Eureka | A Very Special Exhibition
An article introducing the special exhibition of the Korean painting collection <Stop, and Look> at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon. Of the museum's 905 collected works, about 80 representative pieces spanning the 1960s to the present were shown across five themes; among them, three works from Kim Hyun Jung's 'Naesoong Series' — 'The Wait Won't Be Long,' 'Red Card,' and 'Hitler, Kim' — were featured in the 'Seeing People' section. Written by reporter Kwon Hae-jung.
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A Very Special Exhibition_<Stop, and Look>
The Flow of Korean Painting on a Single Canvas
Stop, and Look Exhibition
An exhibition has been arranged where visitors can appreciate, in one place, Korean paintings (Hangukhwa) representing eras from the 1960s to today. Across five themes — figures, abstraction, nature, life, and boundaries — it shows the flow of contemporary Korean painting. At the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, through January 24 next year. Free admission.
We're used to the terms "Western painting" and "Oriental painting," but the term "Korean painting (Hangukhwa)" still feels a little unfamiliar. Should it mean a painting made by a Korean artist, or should any work with a Korean sensibility, made by anyone, be called Korean painting? And how, exactly, does "Korean painting" differ from "Oriental painting"?
In late 19th-century Japan, paintings made with materials and styles imported from the West were called Western painting, and Japan's own traditional works were called Oriental painting (Tōyōga). The reason they were called Oriental painting rather than "Japanese painting" was that Japan carried the intent of emphasizing that it was the representative of "the Orient," and that this was superior enough to warrant comparison with Western painting.
This terminology was translated and used as-is in Korea and China as well, until in the 20th century, through a process of purifying the language, Korea began calling it "Hangukhwa (Korean painting)" and China "Zhongguohua (Chinese painting, called 'guóhuà' locally)" instead of "Oriental painting." To summarize: Korean painting refers to painting centered on ink, using traditional pigments, while painting using materials developed in the West — oil, acrylic, pastel, and so on — is called Western painting. "Oriental painting" is used only as a concept in comparison with Western painting.
The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art carefully selected works classified as Korean painting for its <Stop, and Look> exhibition. Of the museum's 905 collected works, roughly 80 pieces spanning the 1960s to the present stop visitors in their tracks and capture their gaze. Representing each era, these works show how the flow of Korean painting has changed. In particular, works from the 2000s onward are young and sharp enough to shatter any assumption that Korean painting must be old-fashioned.
The exhibition is organized into five sections: "Seeing the Invisible," centered on abstraction; "Seeing People," centered on figures; "Seeing Life," illuminating history and life; "Seeing Nature," featuring landscapes, scenery, and bird-and-flower painting; and "Seeing Boundaries," introducing works that gave birth to new genres of Korean painting standing at the boundary between Western and Oriental painting — installation art, media art, and more. Through this, visitors can trace the many facets of Korean painting.
A work worth particular attention is by Kim Hyun Jung, an artist known as "the idol of Korean painting." Her "Naesoong Series" is already familiar to us, widely introduced through exhibitions and advertising. Three pieces from her honest yet delightful body of work can be found in the "Seeing People" section.
Kwon Young-woo, Untitled
Son Dong-hyun, Portrait of the King
Seo Eun-ae, Blue Garden of a Gentleman
Park Dae-sung, Hyeonyul
Kim Hyun Jung, The Wait Won't Be Long
Kim Hyun Jung, Red Card
Kim Hyun Jung, Hitler, Kim
Written by reporter Kwon Hae-jung