VOL.78/2025.01

 

[A Trip to Literary Museums ⑧]

A Decade of Living With Poetry:
The Poet’s Journey Blossoming Through Verse

Chungcheongnam-do, Buyeo-gun: Shin Dong-Yeop Literary Museum

 

2024.12.02

 

Buyeo is a place that witnessed the rise and fall of the ancient kingdom of Baekje, located in the southwestern part of the Korean Peninsula. It was home to the Baekje royal palace for 122 years until the kingdom’s fall. Traveling to Buyeo is like traveling back in time to the glory and prosperity of Baekje. This is because you can enjoy the charm of ancient culture and arts in depth. Additionally, Buyeo is home to the Shin Dong-yeop Literary Museum, where visitors can encounter the poet Shin Dong-yeop, who resisted the painful modern history of Korea. Also, a journey to Buyeo is an encounter with a rich, long-established culture, as you can visit the Buyeo National Museum, where you can explore the various cultural heritages left behind by the Baekje people with their delicate aesthetic senses, the Jeongnimsa Temple Site, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Gyuam Village near the Baekma River, where traces of time remain, and the Shin Dong-Yeop Literary Museum, where you can meet the poet Shin Dong-Yeop, who was born in Buyeo.

 

 

The revival of a legendary poet who vanished at the pinnacle of poetry: the Shin Dong-Yeop Literary Museum

 

Shin Dong-Yeop, who left a lasting impression on the public with his poem Husk, Be Gone, thrived as a prolific poet for a decade after his debut in 1959 before passing away at the age of 39. Yet, he remains a significant presence in Korean literature for his many works produced during his short life and for his poetry that penetrated the maelstrom of the April Revolution (also called the “April 19 Revolution”)*. During the transitional period toward democracy, Shin Dong-Yeop burned with literary passion as a resistance poet. At the same time, he was a poet with a vast literary horizon who touched the emotions of readers with his lyrical poems. Such a wide range of works may have been due to the fact that he was born and raised in Buyeo, a region imbued with the breath of the ancient city. His sensitive nature was sufficiently stimulated in a region rich in culture and art, giving him the impetus to grow as a poet. For Shin Dong-Yeop, Buyeo was both his hometown and the source of his works. To revive its meaning, the Shin Dong-Yeop Literary Museum was opened in 2013, allowing many people to remember the poet and immerse themselves in his works.

 

* April Revolution: A democratic uprising by students and citizens against the corruption of the government on April 19, 1960.

 

 

The Shin Dong-Yeop Literary Museum is located in the center of Buyeo-eup. Here, the poet’s birthplace, where he lived and created works for most of his life, and the 460-meter-long alley that he often walked through, known as the “Shin Dong-Yeop Gil (street),” are organized together, giving visitors a sense of what Buyeo was to the poet and how proud the city is of him. The Hall is a 1,980-square-meter modern structure consisting of one underground floor, one above ground floor, a rooftop, and a garden. The unique maze-like structure was designed by leading Korean architect Seung Hyo-Sang and has become a popular destination for literature and architecture lovers. Before exploring the Literary Museum in detail, start your encounter with the poet by taking a look at the installation titled “Flag of Poetry,” set in the courtyard of the Hall. The flags are made up of several poems by Shin Dong-Yeop in the form of flags, enabling visitors to read the poems in a different style. Also, a variety of other installations on the theme of the poet exhibited throughout the museum add to the fun of exploration.
As you enter the main exhibition hall on the first floor, you will find a variety of works and belongings that shed light on the poet’s world of poetry. The exhibition is filled with Shin Dong-Yeop’s handwritten manuscripts, over 700 handwritten letters, and many photographs and books, all of which were donated by his family, creating the impression that the poet’s life has been recreated. After walking through the exhibition hall, where you could get a glimpse into the poet’s life and the fierce life he lived as a poet, you will be able to feel closer to the poet’s sentiments. If you go downstairs with this feeling in mind, there is a space set aside for visitors to leave messages for the poet, who is still with us today, revived in his works. The Literary Museum is organized in a way that allows visitors to meet the poet, understand his works, and reflect on the poems they have embraced in their hearts. This way, the Hall enables visitors to deeply interact and connect with the poet.

 

 

Once you are done exploring the Shin Dong-Yeop Literary Museum, there is one thing you shouldn’t miss. It’s a straw-thatched house that has been restored to resemble the poet’s birthplace, and a narrow but cozy alleyway named Shin Dong-Yeop Gil. The small room where the poet lived and worked, and the alleyway where he would have walked through slowly, deepening his sentimental feelings, make visitors feel connected to the poet. What is even more impressive is that the alleyway is still a place where people in Buyeo go about their daily lives. People come out to the courtyard of the Literary Museum to meet with their neighbors and exchange greetings in the alleyways filled with the poet’s traces. This makes it feel like the poet still lives among them.

