Sajin munwha, July 1948, Private Collection
Sajin munhwa
As Korea’s first photography magazine, Sajin munhwa (Photography Culture) was first published by the Korean Photography Culture Company [Joseon sajin munhwasa] in July 1948. It was published until its twelfth volume on June 20, 1950 just before the outbreak of the Korean War. Its publisher was Lee Gyuwan, who was a founding member of the Gyeongseong Amateur Camera Club [Gyeongseong amachueo kamera gurakbu] formed in 1937 and engaged in photographic activities of Baekyang Photographers Association [Baegyang sauhoe]. It was published over twenty-four to thirty-two pages and sold for 150 to 200 won. Sajin munhwa introduced the news of photography organizations, the news of domestic and international photography communities, and information about technology and equipment. It also contained a separate section that featured articles articulating authors’ social outlook or their views on photography and articles to aid the understanding of photography theories and technologies. Moreover, the magazine included a section for showcasing prize-winning works at photo contests and competitions. After its chief editor Lee Dongho was abducted to North Korea, Cho Myeongwon, who admired Lee, established the Korean Photography and Culture Publisher (Hanguk sajin munhwasa). He published a total of thirteen volumes of magazines under the same title Sajin munhwa, with the first one issued in May 1956. Sajin munhwa served as the sole photography magazine in the 1950s. Sajin munhwa is viewed to have contributed to the formation of Korean photography circles after Korea’s liberation from Japan by delivering news of the photography community at a time when printing and producing magazines was not easy.
* Source: Multilingual Glossary of Korean Art by Korea Arts Management Service
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Korean Photographers Group
The Korean Photographers Group [Hanguk sajin jakgadan] is a Korean photography agency founded in January 1957 with the international photo news agency Magnum Photos as its model. It was established by seven photographers: Choi Kyebok as the leading member alongside Seong Dugyeong, Lee Geon-jung, Lee Gyeongmo, Jeong Doseon, Jeong Huiseop, and Cho Myeongwon. All of them created photos both to sell and as artistic creations, and they specialized in promotional photos for promoting the Syngman Rhee government’s tourism and cultural heritage policies in the 1950s. In particular, Korea Old and New and Pictorial Korea, which were published for international publicity through the commission by the Office of Public Information, contained photographs of temples, historic ruins, tourist destinations, and rapidly transforming cities after the Korean War, all of which were provided by the Korean Photographers Group. The Korean Photographers Group pursued creative activities together by holding four members’ exhibitions, and each member built his or her oeuvre as an individual photographer. The second members exhibition held in 1957 at the Korean Information Service was themed around photographs of historic sites and scenic spots. The third one held in the same year at Donghwa Gallery was themed around tourism photos.
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Sajin Bipyung
Sajin Bipyung was a quarterly journal of photographic criticism and theory, published in 1998 by Im Hyangja. Starting with its inaugural fall issue, 13 issues were published until 2003 by the publishing company Timespace in Chungmuro, Seoul. Kim Seunggon was an editor-in-chief, and Lee Kyungmin served as a member of the editorial committee. In the late 1990s, Korean photography culture developed substantively, and photography came to be considered as art. As a result, there was a call for the establishment of a self-sustaining critical culture in the photography industry. Therefore, Sajin Bipyung can be evaluated as a professional magazine founded with the aim of creating a culture of criticism of Korean photography and actively introducing critical writing to establish a photography forum. It was composed of articles about special topics, exhibitions, introduction to artists’ portfolios, highlights discussing timely critical topics, interviews of artists and their works, ideas, and philosophy, exhibition reviews, and an information section. It also promoted and supported emerging critics by selecting the Photo Criticism Award every year and sought to promote photo criticism by publishing awarded works in the paper.
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