birdwatchers
• Original title : 버드와처
• Price : 21,000KRW
• Product Dimensions :
217x288, 112pages
• Publication Date : 2025-09-12
• ISBN : 9791169813891
Book Information & Summary
Written and illustrated by Byun Young Geun
This author active between Korea and Japan presents a story based on his experience of the COVID-19 pandemic in Tokyo around 2020. The narrative follows a young man living in isolation who undergoes an inner transformation through observing birds.
Disposable items scattered around the room and sink, curtains blocking the window light, a phone clutched in sleepless early mornings—these details sketch out the life of a young man working night shifts alone in a foreign country. The seemingly lethargic protagonist one day encounters a small bird by chance. This fleeting moment sparks his deepening interest in birdwatching. As he gradually steps out of his cramped city room into parks and forests, and then into the wider world, his everyday life unfolds through immersive direction and around 90 meticulously rendered watercolor illustrations.
The moments when he enters the world of birdwatching are depicted with a serene stillness, as if time has momentarily stopped. Taking off his headphones to listen to the birdsong or witnessing a kingfisher suddenly dive into the water leaves a lingering impression. Even the slightest movement of a leaf or a ripple in the water is expressed with rich light and shadow, making the viewer want to step into the illustrated space. Without using any text or dialogue, the author captures emotionally stirring moments through imagery alone. As we quietly follow the young man, observing birds in the forest with calm breath, the sensory experience of birdwatching is vividly conveyed.
In the winter of 2022, the author began birdwatching in Japan and has since continued the activity weekly. As noted in the author’s statement, the moment he first met birdwatchers in Japan—"a memory of seeing many rare birds and rare people"—became the starting point for Birdwatcher, ultimately leading the author into the world of birdwayching. At the end of the book, the names of 60 bird species featured in the story are listed. The artist conducted extensive field research and birdwatching from parks, gardens, and botanical gardens in Tokyo, Japan, to Gunsan and Cheolwon in Korea, resulting in a rich and layered narrative.
This author active between Korea and Japan presents a story based on his experience of the COVID-19 pandemic in Tokyo around 2020. The narrative follows a young man living in isolation who undergoes an inner transformation through observing birds.
Disposable items scattered around the room and sink, curtains blocking the window light, a phone clutched in sleepless early mornings—these details sketch out the life of a young man working night shifts alone in a foreign country. The seemingly lethargic protagonist one day encounters a small bird by chance. This fleeting moment sparks his deepening interest in birdwatching. As he gradually steps out of his cramped city room into parks and forests, and then into the wider world, his everyday life unfolds through immersive direction and around 90 meticulously rendered watercolor illustrations.
The moments when he enters the world of birdwatching are depicted with a serene stillness, as if time has momentarily stopped. Taking off his headphones to listen to the birdsong or witnessing a kingfisher suddenly dive into the water leaves a lingering impression. Even the slightest movement of a leaf or a ripple in the water is expressed with rich light and shadow, making the viewer want to step into the illustrated space. Without using any text or dialogue, the author captures emotionally stirring moments through imagery alone. As we quietly follow the young man, observing birds in the forest with calm breath, the sensory experience of birdwatching is vividly conveyed.
In the winter of 2022, the author began birdwatching in Japan and has since continued the activity weekly. As noted in the author’s statement, the moment he first met birdwatchers in Japan—"a memory of seeing many rare birds and rare people"—became the starting point for Birdwatcher, ultimately leading the author into the world of birdwayching. At the end of the book, the names of 60 bird species featured in the story are listed. The artist conducted extensive field research and birdwatching from parks, gardens, and botanical gardens in Tokyo, Japan, to Gunsan and Cheolwon in Korea, resulting in a rich and layered narrative.
Editor’s Note
