The Forty Years of Korean Contemporary Printmaking, Poster, 1993, MMCA Art Research Center Collection
The Forty Years of Korean Contemporary Printmaking
* Source: MMCA
Related
-
Contemporary Printing Arts Exhibition for Decade
Contemporary Printing Arts Exhibition for Decade was an exhibition held by the Korea Prints Association [Hanguk panhwa hyeophoe] from August 5 through 30, 1969 at Sinseong Coffee Shop (on the fourth floor of the National Assembly Hall) and Changil Coffee Shop (behind the UNESCO Center on 2-ga Myeong-dong). The Korea Prints Association was founded in 1958 with the goal of revitalizing the printmaking industry and popularizing the concept of prints. Moreover, it requested the establishment of a prints section at the National Art Exhibition (Gukjeon), held a competition to encourage interest in printmaking as an expressive medium of art, and fostered new talents. The founding of such an organization representing Korean print circles signaled the beginning of contemporary prints in Korea. The Contemporary Printing Arts Exhibition for Decade featured Buddha’s Spirit (1958) by Lee Hangsung, president of the Korea Prints Association, Work (1958) by Kim Youngjoo, Animal (1959) by Bae Yoong, Buddha (1960) by Park Sungsam, Transportation (1967) by Kim Sangyu, and Lotus Pond (1968) by Choi Youngrim. The exhibition also presented works by Kang Whansup, Kim Choungza, Kim Chonghak, Yoo Kangyul, Youn Myeungro, Rhee Sangwooc, Chung Kyu, Choi Dukhyu, Moon Woosik, and Chun Sangbum. This exhibition, which introduced these artists’ early and recent works, allowed viewers to understand changes in the decade since the establishment of the Korea Prints Association.
-
Lee Gu-yeol
Lee Gu-yeol(1932-2020) was the first art journalist, an art critic, and a researcher of modern art in Korea. Born in Yeonbaek, Hwanghae-do Province, Lee went to South Korea during the Korean War. He enlisted in the army as a cadet, completed infantry and artillery schools, and served as an officer during the war. After being discharged as a captain in 1958, he joined World Telecommunications and worked in the publications department. In 1959, he enrolled as a junior in the College of Fine Arts at Hongik University, but he could not finish his studies. He worked as an art reporter in the culture desk of Segye Ilbo newspaper (renamed the Minguk Ilbo in 1960) and then as a reporter and deputy head of the culture desk of Kyunghyang Shinmun newspaper in and after 1962. In 1970, he transferred to Seoul Sinmun newspaper and served as the head of its culture desk. He became the head of the culture desk of Daehan Ilbo newspaper in 1972 but ended his journalistic career when the company ceased to publish in 1975. In 1964, Lee was in charge of editing the quarterly magazine Misul (Art) (published by Munhwa Gyoyuk Chulpansa). He also organized the publication of fifteen volumes of the Complete Collection of Korean Art (sponsored by Donghwa Chulpan Gongsa) and worked as chief editor from 1973 through 1975. He served as president of the Korean Art Critics Association (1984–1985), a member of the Cultural Heritage Committee of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (1992–1999), and as director of exhibition projects at the Seoul Arts Center (1993–1996). He also opened the Korean Modern Art Research Institute and published its irregular periodical Modern Art of Korea from the first to fifth issues (1975–1977). His books include The Realm of Painting: The Life and Art of Idang (1968), A Study on Modern Korean Art (1972), The Development of Modern Korean Art (1982), Research on Modern Korean Art History (1992), History of Modern Korean Painting (1993), 50 Years of North Korean Art (2001), The Story behind Modern Korean Art (2005), Rha Hyeseok: The Woman Who Drew Her Fiery Life (2011), Korean Cultural Heritage: A History of Suffering (2013), and My Days as an Art Reporter (2014). In 2018, he published two volumes of his self-edited literary collection Miscellany by Cheongyeo to celebrate his turning eighty-eight. Lee Gyu-yeol played a crucial role in the establishment of the Archives of Korean Art Journal, the first art archives in Korea, in December 1998 by donating his materials related to modern and contemporary art to the Samsung Museum of Art. In 2015, he donated more than 4,000 items to Gacheon Museum of the Gil Cultural Foundation. He passed away in 2020 at the age of eighty-nine.
-
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA)
A national museum established in 1969 that researches, collects, and exhibits modern and contemporary art. As of 2018, there are branches in Gwacheon, Deoksugung, Seoul, and Cheongju. When first established, the National Museum of Modern Art (now MMCA) was located within Gyeongbokgung palace. In 1973, the museum moved to the East Wing of the Deoksugung Seokjojeon building. Then, in 1986, the museum moved to its current location in Gwacheon, to occupy a new building equipped with an outdoor sculpture exhibition space, and has since opened a new chapter in Korean art. The perceived need for a space to focus specifically on Korean contemporary art led to the establishment of further site, the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Deoksugung in 1998. In November 2013, a further demand for contemporary art exhibitions led to the establishment of another Seoul branch being created in the Defense Security Command building in Sogyeok-dong, Jongno-gu, which has since its inception engaged in multifaceted exhibitions of both domestic and overseas contemporary art. Also, as a further component of the MMCA complex, a disused tobacco factory in Cheongju was remodeled to provide a home to the National Art Storage Center.
Find More
Sign Up for Email Updates
