I Became A Renowned Genius At My Arts High School - Chapter 151



Only Noblemtl

Episode 151. Fateful Theme (2)

“Oh. Was that written there?”

I visited Cafe Artnouveau again just in case.

The bookstore owner who recommended the book with the black cover happened to be there, and since he recognized Soo-hyun right away, it was easy to start a conversation.

Su-hyeon opened the book she had bought that day and asked if the contact information written on the inside cover was the author’s and if there was any other way to contact the author.

There may be another book by the author.

I was in a hurry, but I thought it would be better to at least check and then act.

“wait a minute.”

The bookstore owner immediately opened a drawer at Soo-hyeon’s words, took out a tattered notebook, and began to diligently search through it for clues.

“Yes, Michael Menden. Here are the contact details I have, and compare them with what is written in the book.”

After a while, the bookstore owner showed his notebook to Soo-hyeon with a proud face.

When he looked at the place where his hand had touched, he saw Michael Menden’s business card stuck to him.

Fortunately, the email address written there was the same one Soo-hyun had seen.

“Wow. That’s right. I guess I can contact you directly with this.”

As Su-hyeon nodded, the bookstore owner opened his eyes wide and asked.

“But are you trying to contact the author directly?”

It was a bit unexpected, but the owner soon took action.

“Student, do you speak German?”

“Uh, no.”

“That’s good. Don’t waste time wandering around and send your emails in English. Oh, you speak English a little, right? If you can buy the original book and read it, it’s not so bad.”

“It’s average. But, can the writer communicate in English?”

“Yes. At that time, I heard that they were planning to produce an English version of this book. I don’t know if they actually published it, but they said that since it didn’t work in the German market, they were planning to try it in the English-speaking world.”

“Wow, you met the author in person?”

“No, that’s not it. The booth manager told me that. At that time, I asked if there was an English version of the book, and the author told me that he was planning an English version. He said that he was very passionate, and that he not only wrote and illustrated the book, but also translated it himself. That’s right. At that time, I said that his English skills were excellent. But since he did everything by himself, it took a long time. Yeah. That’s what I remember hearing.”

“and.”

That was helpful information.

I was worried that I would have to hire a translator to send an email, but now that I can communicate in English, I feel like the distance between me and the author has doubled.

“And, I don’t know about the situation in Germany or other countries, but at least in our country, this author’s books have never been imported. So, I think it would be good if the students themselves asked me if I had written any other books and let me know.”

“Yes, of course. Thank you, sir.”

Su-hyeon greeted politely.

“And the book recommendation, too. It was really helpful. I like the illustrations, too.”

“Haha. Really? As expected, I had a feeling. Looking at the books you chose that day, I think you’d like Michael’s books too.”

“You were right. I will ask you again next time. Thank you very much.”

The conversation ended naturally as a few customers came into the bookstore.

Su-hyeon hurried back home, calmed herself down, and began writing the email.

I am a student of art and a reader of your books. I am interested in the various views and interpretations of picture books and have some questions, so I contacted you.

He also expressed his gratitude for the book, saying that he happened to be taking a class on book creation at school, that he had concerns during the planning stage, and that Michael’s book was a great help in solving his curiosity.

However, I feel regretful after reading just one book, and I want to know if there are any other books by the author, and I am looking for a way to obtain them.

‘If it’s too long, it’ll be burdensome.’

Su-hyeon sent the email after revising the main text several times to keep it as brief and concise as possible.

And it was exactly 4 hours later that Soo-hyun received a reply.

“What? If you look closely, this person isn’t Korean?”

Su-hyeon was startled by the quick reply.

Su-hyeon sent the email around 8:00 PM. It was noon in Germany.

And since the reply arrived at midnight Korean time, I could only assume he checked the email after lunch and replied right away.

It was so fast, it was hard to believe he was European.

“Wow. What is it?”

And when Soo-hyeon opened the email, she was surprised once again.

A reply arrived that seemed to be twice as long as the email Soo-hyun had sent.

“oh my god.”

Su-hyeon suppressed her pounding emotions and moved her gaze to the first line of the email.

After a while.

“He is such a kind person.”

Su-hyeon shook her head in admiration.

Michael expressed his excitement and joy at having a fan from a faraway land like Korea contact him, and then expressed interest in the fact that the fan, like him, was also an artist.

He said that he was honored that the book in the black cover helped him with his work, but that he had not been lucky enough to publish a book since then, and that his first official book would be published in two weeks.

He said that he didn’t have any books to introduce or show right now, but instead he would introduce books that influenced him and that he studied, and he briefly summarized their list and special features.

He even gave me the address of his personal homepage where I could get a glimpse of his work.

“Wow. I’m so glad I contacted you.”

Su-hyeon, who immediately went to Michael’s homepage, opened her mouth wide.

It’s about time that creating personal homepages became popular in Korea as well.

It seems that many foreign writers already operate homepages for the purpose of uploading their portfolios.

Simple but effective layout.

Michael has effectively showcased many of his works on his website, using his sense of book editing, and has even posted the homepage addresses of other authors on his link page.

Thanks to this, I was able to enjoy vivid and diverse works.

Su-hyeon replied immediately.

Not only was he grateful for the thoughtful consideration, he also gave clear answers to Michael’s questions.

Michael was curious about Korean paintings and also said he wanted to see the book that Su-hyeon would finish.

That level of request was something Soo-Hyeon could easily grant.

***

Three weeks later, Wednesday.

Professor Kwon In-ho returned to his lab after class and finally let out a hearty laugh, his lips twitching.

“This is really good. It’s better than I expected.”

Kwon In-ho muttered as he spread out the third sketch assignment submitted by the students on the lab table.

“I thought it might end up being greed.”

