Everyone Knows the Winter Landscape Painting — But This Daejeong Village Holds an Exile's Sorrow
took up his brush on a lonely island
Traveling through Daejeong-eup in Seogwipo, you'll come across a low-slung exhibition hall called 'Chusa-gwan.' First-timers might assume it's just another small local museum and walk right past it, but this hall is said to have been built near the site where Chusa Kim Jeong-hui, a scholar and calligrapher who represents the late Joseon era, is said to have lived in exile. Once you learn how a man born and raised in Hanyang, who once held a high government post, ended up in this distant island village of Daejeong-hyeon, and why his traces are said to still remain here, a building you might have passed by starts to look a little different. GYULI recently told you the story of a painter who fled war and briefly landed on Seogwipo's Lee Jung-seop Street — today I want to carefully walk you through the story of Chusa Kim Jeong-hui and Chusa Memorial Hall, someone pushed here by the storms of an era long before that.
The Scholar Exiled to Daejeong-hyeon
Kim Jeong-hui is said to have been a scholar-official of the late Joseon era who showed remarkable talent in scholarship and calligraphy from a young age. Born into a prominent family in Hanyang and said to have risen to government office, he is said to have been caught up in political conflict and exiled to Daejeong-hyeon on Jeju. Exactly when his exile began, when it ended, or how long it lasted is something I'd rather not state definitively here. But the fact that a scholar who once lived a distinguished life in the capital had to endure a long stretch of time in the narrow confines of exile in this unfamiliar island village seems to be something passed down consistently across many records.
I can't confidently give you the exact length of his exile or detailed episodes from that time, but the story that a scholar left alone on a strange island never put down his brush and inkstone has stayed with me for a long time.
— 🍊 GYULINear the site where Kim Jeong-hui is said to have lived in exile, today's Jeju Chusa Memorial Hall in Daejeong-eup is said to have been established. Step inside the low-slung exhibition hall and you'll find materials quietly laid out that introduce his calligraphy and world of scholarship, and nearby, a thatched-roof house said to be where he actually stayed is said to have been restored. It's said to feel less like a flashy tourist attraction and more like a space quietly trying to remember the time a scholar endured in exile. Knowing that this single name, Chusa-gwan, carries a long and difficult connection between Jeju and a scholar makes even just looking around feel a little solemn.
Scholarship and Calligraphy Said to Have Been Forged in Exile
During his exile in Daejeong-hyeon, Kim Jeong-hui is said to have gone on developing his own distinctive calligraphy style, known as 'Chusache.' Every time I hear that the time he spent alone in an unfamiliar island village actually made his calligraphy stronger, it makes me think again about how deeply hardship can shape a person's scholarship. Exactly what triggered it, or through what process the style was refined, isn't something I can state with certainty. But the story that he kept holding his brush and building his own world even through the hardship of exile is consistently passed down across many records.
Among the works said to be connected to this period of exile is reportedly a painting said to carry feelings toward a devoted student. Exactly what story lies behind it, or what feelings were poured into that single painting, isn't something I can confirm in detail here, so if you're curious, I'd recommend visiting Chusa Memorial Hall in person and looking through the exhibits there. Still, the fact that even in such a lonely and difficult time of exile, he is said to have left behind a single painting carrying his feelings toward someone, and that story still being passed down here today, genuinely moves me.
A Journey Beyond the Tourist Spot, Walking an Exile's Traces
When planning a Jeju trip, Chusa Memorial Hall is often introduced simply as 'a quiet exhibition hall in Daejeong-eup.' But once you know that this name also carries the pain of exile endured by a scholar who defined an era, and the time he spent never letting go of scholarship and calligraphy even through it, your steps there might feel a little different. If Seogwipo's Lee Jung-seop Street was the place of a painter who fled war, Daejeong-eup's Chusa Memorial Hall could be called the place of a scholar pushed here by the storms of an era long before that. Rather than rushing through as just another photo spot, I hope it becomes a slow walk where you quietly reflect on the story held in that one name. If you have the time, GYULI recommends taking a slow look around Chusa Memorial Hall and carefully picturing the time a scholar once endured here.
GYULI's Tip · Chusa Memorial Hall is located within Daejeong-eup and is said to have parking space available. It may have its own regular closing days or visiting hours, so it's a good idea to check the schedule before you go.