Filmmaker Im Kwon-taek introduces the life of talented 19th century painter Jang Seung-up in his latest feature Chihwaseon. Born into a lower-class family, Jang Seung-up’s artistic gift bestows him with the status of palace artist. Nevertheless, his life is haunted with instability, women, and alcoholism. The director who masterfully presented a superb translation of Korean tradition music with Chunhyang, once again succeeds in dramatizing the disharmony between an artist’s desire for excellence and his ties to secular bounds. While the emotional elation of the characters is continuously restrained, the elegant landscapes captured by veteran cinematographer Jung Il-sung, unravels like a folding screen. This film received the Best Director award at Cannes in 2002.