“The Iconic Kedeheon Image, Revealed: Reimagined by Minhwa Grand Master Kim Yu-kyung!”

Animation “Kedeheon” Brings the Ilwol-obongdo to Life—Reimagined in Contemporary Minhwa by Artist Kim Yu-kyung

The traditional court painting Ilwol-obongdo (日月五峰圖, “Sun, Moon, and Five Peaks”), which drew worldwide attention in a scene from the K-pop animation K-Pop Demon Hunters (hereafter, “Kedeheon”), has been reborn as contemporary art under the brush of master minhwa artist Kim Yu-kyung.

Artist Kim Yu-kyung (pen name: Geumbichae) is holding an invited solo exhibition, “日月五峰圖 – Carrying Light and Vital Energy,” from the 3rd to the 9th at the 3rd floor of the Gyeomjae Jeongseon Art Museum in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. Planned by the Korea Institute of Contemporary Minhwa Studies (Director: Kim Yong-gwon), the exhibition presents works that reinterpret the iconic Ilwol-obongdo image featured in “Kedeheon” through a contemporary lens, drawing keen interest at home and abroad.

[Kim Yu-kyung’s contemporary reinterpretation of Ilwol-obongdo. The blue ground underscores the work’s traditional character.]

A Symbol of Tradition as K-Culture… A Master’s Reinterpretation

Ilwol-obongdo is the screen painting that traditionally stood behind the royal throne in Joseon-era palaces, symbolizing royal authority and the well-being of the state. Depicting natural elements such as the sun and moon, five mountain peaks, pines, and waterfalls, Kim reimagines this classical imagery as “light that illuminates each person’s life, a mountain range holding our trials, and the blue of youth unfolding toward the future.”

[Kim’s work reconfigured with a gold ground. Traditional motifs are infused with a modern sensibility.]

Kim explores multiple formats for Ilwol-obongdo: maintaining the traditional blue background; works rendered solely in line (seonmyo); and modernized compositions. Far from mere replication of the past, these pieces become “work that carries light,” reconnecting tradition with contemporary life.

A Must-See for Kedeheon Fans… A World-Building Hidden in Tradition

For Gen Z viewers who came to traditional art through the “Golden” music video, this exhibition offers more than aesthetic appreciation—it opens a window onto cultural interpretation. The fusion of digital content and traditional painting, and the linkage between a global animation and Korean minhwa, reveal both the contemporaneity and the future potential of minhwa.

First Solo Show Since Master Designation… The Artist’s Philosophy on View

Kim Yu-kyung inherits the artistic lineage of the towering minhwa figure, painter Lee Jeong-dong (art name Songcheon), and in 2024 was officially designated a “Korea Grand Master of Modern Minhwa.” Beyond domestic exhibitions, she has shown in Italy, Russia, and Osaka, Japan, helping to bring minhwa to a worldwide audience.

This exhibition is Kim’s first solo show since receiving her master designation, and it is all the more meaningful as a moment to celebrate shared growth with the students of the Geumbichae Minhwa Education & Research Studio.

“Minhwa Is a Window That Holds Today’s Hopes”

“The moment the sun rises and light suffuses the painting, I feel a rapture as if the image were breathing,” Kim says. “I hope that energy will reach the viewers.” She adds, “With the humility of taking one step back before tradition, I have approached minhwa not as simply an old picture, but as a window that carries today’s wishes and hopes.”

A tradition-laden painting meets animation, and that emotion returns once more to the canvas of real life. Kim Yu-kyung’s exhibition demonstrates that minhwa does not remain in the past; it breathes as a living art in dialogue with K-culture today.

By Jaeseong Park, Staff Reporter
Seoul — Sept. 7, 2025 (KST)