금관문화훈장 수훈 예술가 15인의 지속가능 발전 토론회

나는 귀가 들리지 않는 침묵 속에서 붓 하나로 세상과 소통했소. 내 그림 속 말들이 역동적으로 질주하듯, 자연은 본래 생명력으로 가득 차 있지. 지속가능 발전이란, 우리가 잠시 귀를 막고 자연의 역동적인 맥박 소리를 듣는 것에서 시작해야 하오. 인류는 지금 너무 많은 소음, 즉 경제적 이익만을 좇느라 자연의 비명 소리를 듣지 못하는 '청각장애' 상태에 빠져 있소. 침묵 속에서 자연의 본질을 꿰뚫어 보듯, 우리도 잠시 성장의 소음을 멈추고 지구의 생명력을 직시해야 합니다.

내 작품 '다다익선'은 많은 텔레비전으로 이루어져 있지만, 중요한 것은 그 연결망(네트워크)입니다. 나는 기술을 통해 전 세계를 하나의 비디오 광장으로 만들고자 했죠. 지구의 지속가능성도 마찬가지입니다. 이제 '전자 초고속도로'를 통해 지구의 환경 데이터를 실시간으로 공유해야 합니다. 아마존의 심장박동 소리, 북극의 얼음 녹는 소리를 전 세계인이 동시에 보고 들을 수 있어야 합니다. 기술은 단순히 소비를 위한 도구가 아니라, 지구라는 거대한 생명체의 상태를 함께 느끼고 소통하게 하는 예술적 매체가 되어야 합니다.

내 그림 속 '황소'는 고통 속에서도 꺾이지 않는 우리 민족의 순수한 생명력이었소. 나는 가족과 헤어진 아픔 속에서도 아이들과 소를 그리며 희망을 놓지 않았지. 지금 지구가 겪는 고통이 꼭 전쟁터 같구려. 지속가능 발전이란, 이 고통받는 지구를 향한 순수한 사랑과 연민의 마음을 회복하는 것이오. 경제적 계산 이전에, 병들어가는 생명에 대한 애끓는 마음이 먼저여야 하오. 내 그림의 황소처럼, 끈질기고 우직한 생명력으로 지구의 상처를 보듬고, 희망을 그려 나가야만 합니다.

나는 25년간 『토지』를 쓰며, 땅에 뿌리내리고 살아가는 수많은 사람들의 희로애락을 담았습니다. 땅은 생명의 근원이며, 역사의 무대입니다. 그런데 지금 우리는 이 땅을 너무나 쉽게 파괴하고 있습니다. 지속가능 발전은 결국 '땅의 가치'를 되찾는 일입니다. 땅을 단순히 부동산이나 자원으로만 보는 것이 아니라, 우리 조상들의 삶과 미래 세대의 운명이 깃든 생명체로 존중해야 합니다. 『토지』의 인물들이 땅을 지키기 위해 싸웠듯, 우리도 이제 지구라는 거대한 토지를 지키기 위한 대서사를 써 내려가야 합니다.

제 소설 『당신들의 천국』은 인간의 선한 의지가 어떻게 폭력이 될 수 있는지를 보여줍니다. 우리는 '지속가능 발전'이라는 이름으로 또 다른 '천국'을 건설하려 하고 있지는 않습니까? 첨단 기술과 거대 자본으로 지구를 관리하려는 계획이, 정작 그곳에 사는 수많은 생명과 공동체의 목소리를 억압하는 '당신들만의 천국'이 될 수 있습니다. 진정한 지속가능성은 일방적인 해결책을 제시하는 것이 아니라, 자연과 소외된 이들의 목소리를 듣고, 그들의 아픔에 공감하며 함께 길을 찾아가는 과정이어야 합니다.

『태백산맥』, 『아리랑』을 통해 이름 없이 스러져간 민중의 역사를 기록했습니다. 역사는 승리한 자들의 기록이지만, 진실은 고통받는 민중의 삶 속에 있습니다. 지금 '기후 위기'라는 거대한 역사의 전환기에서 가장 고통받는 이들은 누구입니까? 바로 가난한 나라의 민중들입니다. 지속가능 발전은 이 '기후 약자'들의 목소리에서 시작되어야 합니다. 선진국들은 자신들의 풍요가 이들의 희생 위에 세워졌음을 인정하고, 역사적 책임을 져야 합니다. 민중의 고통을 외면하는 발전은 또 다른 폭력의 역사일 뿐입니다.

