Sung Wi

幛: 정성 성, to give ones all
腧: 뜻 의, meaning or intention

Christmas Project 2008

Seven years ago when a friend and I were proselytizing in the neighborhood just behind Korea's Blue House when bumped into a wiry old guy named Kim Ilyong. We spent about 10 minutes talking with him in the street and later visited him at his house which wasn't far from there. We learned he was an artist. His office was littered with scraps of ink-stained chart paper. The walls were just as cluttered--with his finished products--dozens of carefully drawn emblems, poems, songs, and Korean national declarations no doubt. I never anticipated that I'd ever go back to his place but this Christmas proved the occasion. Mr. Kim spent about 6hrs on a Sunday afternoon etching out these wall scrolls for the family. He let me dab the ink.