국립현대미술관

When Brushes Are Abandoned
Jung Chanyoung, Baik Yoonmoon, Chung Chong-yuo
Lim Gunhong, Lee Kyusang, Chung Kyu

Rediscovery of Korean Modern Artists is a series exhibition organized to collect the scattered traces and memories of modern artists and expand the horizon of modern art history. The first exhibit, When Brushes Are Abandoned, introduces six artists who could not freely live and work due to the chaotic situation of the times and a weak foundation for art.

The viewers will encounter the following six artists: Jung Chanyoung (1906-1988) and Baik Yoonmoon (1906-1979) who were popular in the Joseon Art Exhibition but abandoned their brushes because of personal reasons; Chung Chong-yuo (1914-1984) and Lim Gunhong (1912-1979) whose art activities in South Korea stopped as the artists defected to North Korea in the political turmoil after liberation; and Lee Kyusang (1918-1967) and Chung Kyu (1923-1971) whose advanced attitude in art limited their activities as painters. These painters created unique art while working in the backdrop of the Japanese occupation in the 1930s, the space of liberation in the 1940s, and the reconstruction period after the war in the 1950s-1960s respectively.

Nevertheless, why haven’t these artists attracted attention in the history of Korean modern art so far?
This exhibition concentrates on the inevitable situations that made these artists find it impossible to continue their activities despite their great tenacity. It will examine multiple obstacles such as the prejudice against women painters, misunderstandings about ink color painting, confrontations of political ideologies, and the lack of understanding of plural art practice. This exhibit thereby illuminates the art and achievements of these artists, who have not been discussed in depth so far due to the above reasons.