Van Gogh Reborn! - Chapter 30

Kim Jiwoo calmed down only after taking a seat in the restaurant.

“Hahahah. I’m sorry I got too much excited. I really wanted to know about the big thing that’s happening in the art world.”

Grandpa smiled and nodded his head.

Although he is a bit eccentric, I don’t hate his bright and lively figure.

“Let’s make an order first.”

Kim Jiwoo raised his hand and called the staff.

“I will buy it ! Please order anything.”

“haha. Thank you. What do you want to eat, Hun?”

I looked at the menu list and found a dish which I wanted to try.

“I want to try Hollinger Niu.”

“Huh? Hun Do you know what it is?”

“It’s pickled herring…right.?”

Grandpa thought for a while and then said to the staff.

“Two fishpots, one Hollinger niur and one meatball, please. And…. give me two glasses of water. Also give us a sashimi, and chicken salad and lime carbonated water.”

The employee stared at me while receiving the order and asked.

“Would you like some bread?”

“Yes, don’t cut it. Give me the whole thing.”

The staff shrugged and headed to the kitchen.

“If it doesn’t taste good, eat meatballs and sashimi. I think you can’t eat it Little Hun.”

“I can.”

I wonder if pickled herring might not taste as good as it used to be in the olden day.

While I was thinking about the food Kim Jiwoo started the conversation.

“How are you Hun? Are having fun in this trip?”

“Yes.”

“What places did you vist.?”

“The Van Gogh Museum and the Amsterdam National museum.”

“In addition?”

“ What…in addition?”

I don’t know what he meant in addition, so turned my head sideways feeling puzzled.

“It’s been a week. Haven’t you gone anywhere else?”

“hahahah. This little guy spent 6 days at the Van Gogh Museum.”

When Grandpa answered in my stead, Kim Jiwoo raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“Wow. really? You really like Van Gogh, don’t you?”

It’s not because I like myself, it’s because I was observing the people who visited the my museum.

Because of that……..

I was able to like myself a little bit.

It gave me an opportunity to think about what I did wrong, and what I should have done to achieve my dream.

It gave me hop that my dream isn’t lost yet.

All thanks to the people who loved my paintings.

“Here’s your order.”

While I was thinking, the food we ordered came.

The staff placed the dishes we ordered one after the other.

Hutspot served with sausage (traditional Dutch dish of stir-fried potatoes, onions, carrots, cabbage and meat), salad, meatballs and hollinger niuer.

“Oh, Here is your Haring.”

“Haring?”

“this.”

These days, it seems that this dish is simply called ‘haring (herring)’.

When it comes to herring, it is usually pickled and eaten.

For hygiene, I wiped my hands with an antiseptic tissue and held up the Hollinger Niuer.

The slightly reddish color looks like fresh herring.

It doesn’t have the strong fishy smell, and it’s served with pickled onions, so this is a great meal.

“Is that delicious?”

Kim Jiwoo asked with a slight frown on his face as if saying its disgusting

“of course it’s delicious.”

When I took a large bite, the saltiness and savory flavor I had forgotten spread in my mouth and I could feel the fragrance.

“……”

“how is it.?”

It’s……………disgusting

“Awwww.”

I quickly took out the tissue and spit it out.

It is definitely a good stewed herring, and the taste is not much different from the previous one, but it is not delicious.

Potato pizza or jjajangmyeon tastes much better.

“Hahahah.”

Kim Jiwoo kept smiling looking at my expression.

“Serves you right. That’s why you should always listen to your grandpa. Now go, wash your hands and eat this.”

Grandpa brought water and disinfectant wipes.

I ate the sushi spot with regret, which felt much tastier because of the herring.

The potatoes are soft and the ground meat is also delicious.

It is well seasoned and has a strange umami taste.

It’s the same food as in the past, and the same ingredients are used, but I don’t know why there is such a difference in taste.

After the meal, Kim Jiwoo once again started asking questions.

“First thing I want to check the facts. When Henry Marceau proposed a joint exhibition, it became a hot topic, but you turned it down at first, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

I answered while drinking the delicious lime carbonated water that Kim Jiwoo gave me.

“You said the reason was because I had a prior promise, and then Henry Marceau came to meet you.”

I nodded my head while drinking the lime carbonated water.

“What did he say.?”

“He asked why I turned down his offer.”

“then? What did he say?”

“He got angry when I said the reason was because of a prior promise. So I told him Promises are important no matter who you make them with.”

“Hahahah well said my boy.”

Kim Jiwoo, who opened his eyes wide as if surprised, hearing Grandpa’s response .

“Yeah. So what happened next.?”

“…So I asked. Do you think my drawings are that good?”

“Hahah.”

Kim Jiwoo laughed again.

His mouth was tightly shut, but the laughter protruded between his lips.

“Sorry. Please continue.”

“So I gave him the picture I drew that day. I’m thankful that he likes me, so I tried to comfort him.”

“Heh heh heh.”

Kim Jiwoo laughed again.

“I never thought Henry Marceau would be treated like this. You are so Bold Hun.”

“Is he that great?”

I know that he is rich, can see that he has influence, but I don’t know anything other than that about him.