I communicated with the world through a brush in silence, as I could not hear. Just as the horses in my paintings gallop dynamically, nature is inherently full of vitality. Sustainable development must begin with us momentarily closing our ears to listen to the dynamic pulse of nature. Humanity is currently in a state of 'deafness,' chasing only economic interests and failing to hear nature's screams. Just as I saw the essence of nature in silence, we must stop the noise of growth for a moment and face the vitality of the Earth directly.

My work 'The More, The Better' is made of many televisions, but what's important is the network. I sought to make the entire world a single video plaza through technology. The same goes for Earth's sustainability. We must now share the planet's environmental data in real-time via the 'electronic superhighway.' The heartbeat of the Amazon, the sound of the Arctic ice melting—the whole world must be able to see and hear them simultaneously. Technology should not just be a tool for consumption but an artistic medium that allows us to feel and communicate the state of the great living organism called Earth.

The 'Bull' in my paintings represented the pure life force of our people, unyielding even in suffering. In the pain of separation from my family, I never let go of hope, painting children and bulls. The suffering the Earth endures now seems just like a battlefield. Sustainable development is about recovering a pure love and compassion for this suffering planet. Before economic calculations, there must be a heart that aches for ailing life. Like the bull in my paintings, we must embrace the Earth's wounds with a tenacious, simple life force and continue to paint a picture of hope.

For 25 years, I wrote "Toji" (The Land), capturing the joys and sorrows of countless people rooted in the land. The land is the source of life and the stage of history. Yet now, we are destroying this land so easily. Sustainable development is ultimately about reclaiming the 'value of the land.' We must respect the land not just as real estate or a resource, but as a living entity imbued with the lives of our ancestors and the destiny of future generations. Just as the characters of "Toji" fought to protect their land, we must now begin to write an epic saga to protect the great land that is our Earth.

My novel "Your Paradise" shows how human good intentions can turn into violence. Are we not trying to build another 'paradise' in the name of 'sustainable development'? A plan to manage the Earth with advanced technology and huge capital can become 'a paradise for you alone,' suppressing the voices of countless lives and communities that live there. True sustainability is not about presenting unilateral solutions, but about listening to the voices of nature and the marginalized, empathizing with their pain, and finding a path together.

Through "The Taebaek Mountains" and "Arirang," I recorded the history of the common people who vanished without a name. History is the record of the victors, but the truth lies in the lives of the suffering masses. In this great historical transition of the 'climate crisis,' who are the ones suffering the most? It is the common people of poor nations. Sustainable development must begin with the voices of these 'climate-vulnerable.' Developed nations must acknowledge that their prosperity was built on the sacrifices of these people and take historical responsibility. Development that ignores the suffering of the people is just another history of violence.

In "Jang Gilsan," I depicted how the oppressed masses liberate themselves, and in "The Guest," I saw how ideology destroys humanity. The Earth today is trapped in the grand ideology of 'overproduction and overconsumption.' This ideology seems to enrich us, but it is ultimately a 'guest' that destroys ourselves and our planet. Sustainable development is a liberation movement from this old ideology. We must break free from the illusion that possessing more is happiness and restore the value of living together. True richness lies in relationships, not possessions.

My film "Arirang" captured the sorrow and spirit of resistance of a nation that lost its country. The protagonist Young-jin went mad because he embraced the suffering of his era with his whole body. The groans of the Earth today are like the 'Arirang' of our time. If we hear this sad song and do not act, we are no different from those who have lost their minds. Sustainable development must be our response to the Arirang of this era. Just as sorrow was sublimated into art to create a force of resistance, we must move beyond despair and take action to create hope.

