In line with the further development of the idea of art education in the modern period, changes in the traditional painters were from not only inside but also from their interaction with the outside world. In the latter perspective, painters’ external experiences changed from touring to a more specific purpose of studying abroad. Such a phenomenon became more noticeable around the hosting of Joseon Art Exhibition where the transition to the Oriental painting settled officially. As more painters went to Japan for study, painting styles were directly passed down through the student-instructor relationships, affecting a huge impact on Joseon traditional painting restructure.
Around 1920, Joseon students entered some famous hwasuks (small-scale private painting school) including Dyenshindo whasuk. This article focused on Dyenshindo hwasuk and a main painter Yeongil Lee of the modern colored painters to look at his study in Japan and roles in the domestic colored painting. Based on Changwhan Kim’s research on Japanese paintings in Takinogawa in the countryside of Tokyo, this article traced his path from the training period, to return to Korea to work as the first Joseon newspaper illustrator.
Other than hwasuks, art schools and art institutions were possible places to learn Japanese paintings. This study also noted main color painters including Hanbok Lee, a governmentsponsored student at the Tokyo Art School, Eunho Kim and Wuseok Choi for their study-abroad period, painting style experiments right after their overseas study, and diverse theme changes by using new materials.
In addition, this article identifies the characteristics and case examples after the 1930s when the scope of art study abroad expanded in terms of the number of engaged students and regions. Including the art area, the entire academic areas had increasing number of students going to Japan for study and schools and art institutions with lower admission thresholds opened up their doors, forming a favorable environment for study in Japan. In line with the trend in the Japanese local painters, some Joseon painters such as Geunbae Choi, studied Western paintings along with Japanese paintings and pursue multiple experiences in diverse organizations including hwasuks, art schools, etc. As second generational students studying in Japan appeared, Eunho Kim’s experience in Japan was applied to his students completing a certain period of study, leading to their study in Japan, in turn. Also, study destinations were expanded outside Tokyo or study period grew longer. One good example examined herein is Maljo Jeong who graduated from the Kyoto Municipal Painting School and settled in Kyoto.
Especially This article, in order to understand better the trend of the color painters, introduced the color-printed pictorial with some of the works in the Joseon Art Exhibition of which the original was lost and only black-and-white illustrations are passed down.