Moving Farther

John Jackson’s Farther East Gallery Moving

Written By Kim Ji Eun

“We live only to discover beauty. All else is a form of waiting.”    -Kahlil Gibran

In discussing the influences that have shaped his photography, John Jackson, who recently opened Farther East Gallery in Gwangju, regards his experience with Chinese calligraphy in 1973 as one of the many jeon hwa wi bok 전화위복 (good fortune coming from bad) experiences in his life. He stumbled upon this art form while struggling with a difficult life experience and regards it as an important turning point.

“The hours I devoted to this alien artistic medium allowed me to climb out of the deep state of pessimism I had fallen into, and some of the ‘mystical’ beauty I experienced as a side effect still lingers,” Jackson said. “It’s the essential quality that infuses much of my photography and gives it its distinctiveness.”

Jackson also feels that two other experiences directly related to his life in Korea have greatly influenced his photography: the effort put into examining thousands of old Korean paintings during the 1980s and the intellectual challenge of understanding Neo-Confucianism during his studies for a master’s degree in East Asian Studies.

Regarding the first, Jackson believes that the challenge of judging the artistic quality of the old paintings that he saw unrolled before him during the many years he was a collector is what is behind the common remark that his photos resemble oriental paintings. As for the Neo-Confucian exposure, it helped him to understand the philosophical background of the Korean seonbi, the virtuous scholars of the Joseon Dynasty era, whose calligraphy brushes created much of the art that he was collecting.

Jackson says that not only was he charmed by the intimacy with nature in the art of these gentlemen, but he also found much food for thought and virtues to admire in these upright men. Add to this the fact that many seonbi favored the rustic environs that he has called home in Korea and from which he draws much of the inspiration for his photography, and it’s easy to understand why he chose “The Seonbi Spirit” as the theme of his gallery.

Jackson has won numerous awards and participated in several exhibitions. Notable among these are a silver prize in a plum blossom photo contest; a UNESCO photo contest award for a shot taken on Jeju Island; a photo taken locally and chosen for publication by CNN News; and most recently, a second place award in the Summer Universiade photo contest.

In addition, many of his photos from his Peace Corps tour were included in a photo book and exhibition that toured major cities around the world. One of these, a black and white shot on display in his gallery, even ended up being presented to U.S. President Barack Obama when he visited Korea.

Unfortunately, Farther East Gallery moved at the end of December. Jackson is happy to report, however, that once again good fortune seems to be springing from bad, as a new (free!) location has miraculously appeared about 30 minutes farther east.

Regarding the short run of his present gallery, Jackson said: “In the four short weeks that Farther East Gallery has been open, I’ve been invited to exhibit and be the keynote speaker at a Human Values Forum in the hometown of Korea’s most notable seonbi, and an art curator with valuable connections has appeared out of the blue. So, it’s been a short but very synchronistic experience.”

At this point a bearded stranger appeared at the gallery door and soon the artist and his guest were busily discussing various interpretations of the seminal Neo-Confucian text, “The I Ching”.