For over 50 years, I have lived the lives of others in front of the camera. I've learned that good acting starts not from judging a character, but from understanding and accepting them as they are. Isn't sustainable development the same? Problems arise when we try to judge and mold nature as an 'object for development.' We need to put down our yardsticks for a moment and try to respect and understand the forest as a forest, the river as a river. Like Soon-ja in "Minari," we must not forget that even the most common blade of grass holds tenacious life and wisdom.

My film "The Housemaid" shows how a foreign object (the housemaid) entering an ordinary family leads to its ruin. I explored the process of how humanity's twisted desires collapse a system. Humanity has now brought self-made foreign objects like 'plastic' and 'greenhouse gases' into its home, the Earth. These convenient 'housemaids' will eventually become monsters that destroy the very foundation of our survival. Sustainable development is about facing the true nature of the desires that threaten our home. If we ignore a fundamental threat for the sake of immediate convenience, we will all face a tragic end together.

Through the "Aegukga" (National Anthem), I sought to create a majestic harmony that could unite our people. It contains the wish to protect our land, 'until the East Sea's waves are dry and Mt. Baekdu is worn away.' Now, we need a new 'Anthem for the Earth' for all of humanity. A music that sings of our common home, the Earth, beyond specific nations or peoples, must resound. Sustainable development is the act of singing this Earth Anthem together. Just as different voices gather to create one great harmony, diverse cultures and nations must join forces to sing of the Earth's eternal prosperity.

To produce a single note from my fingertips requires tens of thousands of hours of precise practice. The four strings of a violin produce beautiful sound only when they are in perfect tune. The Earth's ecosystem is an instrument far more delicate and complex than my violin. Humanity is now ruthlessly snapping its strings. Sustainable development is about restoring the tuning of this great instrument. We must know that if even one string is off, the entire chord is ruined; if even one ecosystem collapses, the harmony of the entire planet is broken. We must treat the Earth with the same reverence a musician treats their instrument.

My role is to listen to the sounds of over 100 different musicians and guide them to create a single harmony. I am not a commander, but a listener. Global leadership for sustainable development must be the same. Powerful nations must not just raise their own voices. They must listen to the voices of small island nations suffering first from climate change, the silent voices of future generations, and the sounds of nature itself. A true leader is like a conductor who listens to all sounds, humbles themselves for the harmony of the whole, and presents a direction to move forward together.

I spent my entire fortune to protect our cultural assets from being plundered by imperial Japan. Just as the "Hunminjeongeum Haerye" is a priceless treasure, so too is the Earth's natural heritage. The Amazon rainforest, the Arctic ice caps—they are a priceless common heritage of humanity. We are now destroying this great heritage ourselves for the sake of short-term profit. Sustainable development means becoming the 'Gansong' (my pen name) of our era. It is the noblest form of patriotism and humanism to protect the precious natural heritage we must pass on to future generations, even at a present cost.

I sought to discover and share the value of the 'artless beauty' within our cultural heritage. Like the asymmetrical roundness of a moon jar, the beauty of Korea lies not in perfection, but in natural harmony. We are now pursuing only artificial and perfect control. Rectangular buildings, genetically modified crops... Sustainable development is about relearning the 'artless beauty' of nature. We need the wisdom and composure to abandon the arrogance of trying to control everything and accept nature's crooked and asymmetrical ways as they are. True beauty resides in harmony, not perfection.

私は耳が聞こえない沈黙の中で、筆一本で世界と疎通しました。私の絵の中の馬が躍動的に疾走するように、自然は本来、生命力に満ち溢れています。持続可能な発展とは、私たちがしばし耳を塞ぎ、自然の躍動的な脈拍の音を聞くことから始めなければなりません。人類は今、あまりにも多くの騒音、すなわち経済的利益ばかりを追い求め、自然の悲鳴を聞くことができない「聴覚障害」の状態に陥っています。沈黙の中で自然の本質を見抜くように、私たちも少しの間、成長の騒音を止め、地球の生命力を直視すべきです。

