I Became A Renowned Genius At My Arts High School - Chapter 187



Only Noblemtl

Episode 187. The Business of Relationships (2)

That evening.

“It’s here again.”

After hearing the whole story, Steve coolly defined Henry.

“Henry… … I think I’ve heard that name before.”

And Steve, trying to remember.

“There have been a lot of young rich people in Soho in recent years. I heard there was a teenager among them. I think his name was Henry.”

The New People, a new species of human beings in New York, have appeared with a frightening momentum.

Young rich people who make good use of the Internet and enjoy late morning coffee at famous coffee chains, a completely different image from the older generation.

They emerged alongside the Nasdaq boom.

With his deep pockets, he led a dot-com company to rapid growth and rapidly influenced the cultural and artistic world.

Naturally, the art world was also shaken up. Their bold decisions, such as purchasing all the works of new artists who had only recently debuted, led to trends and trends.

While it is welcome news that the market is being revitalized, there are certainly concerns.

There were voices of concern here and there that this was fostering the illusion of a one-time deal and that the attitude toward culture was also biased toward consumption rather than production.

Anyway, Henry seemed to have been a rather noticeable figure even among the group of young rich people called New People.

Steve frowned and shook his head.

“Well, there are many such artists, but why whales of all people?”

“I don’t know. I heard that he already had a huge collection of works, but he didn’t like any of them.”

“Isn’t he just trying to attract attention? To make his presence felt? Why, there are a lot of people like that.”

Steve sighed, mentioning an artist who shot himself and called it art.

“Anyway, J-House is impeccable in terms of size and fame. But I’ve heard that because of that, a lot of really unique people gather there. Whether they’re artists or collectors. It was nice that they caught Jacqueline’s eye and were selected for the training program.”

Steve said, biting his lip.

“As she said, I think it would have been easier to build connections by doing hobbies like those of rich people.”

“Yeah, but it wouldn’t have been easy for you either, Steve. Can you imagine me going to parties every week and horseback riding with strangers?”

“Hmm. I see.”

Soo-hyun opened her mouth, glancing at Steve who was snickering.

“And I felt like there was something going on.”

“circumstances?”

“I’m telling you, it’s a really annoying situation.”

Choaaaak-.

The moment Henry tore the picture.

It was such an unexpected event that Soo-hyeon was very flustered.

Even though it was an asset that had been calculated, it was shocking to see a work of art destroyed so mercilessly.

Knock knock.

Choaaaak-.

Crazy.

But Henry paid no attention and destroyed several more pieces.

The sound must have been loud enough for even the people outside who had been laughing and talking to suddenly stop talking.

Bam.

After Henry opened the door and went out, everyone craned their necks and looked around the room, whispering. Their eyes were filled with anticipation, wondering what was going on.

Then came sighs of “It’s starting again”, “It’s so annoying”, and “It’s making me sick”.

But Soo-hyeon, who checked the scene once more, felt something strange.

‘… … This doesn’t look like it was just a random painting.’

From the perspective of the worker, the paintings are substandard.

So, the only things that were destroyed were paintings that were either secretly plagiarized from famous works, filled with mechanical brushstrokes, or were too shallow and unattractive to persuade the viewer.

Most of the collection was so excellent that I passed it by without a second thought, but there were a few shoddy pieces tucked away in hidden places, and it seemed likely that Henry had deliberately selected them and ruined them.

If that was the case, it wasn’t something to be judged hastily.

Because those who wanted Henry’s money and fame could have brought any painting and forced it on him.

The contemporary art market is as rich as it is rife with scammers.

You may have gotten involved with them and bought a painting you didn’t like, and it may have bothered you so much that you tore it up.

And if that was really the case, Soo-hyun wanted to talk to Henry some more.

How many merchants are there who deceive people by giving plausible meaning to things that seem like works of art?

Henry at least didn’t seem like the type of person to be swayed by such flowery words.

If someone with such insight clearly has some intention, I would like to read it properly.

“Anyway, don’t try too hard.”

Steve, who still didn’t know the situation, had a cold voice.

“Just as Jacqueline said, you just need to be the new challenger in the tattered whale painting hunt to get noticed. Regardless of whether Henry likes it or not, once your painting is finished, people will come here and there to recognize its value. This time too, it will be great.”

“Okay. I’ll try drawing it first. Then the inside story will gradually become clear.”

There is still a bit more to be found out.

So Soo-hyeon smiled faintly, holding back her words.

***

It was two days later, around lunchtime, that I met Henry again.

“Wow, that’s Soohyun, right?”

“Who… Henry?”

Is the kid a kid?

Or are you really crazy about whales?

At the New York Aquarium in Coney Island, Brooklyn, a 30-minute drive from Soho, Soo-hyun ran into Henry by chance in front of the dolphin tank there.

Of course, it was difficult to recognize it before Henry pretended to know it first.

A light, casual look, different from what I saw in Soho. He was even wearing a wide-brimmed hat pulled down low.

“You came here to see whales, right?”

Henry lifted his hat slightly to reveal his face and asked.

“Ah. Humble.”

Su-hyeon laughed awkwardly.

Su-hyeon, who was thinking about drawing a whale, searched for information on the Internet and went to a bookstore to look through related books.

There was a lot of great content, but nothing that really inspired me. So I thought, why not try it out for myself?

Even if there were no humpback whales, there would probably be dolphins in the aquarium.

I found out that there was a pretty old aquarium not far from where I lived, so I walked there and that’s where I met Henry.

“He was a very humble person.”

