[Gallery Walk] 100th Anniversary of Birth, Still Sad 'Legendary Story'

100th Anniversary Exhibition of Artist Cheon Kyung-ja
Seoul Museum of Art 'Era of Upheaval, Women's Lives and Art' Exhibition
Featuring Works by 22 Contemporary Female Artists

Two exhibitions commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of painter Cheon Kyung-ja (1924?2015) will be held consecutively at the Seoul Museum of Art.

Cheon Kyung-ja, Madonna Turned Hwa-Byung, 1990, Color on Paper, 38×45.5cm
[Photo provided by Seoul Museum of Art]

The Seoul Museum of Art will present a special exhibition titled "Turbulent Times, Women's Lives and Art" at the Seosomun Main Building, showcasing works and materials by Cheon Kyung-ja and 22 other female artists who lived during the same era.

Painter Cheon Kyung-ja, a representative artist of the 20th-century Korean art scene, deeply influenced later generations with her unique style in the field of color painting. From the early stages of her career, she emphasized "free creation and individuality," refusing to confine her works within the traditional frameworks of Oriental painting or Korean painting. Breaking away from the then-prevalent prejudice that color painting was synonymous with Nihonga (Japanese-style painting), she distinguished herself as a true modernist by portraying childhood memories, inspirations from music, literature, and film, love and pain with her lover, and maternal affection with a distinctive brushstroke and exceptional sensitivity and sensibility.

"No matter how much I struggle, the story of my sad legend will not be erased."

Since 1998, based on 93 works donated by Cheon Kyung-ja, the Seoul Museum of Art has held various exhibitions. This exhibition highlights the artist's modern mindset and influence while also examining female Oriental painters who lived during the same period. In addition to the challenges faced by Oriental painters of the time?such as breaking away from Japanese influence, inheriting tradition, and reflecting national consciousness?this exhibition closely explores how these "female Oriental painters," who also had to manage household duties and child-rearing, escaped the conservative and standardized style of the "National Art Exhibition" (Gukjeon, the Korea Art Exhibition), established their own artistic worlds, and grew as "artists."

Cheon Kyung-ja, Margaret Mitchell's Birthplace in Atlanta, 1987, Color on paper, 31.5×40cm
[Photo courtesy of Seoul Museum of Art]

The large-scale work "Flowers, Soldiers, and Gunfire," measuring 170 ho (a traditional Korean painting size), is being revealed to the public for the first time. Cheon Kyung-ja completed this piece in 1972 while serving as a war artist during the Vietnam War, sketching directly in Vietnam. Originally displayed in the lobby on the first floor of the Ministry of National Defense building, the painting depicts a search operation by soldiers of the Maengho Unit in a village area.

Alongside "Grandfather's Funeral," which was selected for the Joseon Art Exhibition in 1943, the exhibition also unveils for the first time the early 1950s work "Outing to the Fabric Shop," "Four Gentlemen" (originally titled Hyangmisa, 1969) themed on snakes, and "Grassland" (1973), which was exhibited at a solo exhibition at the Seoul Modern Gallery in 1978 that attracted 40,000 visitors over ten days. In total, nine works by Cheon Kyung-ja are on display.

Isukja Lee, Campus Trainee, 1982 [Photo courtesy of Seoul Museum of Art]

The exhibition also explores the artistic worlds of 23 female artists who were contemporaries, colleagues, and disciples of Cheon Kyung-ja, set against the historical backdrop of the Japanese colonial period and the Korean War. Highlights include Jang Sang-ui's "Dasiraegi" and "Bunnoe," which interpret traditional dance forms during turbulent times; Moon Eun-hee's "Untitled (April 19 Revolution)" honoring the spirits of the April 19 Revolution victims; "Gong (Empty) - Dokdo," themed on Dokdo Island; Lee Suk-ja's "Campus Trainee" (1982), focusing on military training classes during the military dictatorship; and Oh Nang-ja's "Kim Yuk Standard Portrait" (1990), the first government standard portrait painted by a female artist. The exhibition also features 86 diverse works, including Jeong Chan-young's "Peacock" (1937), the most awarded artist at the Joseon Art Exhibition.

The exhibition unfolds across five galleries, illustrating how the political and social changes and systems of the era in which these 23 artists lived influenced their lives and works.

The exhibition runs until November 17 and can be viewed without a reservation. A docent program is offered daily at 2 p.m., except on closed days.

Cheon Kyung-ja, The Nasty Woman of Jamaica, 1989, Color on paper, 31.5×40cm
[Photo courtesy of Seoul Museum of Art]

Alongside the special exhibition, the permanent exhibition "Toward the Wind That Moves the Soul" is also being held. This exhibition focuses on travel genre paintings from the "Cheon Kyung-ja Collection," consisting of 93 works donated by the artist to the Seoul Museum of Art in 1998, providing an overview of the artist's life and oeuvre.

The exhibition title is taken from a travel essay written by the artist in 1986. Using the motif of the "wind," which moves freely without boundaries, it metaphorically represents Cheon Kyung-ja's life and artistic world, characterized by crossing psychological, physical, geographical, and cultural boundaries without staying in one place.