私の作品「多々益善」は多くのテレビで構成されていますが、重要なのはそのネットワークです。私は技術を通じて全世界を一つのビデオ広場にしようとしました。地球の持続可能性も同じです。今こそ「電子超高速道路」を通じて地球の環境データをリアルタイムで共有すべきです。アマゾンの心臓の鼓動、北極の氷が溶ける音を、世界中の人々が同時に見て聞けるようにならなければなりません。技術は単に消費のための道具ではなく、地球という巨大な生命体の状態を共に感じ、疎通させる芸術的媒体となるべきです。

私の絵の中の「黄牛」は、苦痛の中でも屈しない我々民族の純粋な生命力でした。私は家族と離れた痛みの中でも、子供たちと牛を描きながら希望を失いませんでした。今、地球が経験している苦痛は、まるで戦場のようです。持続可能な発展とは、この苦しむ地球に対する純粋な愛と憐憫の心を取り戻すことです。経済的な計算の前に、病める生命への切ない心が先にあるべきです。私の絵の黄牛のように、粘り強く愚直な生命力で地球の傷を癒し、希望を描き続けなければなりません。

私は25年かけて『土地』を書き、地に根を下ろして生きる数多くの人々の喜怒哀楽を込めました。土地は生命の根源であり、歴史の舞台です。しかし今、私たちはこの土地をあまりにも簡単に破壊しています。持続可能な発展とは、結局「土地の価値」を取り戻すことです。土地を単なる不動産や資源として見るのではなく、私たちの祖先の人生と未来の世代の運命が宿る生命体として尊重すべきです。『土地』の登場人物たちが土地を守るために戦ったように、私たちも今、地球という巨大な土地を守るための大叙事詩を書き記していかなければなりません。

私の小説『あなたたちの天国』は、人間の善意がいかにして暴力になりうるかを示しました。私たちは「持続可能な発展」という名の下に、また別の「天国」を建設しようとしているのではないでしょうか。先端技術と巨大資本で地球を管理しようという計画が、そこに住む数多くの生命や共同体の声を抑圧する「あなたたちだけの天国」になりかねません。真の持続可能性とは、一方的な解決策を提示することではなく、自然と疎外された者たちの声に耳を傾け、その痛みに共感しながら共に道を探していく過程でなければなりません。

『太白山脈』、『アリラン』を通じて、名もなく消えていった民衆の歴史を記録しました。歴史は勝利した者たちの記録ですが、真実は苦しむ民衆の生の中にあります。今、「気候危機」という巨大な歴史の転換期において最も苦しんでいるのは誰でしょうか。貧しい国々の民衆です。持続可能な発展は、この「気候弱者」たちの声から始められなければなりません。先進国は自らの豊かさが彼らの犠牲の上に成り立っていることを認め、歴史的責任を負うべきです。民衆の苦しみに背を向ける発展は、また別の暴力の歴史に過ぎません。

私は『張吉山』を通じて抑圧された民衆が自らをいかに解放するかを描き、『客人』を通じて理念が人間をいかに破壊するかを見ました。今、地球は「過剰生産と過剰消費」という巨大なイデオロギーに囚われています。この理念は私たちを豊かにするように見えますが、結局は私たち自身と地球を破壊する「客人」に過ぎません。持続可能な発展とは、この古いイデオロギーからの解放運動です。より多くを所有することが幸福であるという幻想から抜け出し、共に生きる人生の価値を回復すべきです。真の豊かさは所有ではなく、関係の中にあります。

私の映画「アリラン」は、国を失った民族の憤りと抵抗精神を込めました。主人公のヨんジンが狂ってしまったのは、その時代の苦しみを全身で抱きしめたからです。今、地球が発する呻き声は、我々の時代の「アリラン」と同じです。この悲しい歌を聞いても行動しないなら、我々は皆、気が狂ったも同然です。持続可能な発展とは、この時代のアリランに対する我々の応答でなければなりません。悲しみに打ちひしがれるのではなく、その悲しみを芸術に昇華させ抵抗の力を作り出したように、私たちも絶望を乗り越え希望を創造する行動に乗り出すべきです。