Henry looked at Soo-hyun with an amused look.

“Huh? What?”

“There was someone who wanted to observe and draw whales in person before. And they charged a huge amount of money for tour programs and accommodations. Hawaii, Sydney, Los Cabos. They went there several times because they thought one time wasn’t enough. But Su-hyeon, you came to a place like this to see whales?”

“So how was the picture?”

Soo-hyun asked a question instead of answering.

“Hmm. Well, that wasn’t a real picture of a whale either.”

Henry, who had been looking at Soo-hyeon with a strange look for a moment, was about to open his mouth again.

-The dolphin show will begin shortly.

Guests who wish to watch are requested to take a seat.

An announcement about the dolphin show flowed from the speaker.

Henry lifted his wrist and checked his watch and spoke to Soo-hyun.

“I’m thinking of watching this. If you don’t mind, do you want to watch it together?”

It was an offer that there was no reason to refuse.

It was just as important to figure out this suspicious client as it was to see the whale. Soo-hyun nodded.

“Okay. Let’s watch it together.”

It was a show that was nothing special.

It’s a simple program, just like the one you think of when you think of a dolphin show.

But the children watching cheered, clapped their hands, and kept exclaiming in admiration.

In that atmosphere, Su-hyeon took out a small sketchbook and quickly drew a few croquis.

The shape of the dorsal fin that can be used to identify an individual, the caudal fin that moves up and down, the spiracles on the crown that are responsible for breathing, and the face that appears to be smiling.

And the shape of the pupil and the body movements that change from circular to U-shaped depending on the amount of light.

‘I’m glad I came.’

Su-hyeon nodded.

Things I couldn’t learn from books came to me vividly.

Swish-.

The movements of the dolphins swimming quickly through the water were elegant, cool, and flowing.

Su-hyeon was lost in the sight of the dolphins for a long time like an ordinary spectator.

But as time passed and I observed it more closely, my feelings gradually changed.

“It’s narrow.”

Su-hyeon muttered, dropping her pencil.

A dolphin that moves its body according to the trainer’s gestures, but seems frustrated and circles around the perimeter and bumps into things.

“It’s stuffy.”

At that moment, several things came to mind.

This dolphin show, which was performed as a matter of course, gradually disappeared in the future.

There are growing voices against keeping dolphins in small tanks, and a movement to return them to the ocean is underway.

In fact, that kind of perspective hit the public hard in the early 90s as well.

As the movie about the friendship between a boy and a killer whale became very popular, many people began to think about happiness from the perspective of whales rather than humans.

Anyway, things that had been hidden by the cheers and excitement suddenly came into focus in Soo-hyun’s eyes.

The trapped whale needed freedom.

Because what we had here wasn’t really a whale-like life.

‘Wait a minute. Is that really a whale?’

Su-hyeon tilted her head after thinking about it that far.

‘Could this be the real whale that Henry spoke of?’

Su-hyeon glanced over at Henry, who was sitting next to her.

Whether he knew what Soo-hyun was thinking or not, Henry was completely absorbed in the dolphin show.

‘It’s confusing.’

Su-hyeon shook her head.

Henry, like Soo-hyun had just thought, didn’t think he would enjoy the dolphin show that much if he thought a free whale was a real whale.

“Hmm.”

Soo-hyun fixed her gaze straight ahead again and watched the rest of the show.

***

“I love watching whales.”

After the show, Henry suggested we have a cup of tea. Before I could even ask if I was feeling well, he started telling me his story.

“I’ve been on the whale watching tour I mentioned earlier several times. When I get busy, I come here to see the dolphin show once in a while.”

“Ah. I see.”

“How was Su-hyeon?”

Henry asked with an expectant look in his eyes.

“It’s a place that’s easy to get away from once you become an adult. Places like the zoo or aquarium are places you can go while holding your parents’ hands when you’re very young. Doesn’t it feel quite different now?”

“well.”

Soo-hyun said, taking a sip of her drink.

“Actually, I only started coming to places like this after I became an adult.”

“Oh, like that.”

Henry shook his head.

“I guess this facility was built in Su-hyeon’s country not long ago?”

“That’s not true. There were many zoos and large aquariums. But, I didn’t have the chance.”

“Were you poor?”

Su-hyeon chuckled at the persistent question.

“I’m adopted. One of my parents didn’t want me to be adopted, so I don’t have many fond memories of growing up.”

“ah.”

Henry nodded, leaning back from where he had been leaning. He looked a little apologetic.

“Anyway, since I came here as an adult, it’s hard to compare it to the feelings I would have felt as a child. I’ve seen it on TV and in books, but it’s different from seeing it in person.”

“The dolphins here are special.”

Henry said with a look of pride on his face.

“What kind of point?”

“Because the family is together.”

“family?”

“It’s hard to see this in a regular aquarium. Even if you capture several whales, the chances of them being a family are low, and they’re easy to send around. But here, three are a family. A father, a mother, and a baby dolphin.”

His eyes sparkled as if he was introducing a circus family. Henry then proudly went on to talk about how great the aquarium’s facilities were and how much care was put into the quality of the food.

Judging from the fact that he knew everything about it, it was clear that he visited it regularly.

“So, what does Henry think?”

At the end of the story, Soo-Hyeon asked a light question.

“What is it?”

“Do those whales look real?”

“What does that mean?”

“I wonder if you think those dolphins really live like whales.”

“hmm.”

Henry’s expression suddenly sank.

“Soohyun. Are you a romantic?”

And the sharp question came back like a boomerang.