Episode 20: The Great Villains
“Huh… Isn’t that the person who was in the same basic common practice class?”
Lee Sehee was definitely someone who took classes in the same classroom as Kang Lim.
But to be a fourth-year student… That means it’s definitely a retake. It was amazing how they got to participate in this exhibition.
They must be a student who draws well.
You can get failing grades if you miss a lot of classes after all.
Or maybe they’re a student who wants to score all A+’s…
“Is it that person? The one recommended by Professor Koo Haeyoung?”
Lee Sehee kept staring at Kang Lim with dagger-like eyes.
When Kang Lim smiled politely and slightly bowed, the curator sighed and answered.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“No, I came in through the open call. Does this make sense?”
“This planned exhibition includes both people selected by the gallery’s internal review and those who came through the open call. Kang Lim is not the only exception. This was already mentioned in the open call details. What’s the problem?”
“There’s still a month left, and this isn’t right! What if they can’t draw well?”
“Don’t worry. If the work isn’t good, I’ll exclude it. I’m not an inconsiderate person either.”
The curator drew a clear line for Lee Sehee, who kept arguing.
When the curator’s previously smiling face turned serious, Lee Sehee flinched a bit.
‘As expected, they’re a sharp planner on the inside.’
Taking advantage of the situation, Kang Lim sided more with Lee Sehee than the curator.
This was an example of experience from lots of social interactions.
It’s not beneficial to make enemies with a senior in the small art community.
“It’s understandable that the senior is upset. The exhibition space becomes limited.”
“…”
In reality, it wasn’t that Kang Lim didn’t understand Lee Sehee’s feelings.
The number of participants is important when hanging paintings in a gallery.
Just as music filled with only notes isn’t beautiful, there needs to be pauses between paintings too.
The wider the gap between hung paintings, the deeper the visitors can appreciate the art.
The difference between well-planned exhibitions and those done by amateurs lies in that empty space.
For example, in art club exhibitions.
The rental fee is expensive, so they gather as many people as possible to split the cost.
This results in many paintings crammed together, making it tiring for visitors’ eyes as the images clash.
“With the current size of our gallery, there’s no problem even if Kang Lim joins. Also, many of the invited artists are creating vertical paintings. I’ve planned everything. I don’t just accept anyone because of a professor’s recommendation.”
Even though the curator was slightly annoyed with Lee Sehee, they appreciated Kang Lim’s thoughtful consideration.
Most artists don’t care about the display of others’ paintings.
‘Ah, if there are many artists creating vertical paintings, it leaves more space than horizontal ones. Then there’s no need to worry…’
Kang Lim felt uncomfortable being caught between the two.
Luckily, he noticed it was time to leave.
“Oh. Sorry, I have a class at 11.”
“Oh! Yes. Please go ahead. Just show me the final stage through photos.”
“Yes.”
Nice, class time.
Kang Lim greeted Lee Sehee and the curator and left the gallery.
“Wow. Today, the canvas is walking around.”
A canvas larger than 100 ho is over 162 cm, so for shorter girls, only their ankles are visible when carrying it.
Kang Lim walked behind the bouncing canvas.
Seoyeon gave an exasperated look at Kang Lim’s playful expression.
“Don’t tease me. I’m 161.”
“Usually, shorties round up.”
“No, it’s true. It’s the average height.”
“Rounding up by adding 1 cm… No shame! No shame!”
When Kang Lim mimicked Seoyeon’s tone, she put down the canvas and pinched him.
“Ouch, ouch! Okay, I admit it. 161.”
“How tall are you?”
“I’m 178. No rounding.”
“You!”
The materials professor gave the ‘simple’ assignment of painting a 100 ho oil painting and then left.
In fact, most art classes proceed this way.
Assignments are given, the professor disappears… Occasionally, they walk around giving feedback.
Creating the artwork is entirely the student’s responsibility.
Seoyeon put down the canvas and spoke.
“Sigh… What are you going to paint? Suddenly having to paint with oil gives me a headache.”
“Later, odorless turpentine will come out, and it will be less painful.”
“Who said that?”
“I can see the future a bit.”
“Liar.”
When Seoyeon chuckled, Kang Lim shrugged. It wasn’t a lie.
“I’ve already decided what to paint.”
“What is it?”
“I’m participating in a group exhibition at the gallery, so I’m painting according to the theme.”
Seoyeon was surprised and widened her eyes.
“Wow! Really? You’re exhibiting? I want to go see it.”
“Sure. Come later. I’d be grateful if you did.”
“Can you use the size the professor specified?”
“Yeah, I agreed to make it 100 ho. Same as the assignment.”
“What’s the theme? When is it?”
‘Great Villain’. The exhibition is in five weeks.”
“Wow. That sounds really fun.”
“The curator seems meticulous. Reminded me of you.”
“Hehe- I’ll do even better!”
“Of course you will.”