私は50年以上、カメラの前で他人の人生を生きてきました。良い演技とは、その人物を判断するのではなく、ありのままに理解し受け入れることから始まるのだと気づきました。持続可能な発展も同じではないでしょうか。私たちが自然を「開発対象」としてのみ判断し、裁こうとする時に問題が生じます。少しの間、私たちの物差しを置き、森は森として、川は川として、その存在自体を尊重し理解しようとする努力が必要です。「ミナリ」のスンジャおばあさんのように、ごく普通の草一本にも強靭な生命力と知恵があることを忘れてはなりません。

私の映画「下女」は、平凡な家庭に入り込んだ異物（下女）が、いかにしてその家庭を破滅させるかを描いています。私は人間の歪んだ欲望がシステムを崩壊させる過程を探求しました。今、人類は「プラスチック」や「温室効果ガス」といった自ら作り出した異物を、地球という家に引き入れました。この便利な「下女」たちは、結局、私たちの生存基盤を崩壊させる怪物となるでしょう。持続可能な発展とは、私たちの家を脅かす欲望の本質を直視することです。目先の便利さのために根本的な脅威から目を背けるなら、結局は皆が共に破滅する悲劇を迎えることになるでしょう。

私は「愛国歌」を通じて、我が民族が一つになれる荘厳な和音を創り出そうとしました。東海の水と白頭山が乾き果てるまで、我々の山河を守ろうとする念願を込めました。今や、全人類のための新しい「地球賛歌」が必要です。特定の国家や民族を超え、地球という共同の家を歌う音楽が響き渡らなければなりません。持続可能な発展とは、まさにこの地球賛歌を共に歌うことです。異なる声が集まって一つの偉大な和音を作るように、多様な文化と国家が力を合わせ、地球の永遠の繁栄を歌うべきです。

私の指先から一つの音色を生み出すためには、何万時間もの精密な練習が必要です。ヴァイオリンの四本の弦は、完璧な調律がなされて初めて美しい音を奏でます。地球の生態系は、私のヴァイオリンよりもはるかに精巧で複雑な楽器です。今、人類はその楽器の弦を無慈悲にも断ち切っています。持続可能な発展とは、この偉大な楽器の調律を取り戻すことです。一本の弦が狂えば全体の和音が崩れるように、一つの生態系が崩壊すれば地球全体の調和が壊れることを知らねばなりません。私たちは演奏家が楽器を扱うように、畏敬の念をもって地球に接するべきです。

私の役割は、100人を超えるそれぞれ異なる演奏家の音に耳を傾け、彼らが一つのハーモニーを創り出すよう導くことです。私は命令する者ではなく、聴く者です。持続可能な発展のためのグローバル・リーダーシップも同様であるべきです。大国が自らの声ばかりを張り上げてはなりません。気候変動で最初に苦しむ小さな島国の声、未来世代の沈黙の声、そして自然の声にまで耳を傾けるべきです。真のリーダーとは、すべての音に耳を傾け、全体の調和のために自らを低くし、共に進むべき方向を示す指揮者のような存在であるべきです。

私は全財産を投じて、日本の収奪から我々の文化財を守り抜きました。『訓民正音解例本』が金銭で価値を付けられない宝物であるように、地球の自然遺産もまた同じです。アマゾンの熱帯雨林、北極の氷河は、値段の付けられない人類共同の遺産です。今、私たちは目先の利益のために、この偉大な遺産を自ら破壊しています。持続可能な発展とは、我々の時代の「澗松(カンドン)」になることです。目先の損失を甘受してでも、未来の世代に引き継ぐべき大切な自然遺産を守り抜くこと、それこそがこの時代で最も高貴な愛国であり、人類愛です。

私は我々の文化遺産に込められた「無心な美しさ」を発見し、その価値を広めようとしました。月壺の非対称的な丸みの趣のように、韓国の美は完璧さではなく、自然な調和にあります。今、私たちはあまりにも人為的で完璧な制御ばかりを追求しています。四角四面の建物、遺伝子操作された作物…。持続可能な発展とは、自然の「無心な美しさ」を再び学ぶことです。すべてを制御しようとする傲慢さを捨て、歪んで非対称な自然のあり方をそのまま受け入れる余裕と知恵が必要です。真の美しさは、完璧さではなく調和の中に宿っているのです。