 

The record of Baekje, where delicate cultural art flourished: Buyeo National Museum and Jeongnimsa Temple Site

 

Although Buyeo is a small city, it has a lot to offer in terms of tourism. That is because it preserves Baekje’s cultural heritage. Baekje was a cultural powerhouse with a strong artistic flair. Here, we followed the traces of its flourishing culture. In walking distance from Shin Dong-Yeop Literary Museum are two important places you should not miss on your trip to Buyeo - Buyeo National Museum and Jeongnimsa Temple Site. The Buyeo National Museum mainly displays artifacts from the late Baekje period excavated in the Buyeo area. Displaying more than 11,600 artifacts in 4 permanent exhibition halls and an outdoor exhibition hall, the centerpieces are the Gilt-bronze Incense Burner of Baekje, designated as a national treasure, and the Standing Gilt-bronze Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, another national treasure nicknamed “Miss Baekje.” There are also countless other exhibits that show off the magnificent culture of the Baekje Dynasty, and the museum’s lobby features immersive videos featuring artifacts from the collection, which is another must-see.
In particular, the Gilt-bronze Incense Burner of Baekje, the representative artifact of the Buyeo National Museum, is awe-inspiring for its exquisite carving. The Gilt-bronze Incense Burner of Baekje is the ultimate example of the splendor of Baekje’s cultural heritage, which is often described as “colorful but not extravagant, frugal but not shabby.” A gracefully curved, crouching dragon supports a mountain layered with lotus flowers, and at the top stands a phoenix with wings spread as if to fly away at a moment’s notice, holding a cintamani (dragon’s orb) under the chin. The delicacy and beauty of this single piece of cultural heritage, which makes it difficult to walk away from, is a testament to the high level of Baekje’s aesthetic sensibilities.

 

 

Nearby are the Jeongnimsa Temple Site (in Korean “Jeongnimsaji”) and Jeongnimsaji Museum, both of which are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is said that Baekje moved its capital to Sabisung (now Buyeo) and built Jeongnimsa Temple in the center as a symbol of the kingdom. However, all that remains today are the national treasures of the Five-Story Stone Pagoda and the Stone Seated Buddha at Jeongnimsa Temple Site, while the rest of the temple site is just a vast ruin. Although the Jeongnimsa Temple Site is in ruins, the Five-Story Stone Pagoda, which exudes a solemn yet elegant aura, is a testament to Baekje’s refined and creative sense of sculpture. The pagoda, oozing with dignity and elegance, is considered to be one of the most representative examples of the beauty of Korean stone pagodas. The Jeongnimsaji Museum, built right next to it, features artifacts excavated from the site and exhibits that provide a greater understanding of Buddhism during the Baekje Dynasty. In particular, visitors can get a sense of what the temple looked like by viewing a 1/12th-scale reconstruction of Jeongnimsa Temple, as well as various artifacts excavated from the temple site.

 

 

The passion of youth breathes new life into ancient times: Gyuam Village

 

When traveling around Buyeo, you will notice that there are many places where you can feel the passage of time. One such place is Gyuam Village. Gyuam Village used to be a bustling marketplace along the port that led inland, and it was once famous as a “craft village” where over 600 artists lived. Over time, the village became an old town where the once-thriving prosperity is no longer visible. However, riding the wave of retro trends, Gyewam Village has started to regain its vibrancy. What was once used as a grain warehouse during the Japanese occupation of Korea is now being used as a handicraft workshop for young artisans and local residents, reviving its former fame and prosperity.
As Gyuam Village has firmly established strong roots as a craft cluster that carries on the glorious cultural arts of Baekje, a number of “regenerated” spaces have sprung up around the village, known as “Jaon-gil.” It was that creative centers, residences, art cubes, and an observatory were established to help young craftspeople and local residents coexist and spread craft culture in daily life, and vacant stores and houses in the village were converted to accommodate workshop start-ups. As diverse and unique spaces run by young people, including workshops, bookstores, sundries stores, lodging, and cafes, began to appear, Buyeo became known as a must-visit destination for travelers. The village is now a place where the traces of time in the old houses, the quaint alleys, and the passion of young people, each with their own unique color, blend together, setting it on a path from the past through the present and into the future. In the fall, the “123 Sabi Craft Festa” is held to showcase a variety of events where visitors can interact and share their experiences through crafts. Thanks to Gyuam Village, a place where you can discover how Buyeo, a long-standing city of art, is shaping the way forward through coexistence, the future of Buyeo remains young and vibrant.

 

 

We have taken a stroll around Buyeo, a tranquil, serene region, reciting poems by poet Shin Dong-Yeop. A trip to Buyeo, which has transformed from the ancient capital of Baekje to a cultural and artistic hub filled with literary fragrances, can be said to be a time to recharge your senses and experience the Korean beauty that has been passed down through the ages. The experience of enjoying Korea’s literary and cultural heritage, left by those who lived in earlier times, adds precious meaning to the trip, and the memories of the journey will bloom even more fragrantly.

 

 

---

Written by Kim Young-Ihm