Looking at Geumgangsan Mountain from Danbal Pass (斷髮嶺望金剛山) by Jeong Seon (1676–1759), from his Album of Geumgangsan Mountain (辛卯年楓嶽圖帖), shows a magnificent view of the mountain, as well as the people who are enjoying that view. On the right side of the painting, a group of people are standing at Danbal Pass, the gateway to Geumgangsan Mountain, gazing at the numerous peaks in the distance. The pass is named “Danbal,” which means “to cut hair,” because the view is said to be so sublime that anyone who sees it might feel compelled to shave their heads and become a monk. In this painting, Jeong Seon captured both the rugged, winding path that leads to Danbal Pass and the stunning sensation of first coming upon the view after reaching the pass. On the upper left side of the painting is Geumgangsan Mountain, with its renowned “12,000 peaks” depicted in a shining white hue, like glimmering crystals. By boldly omitting the details between the foreground and background, Jeong Seon emphasized the overwhelming awe and mystical beauty of the mountain.

In the late autumn of 1711, at the age of thirty-five, Jeong Seon embarked on a journey to Geumgangsan Mountain with a local elder named Shin Taedong (1659–1729). While Shin Taedong had previously visited Geumgangsan Mountain, it was Jeong Seon’s first trip to the mountain, which filled him with excitement. The Album of Geumgangsan Mountain contains an annotation by Shin Yeong, the great-great-grandson of Shin Taedong, which states that Jeong Seon’s paintings were once accompanied by poems and essays written by Shin Taedong and several literati scholars. Unfortunately, however, those poems and essays are no longer extant.

This annotation states that Jeong Seon’s paintings were appreciated along with poetry and commentary by various literati scholars. However, those writings have been lost, as the present album contains only Jeong Seon’s thirteen paintings of scenic spots, including Looking at Geumgangsan Mountain from Danbal Pass, and Shin Yeong’s annotation.

This album has tremendous significance, as it contains many of Jeong Seon’s earliest true-view landscape paintings. While visiting Geumgangsan Mountain for the first time, he portrayed the landscape with great care and detail, carefully adding various shades of blue and green to his colors. The paintings include Comprehensive View of Inner Geumgang, which captures the entire valley of Inner Geumgang starting from Jangansa Temple, with all of the most famous sights and areas labeled. Other works include Jangansa Temple, in which Jeong Seon provides an enlarged view of the temple from Comprehensive View of Inner Geumgang, meticulously depicting its architecture, including the rainbow-shaped bridge leading into the temple, along with the surrounding valley and mountain scenery. The album also contains Bodeokgul Hermitage, which magnifies the central part of Comprehensive View of Inner Geumgang. The valley occupies the center of the work, with a layered landscape on the left, including Geumgangdae Cliff, Sohyangnobong Peak, and Daehyangnobong Peak. Bodeokgul Hermitage can be seen on the right, about halfway up a vertical cliff.

The three paintings complement one another, with the latter two works providing more detailed views of sections of Comprehensive View of Inner Geumgang, thus enhancing the viewer’s understanding of the local geography. In the third painting, the sharp peaks of Junghyangseong can be seen in the background behind Bodeokgul Hermitage.

Hence, the paintings in Album of Geumgangsan Mountain have a complementary relationship, with Comprehensive View of Inner Geumgang depicting the entire area and the other paintings providing magnified and detailed views of certain sections of Comprehensive View of Inner Geumgang. A similar complementary relationship can be seen between the works in Album of Scenic Views of Hamgyeong-do Province (北關酬唱錄) by Han Sigak (1621–after 1691), which was painted about half a century earlier.

In 1664, Kim Suhang (1629–1689), who had been dispatched to serve as the superintendent of the civil service examination in Hamgyeong-do Province, traveled with other officials to various places in the region, including Gilju, Myeongcheon, and Chilbosan Mountain. To commemorate their journey, the officials commissioned the production of Album of Scenic Views of Hamgyeong-do Province, which contains both paintings and writings. In the album, Han Sigak depicted the entirety of Chilbosan Mountain from an overhead view, before then portraying the smaller peaks of Yeonjeokbong and Geumgangbong in separate works.

Chilbosan Mountain provides an overhead perspective of the entire mountain, with all of the main features depicted within the layers of the circular composition. The blue waves of the East Sea can be seen above the mountain.

Following the tradition of seventeenth-century true-view landscape painting, Jeong Seon utilized various compositional techniques to highlight the features of the actual landscapes. In Jangansa Temple, the lush wooded hills behind the temple contrast with the rocky peaks on the opposite side. He also altered his brushstrokes, using “rice dot” strokes to outline the mountain, short strokes to depict the trees, and angular lines and white paint to emphasize the strength and solidity of the rocky mountains. In each painting in the album, Jeong Seon clearly delineated the trails with dotted lines, helping viewers to recall their previous treks or imagine scenic spots they might have missed.

Reportedly, a person exploring Inner Geumgang could cross a single-log bridge to reach Buljeongdae Cliff, which offers a view of twelve waterfalls cascading down the high cliffs of Outer Geumgang. Perhaps Jeong Seon himself walked across that log, as he depicted this scene in Buljeongdae Cliff. In all of these landscapes, Jeong Seon seems to have combined the views that he had witnessed firsthand with his own knowledge of the area. Haesanjeong Pavilion shows the full landscape around the eponymous pavilion in Goseong. Once again, many local landmarks are depicted and labeled, such as the turtle-shaped rocks on the nearby hillsides, the towering Geumgangsan Mountain in the distance, the steep cliffs named Jeokbyeok on the Nam River, and the unique rock formation called Chilseongam in the East Sea. Thus, Jeong Seon strategically emphasized the sites that he wanted to portray while omitting other areas in a blanket of clouds and mist.

In Ongcheon Cliff, on the other hand, Jeong Seon sought to convey an overall impression of the landscape, rather than specific sites. To this end, he used various techniques to highlight the respective characteristics of the cliff and sea. Painted with dark ink, the round cliff, which resembles a jar, sweeps down into the East Sea, which is rhythmically depicted with delicate lines.

Just like the people in the painting, Jeong Seon must have carefully traversed the narrow path along Ongcheon Cliff, perhaps feeling a sense of vertigo when peering down at the crashing waves and surging waters below.

The majesty of nature has the power to stop us in our tracks, sometimes even making us forget our presence as viewers. Indeed, these awe-inspiring experiences are the very reason that most people embark on journeys into nature. When Jeong Seon first visited Geumgangsan Mountain, he was overwhelmed by such intense visual experiences, which he then tried to replicate in his paintings. To creatively express Geumgangsan Mountain, he moved a step beyond the tradition of true-view landscapes by incorporating new compositions and experimental techniques. Representing the early stages of Jeong Seon’s distinctive true-view landscapes, Album of Geumgangsan Mountain is a truly monumental commemorative work.