Kim Gu-yong (; February 5, 1922 – December 28, 2001), pen name Kim Kku, was a poet
"김구용" biographical PDF available at LTI Korea Library or online
/ref> and calligrapher living in what is now South Korea. His poetry showed the spirit of Taoism but also reflected Buddhism. He was a graduate of Seongkyungwan University (1955) and later a professor at the same school.
Biography
Kim Gu-yong was born Kim Yeongtak on February 5, 1922, in Sangju, Keishōhoku-dō, Korea, Empire of Japan
Between 1910 and 1945, Korea was ruled as a part of the Empire of Japan. Joseon Korea had come into the Japanese sphere of influence with the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876; a complex coalition of the Meiji government, military, and business offici ...
. During Japanese colonial occupation, Kim resided at various Buddhist temples, including the Donghaksa Temple, studying Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist classic texts. Following Liberation, Kim entered Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul, and graduated with a degree in Korean Literature
Korean literature is the body of literature produced by Koreans, mostly in the Korean language and sometimes in Classical Chinese. For much of Korea's 1,500 years of literary history, it was written in Hanja. It is commonly divided into classica ...
. Kim made his official literary debut in 1949 while still a student, with the publication of "Night in the Mountains" (''Sanjungya'') and "Ode to a White Pagoda” (''Baegtapsong'') in New World.["Kim Guyong" LTI Korea Datasheet available at LTI Korea Library or online](_blank)
Kim worked for the Hyundai Munhak Monthly and taught at Kyun Kwan University.
Work
During the period marked by the devastating aftermath of the Korean War, Kim Gu-yong focused his poetic objective on the treatment of the postwar psychosocial and political upheaval, through the unique lens of the Buddhist religious tradition. In his poetry dating from the period, Kim utilized the form of the prose poem, which eschews the internal breaks and divisions created by the lines and stanza of traditional verses. To maintain a poetic element within his work, Kim employed a poetic language rich in semantic possibility. In fact, the absence of rigid versification in his works ultimately serves to heighten the tension in this poetic language.surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...
in the development of the poet's aesthetic. His concurrent borrowing from the prose form, however, suggests foremost the poet's penchant for experimentation and desire to reinvent and reinvigorate traditional versification. Thus in both form and content, the poetry of Kim Guyong forged a new path in the development of modern Korean poetry.
Works in Korean
Collections
* Poems 1 (1969)
* Poems (1976)
* Nine Melodies (1978)
Notable Poems
* "Song in Praise of the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy" (''Gwaneumchan'')
* "Ideals of the Dream" (''Kkumui isang'')
* "Six Songs" (''Yukgok'')
* "Night in the mountains" (''Sanjungya'')
* "Ode on a White Pagoda” (''Baegtapsong'')
* "Escape" (''Talchul'')
* "Heart of Radiance" (''Bungwangui simjang'')
* "Scattered" (''Sanjae'')
* "Naked Slave" (''Jeongnarahan noye'')
See also
*Korean literature
Korean literature is the body of literature produced by Koreans, mostly in the Korean language and sometimes in Classical Chinese. For much of Korea's 1,500 years of literary history, it was written in Hanja. It is commonly divided into classica ...
* List of Korean-language poets
References
Sources
whatsonkorea.com
*"" (Chungnam University dissertation by ):
dbpia.co.kr
* omplete works/2000.
.
Autobiographical notes:Nate encyclopedia article:Photo on people.empas.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Gu-yong
1922 births
2001 deaths
South Korean male poets
20th-century South Korean artists
20th-century South Korean male artists
20th-century Korean calligraphers
People from Sangju
20th-century South Korean poets
20th-century male writers
21st-century South Korean artists
21st-century South Korean male artists
21st-century calligraphers
Sungkyunkwan University alumni