Kim Myung Rim
Dharma name Bowonhae · 金明琳 · b. 1944
Kim Myung Rim cultivated calligraphy from her school days at Ewha Girls' High School, and came to sutra transcription (sagyeong, 寫經) through her study of Buddhist teaching. In 2008 she began studying under Master Oegil Kim Kyung-ho — the first holder of Korea's National Intangible Cultural Heritage for sagyeong — raising her long-practiced hand to the level of art. She held her first solo exhibition at the Seoul Arts Center in 2012 and a second, by invitation of the Hankuk Art Museum, in 2016, and was invited to the World Calligraphy Biennale of Jeollabuk-do (sutra section) in 2011 and 2013. She received the Grand Prize in the sagyeong category of the Seoye Munhwa Grand Art Exhibition and serves as an invited artist.
Field
- Sagyeong (寫經) · Traditional Buddhist Art
- Studied under · Oegil Kim Kyung-ho — first holder of Korea's National Intangible Cultural Heritage for sagyeong; founder of the Korean Sagyeong Research Association
Solo Exhibitions
- 1st Solo Sagyeong Exhibition (Seoul Arts Center, 2012)
- 2nd Solo Sagyeong Exhibition — invited (Hankuk Art Museum, Seoul, 2016)
Exhibitions
- World Calligraphy Biennale of Jeollabuk-do, sutra section — invited (2011, 2013)
- 10th Korean Sagyeong Research Association Invitational (Gallery Misulsegye, Seoul)
- 9th Korean Sagyeong Research Association Invitational (Korean Cultural Center, Los Angeles)
- 8th Korean Sagyeong Research Association Exhibition (Bongsan Cultural Center, Daegu)
- 7th Korean Sagyeong Research Association Invitational (Flushing Town Hall, New York)
- 6th Korean Sagyeong Research Association Exhibition (Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation, Seoul)
- 5th Korean Sagyeong Research Association Exhibition (Seoul Arts Center)
- 4th Korean Sagyeong Research Association Invitational (Cheonggyecheon Culture Center, Seoul)
- 2014 Korean Contemporary Women Mid-career Artists Exhibition
- 2011 Hangeul Calligraphy Festival (Seoul Arts Center)
At the Exhibitions
First Solo Exhibition · Seoul Calligraphy Art Museum, Seoul Arts Center · 2012
World Calligraphy Biennale of Jeollabuk-do, Sagyeong Section · 2013
Awards
- Grand Prize & Special Selection, sagyeong category, Seoye Munhwa Grand Art Exhibition; Invited Artist
In Her Words
In an interview ahead of her first solo exhibition in 2012, the artist spoke of sutra transcription as a spiritual practice and the center of her life.
Apart from sutra transcription, I cannot conceive of the meaning of life.
The Lotus Sutra gives one the power to embrace all beings by every means, as a parent enfolds a child. Through it I first understood how precious sutra transcription is.
“All that has form is illusory” (凡所有相 皆是虛妄) — that line from the Diamond Sutra struck me to the heart.
My teacher is one in whom life and work are identical — without the slightest discrepancy.
(On receiving the Grand Prize) I feel only humbled.
— Interview, reported by Kim San-gyeong (2012)
Book
Bowonhae Kim Myung RimA catalogue of the artist’s sutra-copying (sagyeong) works, published for her invitational exhibition at the Hankuk Art Museum as part of the “21st-Century Korean Sagyeong Masters” series. It gathers her sagyeong and byeonsangdo works in plates. (Korean Traditional Sagyeong Research Institute, 2015)BuyKyoboYes24AladinCoupang
With Gratitude
I give thanks to my teacher.
I give thanks for my bond with Master Oegil Kim Kyung-ho, who has always given me courage.
I give thanks to my parents, who bore and raised me and now dwell in my heart.
I give thanks to my husband and my children, always at my side.
I give thanks that health allows me to continue this work of transcription.
I give thanks for the many bonds that sagyeong has tied.
I give thanks to all the fellow practitioners who have helped me along the way.
— From the artist's note in the 2015 catalogue