[Exhibition of the Week] Seohwa, Dawn of Korean Painting · Awakening the Painting: Christophe Exhibition and More

Editor's NoteThis week's exhibitions introduce a variety of attractive exhibitions that can be seen nationwide over the course of one week.

▲Special Exhibition 'SeoHwa, The dawn of Korean painting' = Hanwon Museum is hosting the collection-based special exhibition 'SeoHwa, The dawn of Korean painting.' The exhibition explores the roots of Korean art and introduces the beauty and artistic value of SeoHwa (書畵).

Go Hee-dong_Landscape_Ink and color on paper_27×36cm_1900s [Photo provided by Hanwon Museum of Art]

SeoHwa is a unique traditional art form combining 'writing' and 'painting,' serving as valuable artifacts that reflect the aesthetic sensibility and cultural consciousness of our ancestors. Until the modern era, before calligraphy and Oriental painting separated, SeoHwa formed a very common artistic perspective. Moreover, our ancestors regarded art as a method of scholarship and self-cultivation, expressing the lifestyle of their times through paintings and inscribed poems (제시) under the belief that writing and painting share the same root.

This exhibition explores how the content and form of SeoHwa works have evolved through its historical flow, examining how SeoHwa remained a valuable creative work despite adversities such as the Japanese colonial period, liberation, and the Korean War. Artists, based on the traditional theories of the unity of writing and painting (書畵一致論) and the common origin of writing and painting (書畵同原論) proposed by old art theorists, opened the dawn of Korean painting as pioneers who upheld tradition while embracing new trends. They conveyed a warm perspective and empathy toward 'nature,' emphasizing artistic philosophy through implication, metaphor, and the emptiness of negative space.

Kim Inhu_Injong Daewang Seokjuk 仁宗大王石竹_Ink on paper_102×62cm_1500s [Photo provided by Hanwon Museum]

Through various works, the exhibition provides an opportunity to re-recognize the true meaning of SeoHwa, which laid the foundation for modern and contemporary Korean art, and offers a time to reaffirm the outstanding creative potential of Korean art. The exhibition runs until May 31 at Hanwon Museum, Nambusunhwan-ro, Seocho-gu, Seoul.

Beauty in the Dark
Black clay, cultured mushrooms 10×20×8 cm, 2024
[Photo by Gallery Dos]

▲Kim Han-ra Solo Exhibition 'Roundly Connected Relationships' = Gallery Dos presents Kim Han-ra's solo exhibition 'Roundly Connected Relationships.' The artist's experiences with nature in her upbringing have led to reflections on humans and nature, culminating in her current work. Therefore, the works do not simply reproduce the appearance of nature but reinterpret the vitality of natural flow and the cycle of life and death through a modern perspective, especially focusing on the previously less visible female figure, showing a new attempt in creative ceramic art.

Clay, the ceramic material, is a medium that allows freer expression of desire, making it very suitable for highlighting the expressive characteristics of personal themes such as the artist's perception of nature and life as a woman. The artist mainly pursues a sculptural intention that metaphorically and lyrically shapes the female image through painterly expression utilizing the physical properties of clay.

Connected in a Circle
Red earthenware clay, dimensions variable, 2024
Photo by Gallery Dos

As a woman in modern society, the artist constantly interacts between external environments and inner emotions. Through the woman's body covered with a splendid shell, she expresses traces of her appearance and emotions and continues to contemplate various aspects of life and death. The artist provides a time to view life, which may seem unfamiliar but is actually faced by us, more three-dimensionally and honestly through works expressed metaphorically rather than directly or bluntly. The exhibition runs until April 2 at Gallery Dos, Samcheong-ro 7-gil, Jongno-gu.

untitled (female dancer), 2015, oil on canvas, 180 x 180 cm ⓒ Christoph Ruckh?berle. Courtesy of Galerie Kleindienst
Photo by Aram Museum of Art

▲Christoph Luckeneder 'Awakening the Painting: Christoph Luckeneder' = Goyang Cultural Foundation is holding the exhibition 'Awakening the Painting: Christoph Luckeneder' at Goyang City Aram Art Museum. 'Awakening the Painting' is an exhibition that awakens all elements of painting?dots, lines, planes, and various colors?stimulating new senses through repeated visual vitality and enjoyment.

Christoph Luckeneder is a leading figure of the new Leipzig School, which includes painters like Neo Rauch and Rosa Loy, who are gaining worldwide attention. He is a rising star artist whose works are held by MOMA (Museum of Modern Art, New York). The exhibition boldly and wittily expresses heavy themes such as the solitary self and the meaning of human existence.

untitled (female dancer) 4, 2014, gouache on paper, 70 x 50 cm ⓒ Christoph Ruckh?berle. Courtesy of Galerie Kleindienst
Photo by Aram Museum of Art

Additionally, the exhibition presents over 160 works divided into six themes (△They do not dance, they sing on tiptoe △Meaningful collisions = shape X shape X shape △Later, closer, and simpler △Reconstruction of events - like magic △Fragments of fantasy △Makeup: The aesthetics of change), showcasing the artist's free expression, bold use of materials, and artistic execution and exploratory spirit.

The exhibition highlights the artist's broad spectrum, crafted with meticulous craftsmanship using various fields, techniques, and materials such as printmaking, sculpture, painting, abstraction, and collage, without being confined to a single artistic method. Especially, visitors can see about 20 recent works created for this exhibition and a space made with specially produced wallpaper. The exhibition runs until July 7 at Aram Art Museum, Jungang-ro, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do.