Life can sometimes resemble a persimmon tree. In spring, it blooms; in summer, it bears green fruit; and in autumn, it ripens to a deep red. However, not all persimmons turn sweet immediately. Some retain their astringency for a long time, only revealing their rich sweetness after enduring frost and winter winds. This transformation from bitterness to sweetness is possible only through patience and time. As I viewed Jeong Soon-won's first ink wash painting exhibition, titled Persimmon, at the Muusoo Gallery in Insadong, Seoul, I was reminded of the time it takes for a persimmon to ripen. This exhibition is not merely an art display; it is a condensed autobiography of a 74-year life, reflecting the deep introspection of an economist, business leader, and policymaker who has lived at the forefront of South Korea's economic growth.
The name Jeong Soon-won has long been recognized in the economic and industrial sectors. After graduating from Seoul National University with a degree in political science, he earned his master's and doctoral degrees in economics from Indiana University in the United States. He has held various prominent positions, including vice president of the Hyundai Economic Research Institute, president of Hyundai Motor's Planning Division, vice chairman of Hyundai Rotem, president of Samchully, and member of the Bank of Korea's Monetary Policy Committee. He has walked the center stage of national economic and corporate management amid South Korea's industrialization and globalization. At first glance, his background seems distant from the world of ink and brush, blank spaces, and ink wash. Economics deals with numbers, and corporate management requires cold judgment and strategy. Financial policy operates on data and logic rather than emotion. However, human life cannot be explained solely by numbers. There are memories that cannot be quantified, feelings that are not recorded in profit and loss statements, and reflections that cannot be measured by any statistical chart. Jeong Soon-won's ink wash paintings originate from this realm.
He has spent his life studying economics and industry. During his time at the Hyundai Economic Research Institute, he analyzed national economic trends, and at Hyundai Motor, he devised strategies for the global market. He experienced the tumultuous period when South Korea's automotive industry was gaining competitiveness on the world stage. The production of a single car requires thousands of parts, the efforts of numerous workers, and the collaboration of many suppliers and technicians. Ultimately, a corporation is an organization of people, and he learned on the ground that understanding people is essential to understanding a business. While technology creates results, it is people who create sustainability. He deeply experienced that the force driving an organization is not numbers but trust and philosophy.
As president of Hyundai Motor's Planning Division, he personally experienced the fierce competition in the global automotive market. Competing with global companies, he emphasized long-term accumulation over short-term results. Good companies are not built overnight, nor are good products completed in a day. Competitiveness is only achieved through countless trials, errors, repetitions, and improvements. This philosophy naturally permeated his artistic world. A painting is not completed with a single stroke of ink, nor does a work emerge from just one brush movement. It takes numerous layers of application, erasure, trial and error, and patience for a single piece to be born. The concepts of 'layering' and 'wear' that frequently appear in his ink wash abstract works resemble the principles of corporate management. While a business accumulates results, art accumulates meaning, and just as a business sheds the unnecessary to secure competitiveness, art gains depth by eliminating the superfluous.
During his tenure as CEO of Hyundai Rotem and Samchully, he met a diverse array of people, including factory workers, engineers from research labs, salespeople in the field, overseas business partners, and numerous customers and stakeholders. Through these interactions, he realized that the essence of industry ultimately lies in enriching human lives. This understanding aligns closely with the spirit pursued by ink wash artists. Ink wash painting is not merely a technique for depicting beautiful landscapes; it is an art that seeks to understand humanity, revere nature, and explore the essence of life. Thus, Jeong Soon-won's paintings evoke a sense of humanity rather than flamboyance. His canvases are filled with scenes of boats anchored in tidal flats, diligent workers, trees weathering the wind, and expansive landscapes with ample blank space. These subjects are not particularly glamorous, yet they compel prolonged contemplation because they embody life.
His time on the Bank of Korea's Monetary Policy Committee marked another turning point in his life. The position of a committee member, responsible for determining interest rates, involves analyzing numerous economic indicators and data, significantly influencing the direction of the national economy. However, those who study economics for a long time understand the limitations of numbers. Statistics can explain reality but cannot encompass the entirety of human life. The anxieties and hopes of citizens, the expectations and fears of businesses, and the dreams and despair for the future cannot be expressed solely through numbers. This is why Jeong Soon-won has consistently emphasized that “economics is ultimately for people.” His ink wash paintings resonate with this same sentiment. Art exists not for itself but for humanity. Therefore, the blank spaces in his paintings are not mere voids; they are spaces where the viewer's memories and experiences can enter and linger, serving as a window for self-reflection at the moment the artwork pauses.
The centerpiece of this exhibition, the Four Seasons series, encapsulates this philosophy most profoundly. Inspired by the mid-Joseon scholar Kwon Ho-mun's 18 Songs of the Han River, this series is not just a collection of landscapes. It represents an ontological reflection connecting the natural cycles of spring, summer, autumn, and winter to human life. Spring signifies beginnings, summer represents growth, autumn denotes maturity, and winter is a time for emptiness and organization. However, winter is not an end; it is a time of waiting in preparation for the next spring. Jeong Soon-won's life has mirrored this cycle. He experienced a spring as an economist, a summer as a business leader, and an autumn as a policymaker. Now, he is welcoming a new spring as an ink wash artist.
The title of this exhibition, Persimmon, is thus even more symbolic. While most people prefer sweet, ripe persimmons, Jeong Soon-won deliberately chose the astringent variety. This choice reflects his belief that he is still learning, still capable of growth. He does not claim that his paintings are complete; rather, he asserts that they are just beginning. This humility connects to the attitude he has maintained throughout his life. In business management, he has always emphasized learning; in economics, he has continually posed questions; and in art, he defines himself as a beginner. He demonstrates that those who do not cease to question can go further than those who merely seek answers.
In the Joseon Dynasty, ink wash painting was not just art; it was a mirror reflecting a person's character and spirit. It was believed that the tip of the brush contained the essence of one's life. In this sense, Jeong Soon-won's paintings reveal life rather than technique, time rather than skill, and maturity rather than mere achievement. Today, we often desire rapid success, quick results, and immediate recognition. However, nature does not rush. Persimmons must endure frost to become sweet, and trees must withstand winter to bloom in spring. Likewise, people must traverse long periods to deepen their essence.
Jeong Soon-won's Persimmon conveys this truth. He has succeeded as an economist, thrived as a business leader, and played a significant role as a policymaker, yet he has not stopped there. Instead, he chose to let go of everything and return to the path of a beginner. He has embarked on new studies and held his first solo exhibition at the age of 74. Perhaps this is the most courageous challenge of all. While many choose to rest on their laurels after success, he has opted for a path of learning and challenge.
Thus, Persimmon is not merely an art exhibition; it is a record of how a person ripens. It tells the story of someone who has lived through an era and continues to grow until the very end. It quietly poses a question to us all: What are we becoming, rather than what have we achieved? Standing before Jeong Soon-won's paintings, one might ponder whether true success in life lies not in reaching a high position but in ongoing growth. His first solo exhibition at 74 is by no means an end; it is another beginning. His journey from economist to business leader, from business leader to policymaker, and from policymaker to ink wash artist is still unfolding. His persimmon is still ripening, and perhaps the sweetest moments are just beginning.
The ink wash painting exhibition of Jeong Soon-won, which opened on the 10th, will run until the 18th at the Muusoo Gallery in Insadong.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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