K-CINEMA 100 SCREENING

CHIHWASEON

Painted Fire | 취화선 | 2002 | South Korea | Dir. Im Kwon-taek | 116 min | Korean with English subtitles

Saturday 27th April, 3pm

at the National Gallery

This screening is organised to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Korean cinema

in partnership with Seoul Metropolitan Government and Nongshim.

CAST: Choi Min-sik, Ahn Sung-ki

SYNOPSIS : Born a peasant named Jang Seung-ub in 1843, the artist used his talents to escape a life of poverty. A wealthy nobleman, Kim Byung-Moon, recognizes Jang's talent, and takes him in at an early age. Master Kim recommends Jang to a respected art teacher, and his career path begins. As a young man, Jang grows in stature for his ability to flawlessly copy well-known Chinese paintings. He also falls in love with a noble's daughter, Mae-Hyang. Because of the class difference, he cannot be with her, and he's heartbroken when she marries another man. This sets him on the path he follows for much of his life -- that of a drunken wanderer. Despite his self-destructive hard drinking, his penchant for consorting with prostitutes, his impoverished background, his refusal to follow anyone's rules, the political turbulence of the times in which he lives, and the fact that he rarely signs his own work, Oh-won rises to prominence as an artist.

Chihwaseon by the renowned Korean director Im Kwon-taek tells the story of legendary iconoclastic Chosun Dynasty artist. It will be screened at the National Gallery.