Exhibition "Philosophy of Korean Culture in the Space of Contemporary Art"

The Russian Academy of Arts, the Cultural Center of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea, the International Association of Art of the Republic of Korea, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea present the exhibition "The Philosophy of Korean Culture in the Space of Contemporary Art." The exhibition, which is held as part of the "Autumn Festival of Korean Culture in Russia 2018", presents about thirty works by prominent representatives of contemporary Korean art. The exhibition shows the whole depth and history of Korean traditions, which organically fit also into contemporary art.

Key participants: Kim Sung Yong (President of the Association of the International Committee for Cultural Exchange of the Republic of Korea), Nam Hak Ho (Guest Artist of Daegu), Young Jae Young (Advisor to the Association of Artists of the Republic of Korea), Om Yunsuk (Director of the Zhidu Gallery), Om Yoon Yong (member of the jury of the art competition, Republic of Korea), Lee Yong-hee (laureate of the national art competition, Republic of Korea), Jeong Seung-gyu (professor at Mokpo University), Jeong-gyu Sol (guest artist of the Chunbuk Arts Center (Daejeon city), Ha Chol Kyung (president of Korean asso Arts Associations), Park Suk Gyu (Co-Chair of the Korean Federation of Associations of Korean Art).

Within the framework of the project, on September 12 and 13, 2018, at 14.00, workshops of Korean artists - professors Jong Sung-gyu and Pak Sok-gyu, which will include both theoretical and practical part, will be held at MVK PAX. In the theoretical part, Jong Sung Gyu will talk about the methods of expression in art from antiquity to the present, while in the practical part, participants in the workshop of Pak Sok Gyu will be able to try their hand at traditional Korean painting and create an independent work.

Korean contemporary art began its development after the declaration of independence of Korea on August 15, 1945. It was then that Korea, whose creative continuity was suppressed by Japan, received the long-awaited freedom of expression. The creation of the Joseon Artists Association marked the beginning of the development of Korean contemporary art, and in September 1949, the First National Art Exhibition of the Republic of Korea was held.

Having gone through these stages, by 1980, Korean artists came to a new understanding of the identity and internationality of Korean painting. Repeated efforts were made to bring Korean painting to the world stage. The increase in the number of international exchanges and the awards received testify to the transition of Korean art from regional isolation to internationalism. After the end of the debate between new trends in art and traditional folk painting in the early 90’s. restructuring of the society of artists. It should be noted the first award of the founder of the Korean school of video art, Back Namjoon at the Venice Biennale and a positive assessment of the works of the artist Kim Hyungsu at the first exhibition in the Hermitage, as significant achievements of Korean art of this period.

From the 90s to the present, the process of democratization is underway in the political space in an accelerated mode, and in the economic space - the expansion of a market economy. Along with the changes that have taken place in the field of the innovation industry, Korean fine art is also undergoing significant changes. The Gwangju Biennale, the Busan Biennale and other international exhibitions, corresponding to the latest canons of the globalization era, began to take place on the territory of the Republic of Korea. The number of specialized universities is growing, where students can study various theories and practices of fine art. The scope of Korean art is expanding, as a result of which cultural activity reaches the world level.

The main representatives of young Korean art are such artists as So Doho, Lee Bul, Kim Suja and others. Their completely new media works were presented at such large exhibition venues as the Venice Biennale, Dokumenta in Kassel, and others. The significance of their works was recognized by the world community and was awarded with numerous awards. Recently, works by artists Pak Sobo and Zhong Sanghwa, who are the main representatives of the Korean direction of monochrome painting "Tanshekhwa" of the 1970s, have been actively exhibited around the world. They were able to get away from the influence of modern Western art and return to the origins of the Korean spirit using the Korean painting technique, which avoided the influence of early Western Art Nouveau and came to realize the “Korean essence”. The world of painting by Kim Hwangi was highly appreciated by the art community, some of his works were even sold at international auctions.

Thanks to government policies to promote young artists, their activity in Korea is now higher than it has ever been before. Young authors regularly participate in prestigious Korean and foreign exhibitions. Creating new works, masters do not burden themselves with the framework of any methodologies, easily moving from one genre to another. Korean artists are also completely independent in their choice of plot and create works of different styles and directions - from classical to modern conceptual art, including using media technologies.