Thinkers Timeline

Sin Saimdang was a Korean artist, calligrapher, poet, and Confucian scholar of the mid-Joseon period. She is widely regarded as the most accomplished female artist of the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) and one of the most celebrated women in Korean history. She has been the first woman depicted on a South Korean banknote (the 50,000 won note, issued from June 2009). Her real personal name was Sin In-seon. 'Saimdang' was her pen name, taken from Tairen, the mother of King Wen of Zhou in classical Chinese tradition; her name signalled her aspiration to be like that exemplary figure. Her other pen names included Saim, Inimdang, and Imsajae. She was born on 29 October 1504 (5 December by the Western calendar) in Bukpyeong-chon village, Jukheon-ri, Gangneung, Gangwon Province, at her maternal grandparents' home (Ojukheon, still preserved as a historic site). Her father was Sin Myeong-hwa, a government official and friend of the reformist scholar Jo Gwang-jo, who chose not to be politically active during the factional struggles of his time. Her mother was Lady Yi. She was the eldest of five sisters; her parents had no sons. Her maternal grandfather, recognising her early talent, taught her as he would have taught a grandson: classical Chinese, history, philosophy, and the Confucian canon. She also developed exceptional skill in calligraphy, embroidery, and painting from childhood. At nineteen she married Yi Won-su, a man from a respectable but poor family. Her father had specifically chosen Yi because he was willing to let her continue her artistic work. The marriage produced eight children, five sons and three daughters. Her third son was Yi I (1536-1584), pen name Yulgok, who would become one of the two greatest Neo-Confucian philosophers in Korean history. Saimdang continued painting and writing throughout her marriage. She died of sudden illness in Pyongan region on 17 May 1551 at age 47.