Professor Kwon In-ho, who was a stickler for his own way but not a very closed-minded person, was paying close attention to what was being said on campus about the collection class.

So I knew that my first class, where I had to write 115 questions, had made me notorious, and that my second class, where I had to bring a lottery ticket, had caused a flood of complaints about the class being unmanageable.

I was a little worried.

If they are good enough to enter Baekhyundae, they are among the best talents in Korea.

However, most art students have been immersed in entrance exam art for years and have had difficulty with the unfamiliar teaching methods as they have been taught through spoon-fed methods.

Break the mold and the format.

Imagine freely.

Unfold your world freely.

It was clearly a declaration that should have been welcomed, but the students expressed fear rather than joy at the freedom they had suddenly been given, like birds in a cage who had forgotten the rules.

But Kwon In-ho pushed on without mercy.

He also urged them to break the time spent focusing on still life and plaster drawing and discover the world of painting hidden within themselves. And he was curious.

I wonder how many people will break eggs and jump over walls in the full-length class this semester.

I thought the future of the Korean art world would be bright if even one or two people could be saved, and today, Kwon In-ho tasted hope as bright as day.

“Han Su-hyeon is Han Su-hyeon, and look at this. These guys have a good feel for it.”

It was an amazing growth rate.

It’s been exactly three weeks since we were given the assignment to come up with a story and image using randomly selected objects.

The students’ homework for the first week was so difficult that I couldn’t even look at it.

But somehow, in the second week, about 10% of the students completed decent sketches, and today, in the third week, about 70% of the students suddenly created something great.

“It’s fun to connect the clock to memories and solve it with time travel, and this guy came up with the idea of ​​a maple festival with a single leaf. Ha, the character sketch is also quite cheerful and unique. This one was brought up with the theme of a ruler. He created the incident by changing the size of all the objects. Hmm. It’s a consideration of subjective and objective length. Not bad.”

It was satisfying to see it again.

Kwon In-ho was delighted and amazed by the drastic improvement in the quality of classes. However, he also wondered how the students could grow so rapidly in such a short period of time.

‘Were they really this good?’

There was no doubt about the quality, but it seemed like there had to be another factor for it to manifest at the same speed at the same time.

“no way…….”

Kwon In-ho narrowed his eyes and looked at Soo-hyeon’s painting.

Han Su-hyeon showed extraordinary concentration from the first hour.

Even in the first sketch, he drew a picture that was enough to make people exclaim in admiration, but in the second and third sketches, he produced results that left people increasingly speechless.

So, did the stimulant called Han Su-hyeon have an influence on other students?

“Yeah. It’s possible that Seolma can catch people.”

Kwon In-ho tilted his head.

At the same time, in the lecture room of the Baekhyun University Art College’s complete works class.

It had been a while since the professor had left the classroom, but the kids were still gathered there chatting with their faces red from the memories.

“Han Su-hyeon, take this. It’s a drink.”

“Aren’t you hungry? Want to eat something like tteokbokki?”

“You like chocolate? Keep this and eat it when your blood sugar drops.”

“Oh, seriously, I told you all not to do that.”

The kids surrounded Su-hyeon as she was about to pack up and leave.

“I do it because I’m grateful. Because I appreciate it.”

“Yes. We owe you a great favor, but if we just sit still, we’ll be worse than animals.”

“What kind of situation are you in? With this much.”

“Thank you. I passed the sketch today. It’s all thanks to you.”

“Me too. I passed too!”

“Oh my, I can’t even drop this class. How am I supposed to make it to the end of the semester? Am I going to end up getting an F? I was dying last week, seriously.”

“Me too. When I was inspected for my sketch assignment in the first week, Professor Kwon must have been upset, but my self-esteem also dropped significantly. I lived my life feeling proud of myself for drawing, but it wasn’t a real painting. Then I thought, what have I been drawing all this time? I felt empty. Wow, but you became a ray of light for me.”

“I told you, it’s really nothing. You all just figured it out and learned it.”

“Hey, honestly, even if you knew that, who would tell you if you kept it to yourself?”

“That’s right. Everyone is secretly competitive. No, you’re on a different level, so can you give it to us?”

Even though Soo-hyeon waved her hand, it was no use.

The children were looking at Soo-hyeon with sparkling eyes.

Wednesday, three weeks ago, after the first week of sketch inspection.

After Professor Kwon In-ho’s sharp evaluation, the classroom truly felt like a funeral home.

In some ways, it was natural, but in other ways, it was just right to discourage everyone, with only Han Su-hyeon passing, and the rest of the students were put on an endless list of re-examinations.

It was just then.

“I… … Han Su-hyeon. Could you show me your drawing?”

Someone mustered up the courage to ask Su-hyeon, the only one who passed the task, to show her the drawing. Su-hyeon nodded lightly without being picky.

“Wow, what did you pick?”

“Wasn’t it soap?”

“Did you dissolve the soap like this?”

“Well, you said you could just use it as a material. Wow, but it’s really strong. The character becomes clearer when you emphasize the color.”

“So, how does this story turn out?”

As a few people watched in admiration, children began to gather.

As Soo-hyun briefly explained her work, someone sighed again.

“You’re really different. You’re different from other kids.”

“That’s right. Seeing you think like this, I think you’re on a completely different level from us. That’s why you passed the assignment on your own.”

Then Soo-Hyeon said.

“I also struggled a lot. I’m still trying to figure out the answer while being stimulated.”

“Huh? Stimulation?”

“Are you stimulated?”

The children asked back as if they didn’t understand,

Swish swish-.

Instead of answering, Su-hyeon wrote something on a piece of paper.

“Go and look it up. Then you will know what I mean.”

Three weeks after Su-hyeon shared her know-how, a surprising change occurred in the full-length class.