JUNGSAN (B.1946)

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Jungsan was born in Yeosu, Joellanam-do, South Korea, and at the age of 13 he entered the Beomeo-sa Buddhist Temple in Busan. He spent the next 50 years in meditation and self-reflection, while exploring creative outlets such as jazz music and the culinary arts. After these 50 years of study, Jungsan decided to embark on a mission of sharing his wisdom through visual art. Jungsan reflects the Zen Buddhist teachings concerning the external sins and desires. He paints and collages on one side of a matchbox while leaving the other side blank. This echoes the lesson of the Heart Sutra ‘Form is none other than emptiness and emptiness is none other than form’. One surface tells a story of abundance and the other, its liberation. Jungsan is also well known for his meticulous works on paper, which combine folded pieces of blank paper and others emblazoned with his distinctive calligraphic touch.