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Exhibition of Korean traditional paintings held in Seoul

Exhibition of Korean traditional paintings held in Seoul

Posted January. 21, 2019 07:47,   

Updated January. 21, 2019 07:47

한국어

Twenty-three artists have presented their works, with the same topic and the same price tag. It is rare to see artists with strong personality and pride come together. What enabled it was the exhibition’s purpose: to revitalize South Korea’s art world. The exhibition with the theme of “the New Year’s first sunrise for a wish” opened last Wednesday at Yun Gallery in Jongno District, Seoul.

All works at the exhibition are ink-and-wash paintings which portray the sunrise watched at popular spots including central Seoul, Gangneung, and Haenam. To boost the popularity of traditional paintings, each work in small sizes is priced only at 300,000 won so that young visitors can feel more familiar with the paintings. The exhibition’s subtitle “The person who first saw it is to own it” may have worked, because a considerable number of works were sold in just two days.

Noh Jin-sook, one of the participating painters, drew the rising sun above a high-rise apartment building in an abstract form. Park Chang-soo, who does an ink-and-wash painting, went up Mt. Dobong several times to catch a good sight, and decided to draw the sunrise with Gwanghwamun as the background. Another artist Jin Ri-ba drew the sun rising behind a mountain in a more traditional scenery.

The exhibition runs until Tuesday, and another one titled “the embers of traditional Korean paintings” is scheduled to be held from Wednesday to next Tuesday. Artists will submit works through which they can boast their skills and personality. Each piece will have a different price tag, and part of the revenue will be donated for the development of ink-and-wash paintings.


Min Kim kimmin@donga.com