The Narrative of Park Kyungni’s 20-Volume "Toji" Revisited Through 30 Paintings

Literary Art Exhibition for the 100th Anniversary of Park Kyungni’s Birth

"Light of the Sky, Light of the Land" Opens at Kyobo Art Space in Gwanghwamun from September 8

Eight Artists Participate

Key Scenes and Excerpts from the Five P

An exhibition that offers a reinterpretation of Park Kyungni’s epic novel "Toji" through paintings is being held in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. Eight painters have each reimagined 30 key scenes from the extensive five-part, twenty-volume novel from their own unique perspectives.

View of the Park Kyung-ni 100th Birth Anniversary Literary Art Exhibition "Light of the Sky, Light of the Earth" held at Kyobo Art Space in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. Visitors can appreciate 30 works by eight painters and excerpts featuring key scenes from the novel "Toji," arranged in the order of the novel's development. Kyobo Book Centre

On September 9, Kyobo Bookstore and the Daesan Foundation announced that in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Park Kyungni’s birth (1926–2008), the literary art exhibition "Light of the Sky, Light of the Land – Meeting Park Kyungni’s 'Toji' through Paintings" will take place at the Kyobo Art Space in the Kyobo Bookstore Gwanghwamun branch from September 8 through October 27.

This exhibition features eight artists: Gil Hyun, Kim Seondu, Park Moonjong, Park Sejin, Park Younggeun, Ahn Jungkyoung, Lee Donghwan, and Hong Seunghi. Using significant scenes from "Toji," which Park Kyungni completed over approximately 26 years, as their motifs, they have created 30 works of art.

The foundational scenes were selected by Lee Seungyun, president of the Toji Society. The selections are structured as ten from Part 1, five from Part 2, four from Part 3, five from Part 4, and six from Part 5, enabling visitors to follow the novel’s entire narrative and historical context. In the exhibition hall, excerpts and paintings are displayed side by side according to the sequence of the story, allowing visitors to compare text and image of the same scene and see the characters and events from new perspectives.

The exhibition title, "Light of the Sky, Light of the Land," is drawn from a phrase in Chapter 12, Volume 1, Part 4 of "Toji," titled "Recital." It expresses the desire of a character to internalize the various lights of nature. The organizers explained that this phrase encapsulates the sentiment Park Kyungni sought to convey to readers through her novel.

The catalog "Light of the Sky, Light of the Land" has also been published, featuring images of the 30 exhibited works, novel excerpts, and commentary on the exhibition by Lee Seungyun. Visitors participating in exhibition-related events will receive a copy.

Kyobo Bookstore and the Daesan Foundation began hosting literary art exhibitions in 2006 to make literature more approachable by combining it with visual arts. Previous exhibitions have depicted works of prominent Korean authors such as Park Taewon, Lee Sang, Baek Seok, Hwang Sunwon, Yun Dongju, Shin Dongyeop, Kim Sowol, Kim Sooyoung, Kim Chunsu, and Lee Yuksa through artistic interpretation.

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