Gana Art and Gana Cultural Foundation hold a special exhibition of Buddhist art showing more than 70 quintessential pieces of Buddhist art from the Goryeo period to the contemporary era. Visitors can see ancient wooden, terracotta, and dry-lacquer Buddha statues as well as modern and contemporary artworks inspired by Buddhism. The organisers have also prepared three seminars on the topics of 'Buddhism and Academics', 'Buddhism and Creation', and 'Buddhism and Modern Art'.
Gallery Soso presents Bae Jong-Heon's solo exhibition "No Way". The artist invites us to examine the remnants of industrial materials and discover new stories in them. Topics such as usefulness and useleness have inspired his work as much as recent political events in Korea. The title of the show "No Way" is an invitation to examine more closely the path we are on and find a new direction within the landscape. Perhaps on the sidelines of our current main road, we can find a small opening that opens up a brand new direction.
Park Yong-Ho's "All things of everything" displays his thoughts and ideas thereby making the invisible visible, the non-existant (in the 3D reality) existant. His main topic is creation but creation suggest a final outcome of a creative process which is a problem because reality is a continuous and complex process, not a final determined object.
Gwangju Museum of Art hosts an exhibition of paintings from Namdo region created in the style of the Southern School (also known as literati paintings). This school traces its roots to the early 18th century and the artist Yoon Doo-Seo. The main theme is simplicity, a reflection of the Buddhist concept of purity and focuses on the connnection of humans and nature as part of the overall interconnectedness of all things (in itself also a key Buddhist motif).
Shim Yoon-Ok presents "Diffractive Reading", an exhibition for which he derived inspiration from the reflected light with which jewels shine. The object in itself is partly beautifyl but the real shine comes from its surrounding environment. As a result of these contemplations, the artist embarked on a journey to create not just objects but whole contexts and environments starting from the jewel.
Kim Si-Jong's 'Supernatural' is a series influenced by Dutch still life paintings, and particularly the Vanitas paintings. By showing drying and ying flowers, the artist invite us to reflect on the transient nature of existence and the cycle of life and death.
The Museum for Modern and Contemporary Art hosts a large-scale exhibition in celebration of the 100-years long history of Korean modern and contemporary paintings. It features 145 works by 70 leading Korean artists arranges in three Artist's Rooms and 6 sub-sections: The Emergence of a New Perspective, The Search for Modern Calligraphy, The Emergence of the Concept of Artist/Artist, Painting the Life of Joseon, The Korean War and Formative Experiments, and Painting the Family.
See all May 2025 shows here.