Group Exhibition of 15 Hakgojae Artists 'Uigeumsang-gyeong' Exhibition
Featuring Choi Myung-young, Jang Seung-taek, and Chinese Painter Wang Xueye
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] The way of a noble person is plain but not tiresome, simple yet patterned, gentle yet orderly. Thus, knowing that distant things begin from what is near, understanding where the wind blows from, and discerning the principle that subtlety clearly reveals itself, one can truly enter into virtue together.
In Chapter 33 of the Doctrine of the Mean, there is a passage explaining the way of a noble person by quoting the phrase ‘Uigeumsanggyeong (衣錦?絅)’ from the Book of Songs. The phrase about wearing silk clothes and then adding an outer garment means that the person wore an undergarment beneath to avoid showing the silk’s patterns. This refers to the attire of Janggang (莊姜), a noblewoman from the Qi (齊) state who married the king of the Wei (衛) state during the Spring and Autumn period. It is said that the people of Wei composed this phrase, which was also sung as a song praising her virtue at the time. The message that what is outwardly shown is rooted in the inner self aligns with Laozi’s later saying, “The sage never strives to be great; therefore, he achieves greatness (聖人終不爲大 故能成其大).” This philosophy of humility is embroidered on the canvas through the fingertips of fifteen artists.
Hakgojae is exhibiting 55 works by 15 artists under the theme ‘Uigeumsanggyeong’ until February 25.
Lee Jinmyung, an art critic who planned the exhibition, said, “I thought the philosophy of Uigeumsanggyeong, which hides splendid forms and reveals inner light, fits well with East Asia’s traditional aesthetic consciousness. While Western minimalism is an attitude and Japan’s Mono-ha (物派) speaks about the relationship between the world and objects, our Dansaekhwa (Korean monochrome painting) is a work that reveals Korea’s unique spirituality.”
Participating artists include Choi Myungyoung (born 1941), a representative figure of Korean Dansaekhwa; Lee Dongyeop (born 1946), a master of white painting and an artist known for his use of empty space; Park Youngha (born 1954), who has continued his work with the theme ‘Tomorrow’s You’ posed by his father, the poet Park Doojin; and Lee Inhyun (born 1958), who emphasizes not only the front but also the sides of the canvas and is highly regarded for his technique of allowing blue light to seep out without touching the brush to the canvas.
Other artists include Cheon Kwangyeop (born 1958), known as the artist of light with his ‘Omni’ series; Jang Seungtaek (born 1959), who represents late Dansaekhwa with his layered paintings; Kim Gilhu (born 1961), who sought to express the mind itself that embraces the world and penetrates objects; and Wang Xueye (born 1963), the only Chinese artist participating, who practices indiscriminate viewing of nature (无差??看).
Park Giwon (born 1964), a notable installation artist who won the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s Artist of the Year Award in 2010, presents paintings in this exhibition. Also participating are Kim Hyunsik (born 1965), a leading late Dansaekhwa artist known for his painstaking process of cutting epoxy, applying paint, pouring epoxy again, and repeating; Park Jonggyu (born 1966), who reproduces computer noise on canvas; and Kim Youngheon (born 1964), who paints the innovative and elite world of electromagnetic fields using the most traditional and folk-like hyeokpilhwa (Rainbow Painting) technique.
The exhibition also features Park Hyunju (born 1968), who cultivates forests on canvas using painting as the earth; Yoon Sangryeol (born 1970), who presents linear paintings with a deep sense of darkness in his ‘Silence’ series; and Park Inhyuk (born 1977), whose works express primal desires from the body. This exhibition offers an opportunity to comprehensively observe the multi-layered surfaces of contemporary Korean Dansaekhwa.
Woo Jungwoo, director of Hakgojae, explained, “The diverse works extending from the main building to the new building’s basement conclude with works of vivid colors from achromatic tones, which is a composition embodying our spirit inherent in Dansaekhwa that has broadened its horizon through new materials.” The exhibition runs until February 25 at Hakgojae in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul.
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