“Yes. He is the most active artist right now, and he is also the most popular with the public. He’s not on good terms with critics. Well in this Capitalist era critics’ ratings has not to do with popularity”

I don’t know what capitalism is.

At least, it is an agreed fact that the public’s gaze is more important than the critics.

“Besides, he has a lot of money, and if he really likes it, he will buy it no matter how expensive it is. With what he inherited, he also runs a good business. Even if he is eccentric, he is one of the most influential person of this century.”

Grandpa and Aunt Mirae didn’t like him very much, but it seems people see him differently.

He’s definitely not the type of person I like.

“OK. So, would your painting be included in the Henry Marceau exhibition?”

“I don’t know.”

I turned my head and looked at Grandpa, who was making a strange face.

“The curator contacted me. She wished to make a written contract.”

“Okay.”

“I’m worried that you keep getting involved with that guy.”

“why….?”

Kim Jiwoo asked the question before I could finish mine.

“Doesn’t this helps Hun, too. In fact, there is a complete uproar in Europe right now, and there is hardly anyone in the art world who doesn’t know about Hun’s sunflowers.”

“Reputation is important, but there is nothing good about interacting with less-humanized people. I don’t want little Hun to get influenced by such creatures.”

Kim Jiwoo scratched his head and then he nodded.

“Yes…, You may be right. Hun is not a Artist, who needs to rely on Henry Marceau’s fame. Just being the dean’s grandson is not enough because it is overflowing. And there is also his fa…..”

Kim Jiwoo was trying to mention ‘Ko Hun’s’ father and mother, but stopped suddenly looking at me.

A strange silence fell on the table.

I broke the silence opening my mouth.

“I’m curious.”

“What Hun?”

“ About Henry Marceau. The kind of painting he draws?”

The fact that he is popular even with his personality means that there is something in his art that attracts people.

I wonder what kind of world, the most loved painter of this era sees.

“Grandpa.…”

“Hun, you don’t have to hang out with a guy like that.”

“I’m just curious about what kind of work he makes. I want to see as many paintings as possible. I’m also curious about how people view my paintings.”

Grandpa sighed as he pondered.

“Okay…..But only one hour…and you shouldn’t talk with that guy.”

“Okay.”

Grandpa brought his pinky finger, so I had no choice but to promise.

“Then can I continue with the question?”

Oops I forgot about him.

“ Yes…!”

“It’s been a week in Amsterdam, and you’ve only been to Van Gogh and the National Museum. It’s important to learn the classics, but aren’t you interested in modern art?”

“I’m interested.”

To be accurate I’m more desperate to learn about it.

“I’m going to watch it slowly. It is difficult to understand a picture by looking at only one point.”

“Difficult to understand from just one point? What does that mean?”

“Rembrandt, for example, was influenced by Caravaggio to control the density of his paints and to deal with light and shadows.”

“Yes.”

“Vincent van Gogh, who admired Rembrandt, wanted to paint like him, but he couldn’t.”

I tried really hard, but I couldn’t paint like the genius Rembrandt.

“Still, he learned how to use color and omit parts to give a strong impression, and created his own style.”

“Right. Van Gogh became an inspiration for Fauvism.”

I don’t know what a Fauvism is.

“Anyway, painters continued the history of art in their own way. They developed what they had learned from previous times in their own way. So, an art form of a particular era can’t be understood just by looking at it alone.”

“Isn’t it similar to the words of French philosopher Gilles Deleuze.”

“Gill Deleuze?”

“He said ‘Every painter summarizes the history of painting in his own way’.”

Grandpa patted my head while saying that.

I became a little embarrassed that I am getting used to accept the act of getting patted in the head without hesitation.

“I see. That’s why looking at places where the classics are valuable.”

“Yes. I’m trying to figure it out slowly. It will take some time to understand how people of present age view the world through the emotions and perspectives.”

Kim Jiwoo smiled softly and grabbed my cheek slightly.

“Are you really a kid? Why are you so mature?”

Stroking the hair is acceptable, but pinching the cheek is unacceptable.

I gave him a menacing look, but he smiled so brightly as if he couldn’t understand it.

“I guess he is really a geniuses. Right, dean?”

“Hahaha.”

⏩⏩⏩⏩⏩⏩

A week has passed since I visited the Amsterdam National museum.

As Kim Jiwoo said, I’ve become really famous, so sometimes someone who recognizes me comes up to me and asks for a handshake.

But it was far from my grandpa, whom everyone greets as soon as they see him.

Anyway, it was a very meaningful time.

If 6 days at the Van Gogh Museum was a time to look back and refresh my mind, the Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam National Museum) was a repeat of wonder.

I didn’t know how time would pass when I talked about painting with my grandpa, so there were times when we talked for an entire day over one piece of art.

It was so much fun that I wondered if it was okay.

“Is it hard for Grandpa.?”

“It’s not hard at all.”

I wonder if I’ve ever been this happy in my life.

“Where should we go next? We can go to the City Museum or the Museum of Modern Art.”

“I want to go to the Henry Marceau exhibition.”

“Okay…..”

He don’t seem to like it yet.

But since it was a promise, he had no choice but to find out about the schedule.

“It’s in Paris.”

“Can I go to Orsay after seeing the Marceau exhibition?”

“Then let’s also go to the Louvre.”