Kim Jongcheol (1947~2014) was a Korean poet and publisher. Calling himself the “Priest of Nails”, Kim attempted to connect the secular and religious worlds through his series of poems focused on nails. He received the Yun Dongju Literature Award, Jeong Jiyong Award for literature, Catholic Award for Literature, and many more. Kim also served as President of the Korean Catholic Literary Society and as President of the Korean Poets’ Association.
1. Life
Kim was born in Busan in 1947, the youngest of three brothers and one sister. He is the younger brother of poet Kim Jonghae. In the second year of middle school, he was baptized and received the Catholic name, Augustino. In middle school, Kim won first place in his school’s autumn writing contest and was nominated as a winner and as the representative of his school. He enrolled in high school as a literature scholarship student, and swept numerous literature contests in the Busan region. Kim debuted in 1968 with the publication of his work Jaebong (재봉Sewing) in the Hankook Ilbo. He participated in the ‘Sinchunsi’ Society, where he started his friendship with Kim Jaehong. At Seo Jeongju’s recommendation, Kim enrolled in Seorabeol College of Arts on a literature scholarship. In 1970, under his penname, Kim received the Seoulsinmun Sinchun Annual Spring Literary Contest Award, to which he voluntarily declined because Bak Mokwol, poet and judging member, was angered that Kim won an award meant for amateur writers.
In 1971, Kim participated in the Vietnam war, and in 1975 founded a poetry group named “Hand and Fingers (손과 손가락)”. In 1984, he renamed “Hand and Fingers” to “The Poetic Spirit (시정신) ”.
In November of 1991, Kim founded a publishing company, Moonhak Soochup (Literary Notebook), and in 1993 created the publishing house book@books.
In 2003, the first magazine for Moonhak Soochup was published, but had to temporarily suspend publications before the winter issue in 2009, before being renamed to Siinsucheop (Poets’ Notebook) in 2011.
In July 2005, Kim attended the inaugural inter-Korean writers meeting in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. He also served as President of the Korean Catholic Literature Society, Director of the Korean International Pen Club, Advisor to the Korean Writers’ Association, and President of the Korean Poets Association, among other things. Kim died in 2014 after a long battle with cancer. The Kim Jongcheol Award for Literature was established in 2019.
2. Writing
Early Days
Kim’s early poetry shows an imaginary world through mythological imagery and aesthetic language. His first poetry collection Seourui yuseo (서울의 유서 Seoul’s Testament) deals with romantic dreams and melancholy and contains many works that present satires of reality and critical spirit.
Oido (오이도)(1984) and Oneuri geunarida (오늘이 그날이다Today is the Day) (1990) are works that explore the theory of life and reveal introspection. Oido provides a real space that provides emotional stability as well as a fantastic utopia. Oneuri geunarida sets the principles of the universe according to time. This poetry collection is an exploration of a being who reveals itself through the fight against time.
Serialized Nail Poetry
Kim called himself the “Priest of Nails”. He published numerous nail themed poems, from Oneuri geunarida (1990) to Mose gwanhan myeongsang (못에 관한 명상A Meditation on Nails)(1994), his poems about nails include; Deungsinbul sipyeon (등신불 시편Immolation Psalm) (2001), Mosui gwihyang (못의 귀향Nail’s Return)(2009) , Mosui sahoehak (못의 사회학 Sociology of the Nail) (2013), and Jeoldusan buhwarui jip (절두산 부활의 집House of Resurrection at Jeoldu Mountain) (2014). In his serial poems, the “nail” is the intermediary that connects objects, with a variety of meanings such as the agony of life and pain, societal inconsistencies or human wrongdoings, religious symbolism, and the original sin. Mose gwanhan myeongsang (1994), the nail is a religious symbol, associated with pain, libido, and Jesus Christ nailed to the Cross. The poem’s narrator dreams of religious exaltation and salvation. In Deungsinbul sipyeon (2001), nails are connected to Buddhist symbolism. In Mosui gwihyang (2009), critics state that the meaning of the “nail” is deepened and expanded. In this collection, every person in the world appears as a nail. The nail is the object that connects the world; while also being the subject of all sins, desires, and doubts. Mosui sahoehak (2013) presents human society as a community of organized nails. This collection in particular presents the individuality of each human by showing the various functions of the nail. Each of the titles of the poems can be arranged vertically like nails.