Kang Lim checked the materials he bought from the art store.
Most of the paintings he did as a child were with acrylic, so oil painting was somewhat unfamiliar to him.
The reason for using acrylic was its excellent pigmentation and preservation despite being inexpensive.
‘I’ll need to confirm the properties of oil paint while painting. I’ve used it before, but it’s my first time on a large canvas.’
As he was about to return to his seat, Seoyeon called him.
“Kang Lim. If it’s a planned exhibition, you can find the individual websites of the participating artists by searching their names. It might help when working.”
“Oh. Right. I haven’t met them yet.”
“Yeah. You seem to have joined a little late.”
“Right. So I need to do well.”
“Of course you will.”
This time, Seoyeon mimicked Kang Lim.
So this is how it feels. It was so absurd he couldn’t help but laugh.
“Haha. Got it. Thanks.”
Returning to his seat, he poured out various materials onto the desk.
They were different additives and finishing agents used for mixing oil paints.
The paints were ones he had received as a prize before.
It was finally time to use them.
‘Haha. I’m glad I chose oil paint over acrylic back then. The highest quality paint… I’ll dedicate it to my first exhibition.’
First, as Seoyeon suggested, he turned on his phone and searched the names written on the exhibition poster.
Since it wasn’t a major art museum, none of the artists were famous enough for him to recognize.
‘But being not famous doesn’t mean the works are bad.’
He searched the names of the artists one by one.
As expected… This curator didn’t select just anyone.
Kang Lim captured the recent works of the artist he liked the most.
He also downloaded the artist notes where they wrote about their intentions and thoughts.
He wanted to know what thoughts were behind such paintings.
The first artist was an older painter.
This artist consistently worked on portraits of modern and contemporary villains.
‘The way they painted faces is unique… It’s unclear, like an old, torn black-and-white photo. But I can tell who it is.’
Kang Lim knew who this person was.
He had seen them in a book titled “Names We Must Never Forget.”
This person’s name was No Deoksul.
They were infamous for committing all sorts of atrocities against ordinary citizens.
Endless water torture, electric shocks, and even disposing of bodies…
‘They amassed wealth through such acts and then committed more corrupt deeds…’
And yet, they were a policeman.
Such collaborators must have been countless during the Japanese occupation.
The artist’s intention was indeed to mock the ‘great’ in ‘Great Villain.’
The idea was that it was ‘great’ how quickly such people were forgotten despite their heinous acts.
‘Almost like… They’ve preserved various figures in their works.’
The second artist was also a portraitist. But the feeling was completely different due to the different style.
This artist depicted famous drug lords and con artists using a mosaic of sparkling jewels.
So, when viewed up close, you see jewels, but from afar, you see the faces of con artists.
‘It means you can’t see the big picture if you only chase desires…’
He thought it would be more interesting to see this work in an actual gallery.
The viewers would move back and forth to see the difference up close and from afar.
But the image felt somewhat weak compared to the first person.
Was it because their villainy was less severe?
Kang Lim pondered over the various artworks.
‘No… It’s not about the severity. And if there’s a ‘degree’ of villainy, what is it measured by? The weight of the crime? The cruelty?’
That question led to new ideas.
‘Ah, there was someone who said villains are ordinary.’
Hannah Arendt.
She said that even the Nazi accomplices who massacred countless people were disgustingly cowardly and ‘ordinary’ people.
The success of the Nazi human massacre was due to the division of labor.
Those who gave the orders to kill, those who transported Jews, those who designed gas chambers…
‘They all claimed they were just following orders and didn’t directly kill anyone.’
When work is thoroughly divided, people don’t feel a sense of responsibility.
In the end, even the most heinous villains could be ordinary individuals… created by a ‘system.’
‘Okay. I’ll paint on this theme.’
Kang Lim set the gesso-primed canvas horizontally.
Though it was slightly taller than him on the wooden easel, it strangely looked small.
“Wow. Was 100 ho this small?”
“That’s talent.”
He was startled by the sudden voice of Shin Taemin.
“Jeez. When did you get here?”
“I’ve been here for a while.”
“Make some noise when you come in. Are you a cat?”
“…You were just too focused.”
I was too focused? Then I should focus again.
Kang Lim took a deep breath and grabbed a large flat brush.
He then squeezed Viridian Hue and Cerulean onto the canvas.
An entire tube of each.
Orange and blue hues. Completely contrasting colors.
‘And a touch of violet.’
Each flat brush was soaked with different additives.
No, they were soaked to the point of dripping.
As he started strong strokes up and down, the background was colored with rough touches.
In some areas, the Viridian created a strong impression, in others, Cerulean created a calm one.
The violet created a mysterious water and fire effect in between.
“Hey. Who uses oil like that? What are you trying to paint?”
Annoyingly, Shin Taemin, who was surprised, asked from the side.
“You’ll see. I’ve done it all before.”
