Three Masters of Modern Art 'Kim Whanki, Park Su-geun, Lee Jung-seop' Works Released as Digital Art for the First Time... "Opened the Way for Digital Asset Conversion of Masterpieces"

[△ Lee Jung-seop ‘Bull’]

Works by representative artists who have illuminated modern and contemporary Korean art?Kim Whanki, Park Soo-keun, and Lee Jung-seop?will be released as digital art. Converting masterpieces by these three great Korean masters into digital assets is a world-first attempt, marking a turning point that will change the landscape of the domestic art investment market.

The issuance of digital art for works by Kim Whanki, Park Soo-keun, and Lee Jung-seop, to be introduced through the integrated digital art service platform of Wannabe International Co., Ltd., a brand marketing specialist company, is expected to attract significant attention overseas by globalizing and enhancing the value of the domestic art market. While the original masterpieces by these masters, valued at billions of won, are not easily traded by individuals, this digital asset conversion allows ownership of the works and the potential to generate additional economic profits through resale, drawing the attention of the Art-Tech generation (Art + Finance).

Kim Whanki’s “Jeonmyeon Jeomhwa” (Full-surface Point Painting), Park Soo-keun’s “Two Children and Two Mothers,” and Lee Jung-seop’s “Bull” will be introduced as the first digital assets through the integrated digital art service platform launched by Wannabe International Co., Ltd. Through these works, the efforts and contemplations of the masters who built unique artistic worlds can be experienced globally without the constraints of time and space. In particular, Park Soo-keun’s “Two Children and Two Mothers,” a representative artist of the working class who lived through difficult and harsh times, is a lesser-known work to the public and is praised for its calm, simple, and stable expression of the scenery and emotions of that era.

Wannabe International plans to provide an integrated service through this platform that will enable various fields of art and culture?including fine art, music, video, sports, dance, and games?to be reborn as digital art and to circulate stably in a virtuous cycle. To this end, Wannabe International has systematized a process whereby artists registering their works on the platform can also register the artist and artwork with the Art Registration Association through a strategic partnership. This partnership established the first precedent of art collateral registration (registration serial number 000001) at the court registry, securing the legal status of artworks as movable property. This utilizes the “Art Work Registration” system, the first domestic artwork registration system, which is known to be the result of the efforts of Kim Hyun-dong, chairman of the Art Registration Association, for the development of the Korean art world.

Kim Bo-gyu, Director of the Art Business Division at Wannabe International Co., Ltd., stated, “We are very honored to be the first to convert and present works by Korea’s representative painters Kim Whanki, Park Soo-keun, and Lee Jung-seop as digital assets.” He added, “Art is a universal language that anyone can share, and we will continue to support domestic and international artists to expand globally through our platform. Beyond art, we will strive to help artists in various fields create digital value.”

Meanwhile, Wannabe International plans to hold auctions on its official website over three days starting June 16, featuring Lee Jung-seop’s “Bull” (June 16), Park Soo-keun’s “Two Children and Two Mothers” (June 17), and Kim Whanki’s “Jeonmyeon Jeomhwa - Untitled” (June 18). Alongside the auction, a special event for site members will be held to commemorate the platform launch. The online auction will be conducted simultaneously in 22 countries, including Korea, the United States, China, France, the United Kingdom, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.