Portrait of a Government Official

Also known as: Portrait of a Young Officer

About the Artwork

Wearing a dark green court uniform, a man is seated in a chair covered with a leopard skin, a gift from the royal court to a newly appointed officer. The embroidered rank badge with a design of a single flying crane identifies the sitter’s bureaucratic status: the third ranked officer. In this work, the painter Chae Yongshin (1850–1941) rendered a newly promoted government official's shy smile, giving a glimpse into his mixed feelings of confidence and anxiety about his future professional career.

Inscriptions

開闢一千0十五萬五千八百三十九年辛酉十二月上澣前郡守從二品御賜號, 石江蔡龍臣八十翁摹寫. [印] 定山郡守蔡龍臣章

Exhibition history

Conversation about Diversity in Korean Embroidery Arts. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 30-October 25, 2020). Provenance: Journeys of Korean Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 10, 2026-April 25, 2027).

Quick Overview

Artist: Chae Yongshin (Korean, 1850–1941)
Date: 1921
Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
Dimensions: Overall: 156.4 x 87.3 cm (61 9/16 x 34 3/8 in.); Painting only: 127 x 71.1 cm (50 x 28 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Korean Art
Credit line: John L. Severance Fund
Accession no.: 2020.259

Provenance

early 1960s–2019: Dr. Poul Stengaard Hansen [1919–2019], by descent to his daughter 2019–2020: (Kang Collection of Korean Art, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art) 2020–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.