A new televised drama about Korea's best-known artists from the Joseon dynasty is quickly gaining popularity.

"The Painter of Wind" revolves around artists Hyewon and Danwon and features Park Shin Yang ("Lovers in Paris" and "Money War") as Danwon and Moon Geun Young ("My Little Bride," "A Tale of Two Sisters," "Autumn Story" and "The Wife") as Hyewon.

Historically, Shin Yun Bok, whose pen name is Hyewon, is born into a middle-class family that produced professional artists generation after generation, including Hyewon's father Shin Han Pyeong, a well-known artist retained by the Royal Bureau of Painting (Dohwaseo) of the Joseon royal court.

In the television show, Moon Geun Young, a female, pretends to be Hyewon, a man who follows family tradition by becoming a student of the Doh- waseo. There Hyewon meets the talented Hong Do Kim, an older painter who goes by the name Danwon.

The TV series fills in historical gaps with a story between Hyewon and Danwon. In the show, Hyewon's father has supposedly been murdered and his daughter has gone missing. Danwon, a close friend of Hyewon's father, vows to find the daughter but doesn't realize Hyewon is the woman he is looking for since she is disguised as a man.

Hyewon was a very controversial artist during his lifetime because his paintings depicted the upper class living their everyday lives under the morals and ethics of Neo-Confucianism, an ideology that considered suppressing desire a virtue. One story says he was expelled from Dohwaseo because his controversial painting "Lovers Under the Moon," in which a man and a woman meet late at night, indicates a forbidden love. During the Joseon period, a curfew was enforced between 8 p.m. and 4 a.m.

Danwon, on the other hand, painted everyday life to the pleasure of the royal courts with paintings such as "Rice Threshing," where commoners are happily working the rice harvest in the presence of their landlords.

There is a third painter of the Joseon dynasty, Owon. Owon, Danwon and Hyewon make up the three "wons" of the Joseon dynasty, the most well-known artists from the period. Their works are considered national treasures and are housed in art museums throughout Korea.

THIS WEEK'S K-DRAMA SYNOPSES

'INTO THE SUN'

Episodes 15 and 16

Tonight at 7:45: Suk-min gets the tape recording of Hye-rin's father's last words and is confused even more. But he decides not to tell Hye-rin about it. Seung-ha pursues his wedding plans and hires a wedding planner. Although in mourning for her father, Hye-rin decides to respect her father's last words and marry Seung-ha.

Tomorrow at 7:45 p.m.: Bona tries to talk Hye-rin out of marrying Seung-ha. Nurse Cho suspects Seung-ha had something to do with Wu-jin's accident and looks for clues. Su-jin tries to help Suk-min get over Hye-rin by setting him up on blind dates.

'HAPPINESS'

Episodes 53 and 54

Sunday at 6:45 p.m.: Everything goes wrong when the Lee family invites Chairman Park and Ms. Director to their house for dinner. Jun-ki tells his family that Soon-mi is pregnant. The SJ company celebrates the grand opening of the resort. Chairman Park is about to name Sang-wook as his heir and rumors begin to swirl.

Sunday at 7:45 p.m.: The grand opening of the resort is successful thanks to Jun-su's hard work. Sang-wook begs his mother to let him live the life of an ordinary man. Ms. Director tells Ji-sook that she'll accept her as a daughter-in-law. Kang-suk enters the boxing championship.

'THE WAR OF FLOWER'

Episodes 5 and 6

Monday at 7:45 p.m.: Go-ni takes his mother's life savings to an illegal gambling house to try to win the money needed to save Young-min. But when he loses everything, the lives of Go-ni, Young-min and Nan-sook take different paths.

Tuesday at 7:45 p.m.: Go-ni and Gwang-ryul decide to work together. They get caught cheating at a gambling house and Gwang-ryul impersonates Chief Pyung to get out of the tight spot. But they find out the man who caught them is none other than Chief Pyung himself.

'THE PAINTER OF WIND'

Episodes 3 and 4

Wednesday at 7:45 p.m.: Danwon follows Yun-bok and finds out she's been selling "obscene" paintings. He questions Yun-bok's motive for drawing and selling such paintings. However, Danwon is still impressed by Yun-bok's talent.

Thursday at 7:45 p.m.: On the evening before he may have his hand maimed for the crime of painting an obscene work, Yun-bok meets the famed gisaeng and musician Jung-hyang. Danwon and Yun-bok's brother Young-bok think of ways to save the gifted young painter's hand.

Jeff Chung is general manager of KBFD TV, which televises Korean dramas with English subtitles in Hawai'i. You can reach him for comment at 521-8066 or jeffchung@kbfd.com.