Kim Geum-hee, who published ‘Big Greenhouse Repair Report’
Restoration of cultural assets – find all architectural materials
“Videos are no substitute for the information you get from books.”
On a rainy summer day, novelist Kim Geum-hee (45) stayed under the eaves of Changgyeonggung Palace for a long time. In my mid-20s, I was working as an editor at a publishing company and creating books about Changdeokgung Palace and Changgyeonggung Palace. It is said that on the first day of visiting the palace, it suddenly rained. At that time, the house was on the verge of collapse. When my father’s business failed, I moved to avoid debt collectors, and my parents went into hiding. The rain that was pouring down with force and the scenery of Malgan after the rain stopped. It is said that that image has not left his mind for nearly 20 years.
I met Kim Geum-hee, who published a new full-length novel, ‘Great Greenhouse Repair Report’ (Changbi), in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 2nd. “When you feel like something has been damaged in your life, you struggle with those memories a lot. While writing this work, I realized that the memories themselves constitute me. “The process of building, repairing, and preserving another house with that memory moves me forward.”
The new book is set in the Changgyeonggung Palace Greenhouse, and the story of the current repair work and the Japanese who created the Greenhouse in the past intersect like weft and warp threads. Dae Greenhouse is Korea’s first Western-style greenhouse built inside Changgyeonggung Palace in 1909. The rise and fall of modern and contemporary history unfolds around the Daewonsil, which has been in the same place for over 100 years.
Traditional architectural terms such as hipped roof and well-shaped roof frequently appear in the book. He said, “I think I have read all the literature related to the repair and restoration of cultural properties published by the National Heritage Administration.” The list of references included in the appendix alone is eight pages long.
The book vividly depicts scenes where characters wake up hibernating toads while digging in the ground, or where earthworms and ground puppies suddenly pop out. “I was curious about what is covered when work is temporarily stopped on site and whether it is covered at all. Since it is a very practical part, no matter how hard I search, I can’t find any information. Then, I noticed a blue tent covering the back of the researchers’ photo. “I thought, ‘I did something today,’ so I hit my knee.” By taking hints one by one, we improved the realism.
During the Japanese colonial period, Changgyeonggung Palace was operated as ‘Changgyeongwon’, an amusement park with an animal and botanical garden. The book shows how the animals in Changgyeongwon were neglected and starved to death at the end of the Pacific War. It also sheds light on the ‘remaining Japanese’ who were expelled from both Japan and Korea after liberation. Kim Geum-hee said, “I wanted to show history through one individual in more detail.”
I asked the author what it means to write. He responded, “I think the book-reading community will last forever.” “This is because videos cannot replace the information, speed, and amount that can be obtained from books when spending the same amount of time,” he said.
In February of this year, he visited the King Sejong Station in Antarctica for a month to work on his next film featuring polar scientists. They also received prior training, including underwater training, in case the Zodiac boat capsized. It is said that while working with scientists, he felt respect for those who were focused on one research topic, such as moss or the atmosphere. The author, who shyly confessed, “I really like stubborn people,” seemed just as strong as them.
Reporter Kim So-min [email protected]
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2024-10-03 23:10:07