Chapter 89 (2) - The Mysterious Art Museum
"Oh my, Ji-hoon, your brother is an artist? Are you really inviting our Yeon-hee to the exhibition?"
"It would be great if our child could feel something there. Thank you so much for inviting us."
"How nice it must be to have such a sibling. I wish I had an artist in my family."
Lunchtime at the school for the blind.
Jeong-hoon's older brother Ji-hoon, surrounded by parents, continually bows his head.
"My brother is new to exhibitions, so I'd be grateful if you could come. He's still a fledgling artist, but I know him. He wouldn't have invited you without preparing something beneficial for us."
As the chattering parents disappear, Yeon-hee's voice comes from the next seat.
"Ji-hoon oppa."
"Yes."
"Does your brother do sculptures?"
"."
"No?"
"I believe he paints. I haven't seen it, though."
"Did he attend an art school?"
"Yes."
"Then he must have learned sculpture too. But is he good? Has he been on the news or something?"
"."
I heard from mom. My brother painted a theater's ceiling and was heavily featured in the news. But such a work, none of us at school, including myself, could see.
"Oh, well. I heard he was on the news."
"Really? Wow, he must be quite famous then. I'm really looking forward to it. Touching those animal sculptures last time was amazing. I didn't know a giraffe's neck was so long. It felt more alive than when I just imagined it. You felt the same, right oppa?"
"Yeah"
Yeon-hee's voice is full of anticipation, though unseen.
Ji-hoon confidently spoke in front of the parents but is secretly anxious. As far as he knows, his brother has never done anything with sketches. The only memory he has is of an eagle made of clay in elementary school.
The direction where, theoretically, there is a window.
Ji-hoon turns his head toward the sky, somewhere out there, clenching his fist.
"I'm sure my brother will do well. I believe in you, Jeong-hoon."
**
Finally, the day of the performance.
The artists, with tense faces, stand in front of their respective areas.
Except for Jeong-min, who works with light, space, and thread, all have their areas open. Although only the entrance is visible from the outside, the artists frequently glance at each other's areas.
In a few minutes, the first visitors will arrive.
The artists, having arrived since dawn to prepare perfectly, swallow their nervous saliva as they check the time down to the second.
Jeong-min noona looks the most relaxed among them. With her age comes plenty of exhibition experience, and she stands in front of her area with a calm expression, as usual.
Standing at the entrance of my area, trembling, I speak to noona opposite me.
"Aren't you nervous, noona?"
"Of course, I am."
"It doesn't show."
"Haha, this is just my usual face. Actually, I'm very nervous inside."
"I wish my nerves didn't show either."
"You're already doing better than others. Look there."
Jeong-min noona subtly gestures with her eyes.
I see Kwang-ho hyung in the second area from the front.
He is by a white plastic table for stamping exhibition stamps, and there are three broken pencils scattered on it.
"Did hyung break those?"
"Yes, I saw him earlier. He kept breaking pencils he was holding. Such a bad habit. What did the pencils do to deserve that?"
"Haha, hyung is nervous too."
"Who wouldn't be nervous about an exhibition bearing their own name?"
"True."
Jeong-min noona glances briefly at the area behind me and asks.
"Have you finished preparing?"
"Yes."
"How did you finish everything in just one day? You came two weeks ago for a check and brought in your work yesterday? I haven't seen it yet."
"Haha, an artist must care most about their art. Actually, it's an excuse, haha. I barely managed to finish the painting due to lack of time."
"It reminds me of my first exhibition. I was so out of it that I don't even remember how it ended."
So, noona had such a time too. But it seems I'm better off? At least I'm not at the point of losing my memory. Who knows? The exhibition hasn't even started yet.
Jeong-min noona asks.
"Did your family or friends come?"
"My family did."
"And your friends?"
"I don't have many friends."
"Why? You seem nice."
I didn't have money.
Who would like me when I just mooch off them every time we meet? The only friend left around me is Yeong-ju. But it's okay, I have one most precious friend.
I didn't explain in detail but swallowed these words and just smiled.
Then, the door to the lobby opens, and the beautiful narrator's voice echoes through the amplifier.
"Thank you for waiting, ladies and gentlemen. The joint exhibition of Catacombs, showcasing six contemporary painters who will illuminate Korea, will now begin. We ask the visitors to enter in an orderly manner."
Jeong-min noona extends her hand.
"Good luck, Ban Jeong-hoon."
"You too, noona."
I slap palms with noona, and just as I turn my head towards the entrance to look at the incoming visitors, I see Kwang-ho hyung looking at me.
He tries to wave at me to wish me luck, but upon seeing me, he chuckles and shakes his head in a dismissive way. As he looks me up and down with a look of pity, he turns away.
Why is he like that? I briefly wondered, but as I see the flood of visitors, my mind starts to feel hazy. Now I understand what Jeong-min noona meant when she said she lost her memory during her first exhibition.
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