowing money from others was tantamount to suicide. It was a time when the interest rate was close to 20% per month and the principal amount was multiplied after 5 months. Im Sang-jong, who was mired in a swamp like pouring water into a bottomless jar, had no way to repay his debts and declared bankruptcy. Then, about 300 paintings of old calligraphy, which was rarely collected by an individual, were handed over to Choi Sang-gyu in lieu of interest and principal. It was a destruction caused by greed. It is said that when death was near, there was not even a palm-sized piece of ancient painting left in Lim Sang-jong’s grasp. He closed his eyes in 1940, bearing deep resentment. “Usurer Choi Sang-gyu was a man who did not know how to look at paintings, so he immediately set out to find the owner.”
The photo chosen by the newspaper from 100 years ago today was a portrait of Im Sang-jong, a big man in Insa-dong, published in a newspaper dated October 6, 1924. What did you think about this photo and article? It was a time when problems were not solved just because the media informed the world of facts. Maybe it’s still the same now. Could there have been a happier ending if large corporations operated cultural foundations or if crowd funding, in which ordinary citizens make investments, became popular? Several thoughts come to mind. See you next Saturday.
Source: www.donga.com
