Our June overview of the latest exhibitions in Seoul and around Korea is here!
Osan Museum of Art is hosting "Masterpieces of Korean Modern and Contemporary Art", an exhibition comprised of 4 parts. Part one is titled "Succession: Continuing the tradition" is features paintings which reflect the political and social changes at the end of the 19th century. Exhibited artists include Ko Hee-dong (1866~1965), Heo Baek-ryeon (1891~1977), Park Seung-moo (1893~1980) and Roh Su-hyun (1899~1978). Part two is titled "Acceptance: Reproducing facts" and features paintings of calm and idyllic ambiences produced by artists such as Park So-geun (1914~1965), Lee Jung-seop (1916~1956), Jang Uk-jin (1917~1990) and Chun Kyung-ja (1924~2015). In part three, titled "Innovation: Challenging modernity", viewers can see the work of realist and abstract painters such as Lee Ung-no (1904~1989), Nam Kwan (1911~1990), Lee Kyu-ho (1920~2013) and Ryu Kyung-chae (1920~1995). In the last section, "Self-reliance: Exploring identity", visitors can explore artists such as Lee Dae-won (1921~2005), Seo Se-ok (1929~2020), Kim Chang-yeol (1929~2021) and Park Seo-bo (1931~2023), who work at the intersection of Eastern and Western traditions.
Gallery DOS presents Lee Byong-Min's "Picture Diary within Glasses". The artist invites us to take a new look at an everyday item such as glasses. Usually, they are a tool for improving vision but in this exhibition, they take on the role of a canvas and carry within them stories of everyday events.
Pohang Museum of Steel Art hosts Choi Ok-Yeung's "Materiality: Steel alight with sensation". Pohang is the hometown of Korea's steel industry and often refered to as "the city of steel". The material is part of the regional identity and a symbol of industrial progress. The exhibition follows the life cycle of steel from a discarded material of industrial process to a building block of contemporary art sculptures.
Kim Junghee's "Space Idea 2025" continues the topic and tries to visualize the flow of invisible energy and the vibrations of the mind. Her work is an attempt to reveal the essence of existence, that is, to make the invisible visible, the intangible tangible.
Lee Sang-mi's "Walking the path" features expressive landscapes which invite us to discover the abstract in the material, the Divine in nature. In her art, nature is seen as a creation of the Divine and something that if we analyse, we can learn more about divine design and the Creator.
Choo Sung-Im's "Emotions bloom within a relationship" explores the way the human identity and personality blooms, unfolds, grown and reveals itself within relationships.
The Leeum Museum of Art presents an exhibition which juxtaposes Korean and Western painters and by exhibiting their paintings side by side, invites visitors to see Korean artists in a new context.