Eight American Artists
A travelling exhibition organized by the Seattle Art Museum that was held in Asia and Europe. In Korea, the exhibition was held from April 9 to 21, 1957 at the National Museum at Seokjojeon in Deoksugung, the present location of the Deoksugung Museum. The United States Information Service in Korea supported the exhibition. The exhibition featured 30 paintings by four abstract artists: Mark Tobey, Morris Graves, Kenneth Callahan, and Guy Anderson, and 10 metalwork sculptures by four sculptors: Rhys Caparn, David Hare, Seymour Lipton, and Ezio Martinelli. The exhibition introduced contemporary American art to the Korean art community, and it influenced the development of Korean abstract art.
Gyeongbokgung Palace Museum
Gyeongbokgung Palace Museum was a national museum located in Gyeongbokgung Palace from 1949 to 1973. It was used as an exhibition hall for the National Art Exhibition (Gukjeon) of Korea. It became the Museum of the Japanese Government-General of Korea in 1939, then was used as a venue of the Joseon Art Exhibition until 1944 and became the Gyeongbokgung Palace Museum after Independence. In 1949, it was used for the first National Art Exhibition of Korea. It also hosted large scale exhibitions, such as the Science Exhibition, the National Middle and High School Student Art Exhibition, the International Children’s Art Exhibition, and the National Commercial and Industry Art Exhibition from the 1950s to the 1960s, especially when there were few public museums. In 1957, it hosted The Family of Man, a photographic exhibition which travelled around the world starting at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The Gyeongbokgung Palace Museum was also the base of the National Museum of Contemporary Art from 1969 until its relocation to Deoksugung Palace in 1973. It was used as the National Folk Museum of Korea from 1975 to 1993 and was demolished during the restoration project of Gyeongbokgung Palace in 1998.