Chung’s mulberry papers create cultured calm
The second exhibition room in the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, seems like an ideal world of tranquility that exists far away from the hustle and bustle of the city, especially after walking past Paik Nam-june’s flashy media work “Samramansang” which is installed near the room.
Monotone paintings by veteran artist Chung Chang-sub fill the walls there, amazingly turning the place even more serene and simpler than when it was void.
Chung, one of the first graduates of the College of Fine Arts at Seoul National University and currently an honorary professor there, is one of the doyens of Korean art. After his successful debut in 1952, winning the special prize at the National Art Competition, Chung led some of Korea’s important art movements such as Art Informel.
Ironically, however, the “Chang-Sup Chung Retrospective” is his first-ever solo exhibition held at a national museum.
“This might be his last one, too, because he is in critical condition. He never enjoyed presenting himself or cared much about promoting his works. That’s probably why he is less known compared to his close friends like Park Seo-bo or Kim Tschang-yeul. Now is the time that a national museum shed light on his works,” said Lee Sun-ryung, curator of the exhibition.
Like the artist himself, his artworks are the kind that do not make a strong first impression but reveal much more by not expressing too much. His last series, “Mukgo,” which means the thoughts of silence, is the epitome of Chung’s works.
The secret to his calm but profound paintings is “dakjongi,” or Korean traditional paper made from mulberry bark.
“Chung practiced Informel paintings after learning the basics of Western painting but was not fond of the gooey and thick texture of oil paint. So he tried to come up with ways to naturalize the texture, like by painting it thin and runny as possible. And one day in the mid 1970s, he met his fate, dakjongi,” said Lee.
“The shades and colors of the works vary although they may be the same kind of dakjongi. The artist hand-dyed dakjongi to bring out the exact color and shade he wanted and made the wrinkles one by one after placing them on the canvas.”
A docent program for the hearing-impaired runs every Wednesday and Saturday, based on reservations.
Musician Hwang Byung-ki’s mini gayageum, or 12-stringed Korean zither, recital will take place at the exhibition hall on Aug.14, which will perfectly harmonize with the exhibition.
The exhibition runs through Oct. 17 at the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province. Tickets are 1,500 won for students and 3,000 won for adults. For more information, call (02) 2188-6000 or visit www.moca.go.kr.
By Park Min-young (claire@heraldm.com)
Monotone paintings by veteran artist Chung Chang-sub fill the walls there, amazingly turning the place even more serene and simpler than when it was void.
Chung, one of the first graduates of the College of Fine Arts at Seoul National University and currently an honorary professor there, is one of the doyens of Korean art. After his successful debut in 1952, winning the special prize at the National Art Competition, Chung led some of Korea’s important art movements such as Art Informel.
Ironically, however, the “Chang-Sup Chung Retrospective” is his first-ever solo exhibition held at a national museum.
“This might be his last one, too, because he is in critical condition. He never enjoyed presenting himself or cared much about promoting his works. That’s probably why he is less known compared to his close friends like Park Seo-bo or Kim Tschang-yeul. Now is the time that a national museum shed light on his works,” said Lee Sun-ryung, curator of the exhibition.
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| Chung Chang-sub |
Like the artist himself, his artworks are the kind that do not make a strong first impression but reveal much more by not expressing too much. His last series, “Mukgo,” which means the thoughts of silence, is the epitome of Chung’s works.
The secret to his calm but profound paintings is “dakjongi,” or Korean traditional paper made from mulberry bark.
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| A view of the exhibition “Chang-Sup Chung Retrospective” (National Museum of Contemporary Art) |
“Chung practiced Informel paintings after learning the basics of Western painting but was not fond of the gooey and thick texture of oil paint. So he tried to come up with ways to naturalize the texture, like by painting it thin and runny as possible. And one day in the mid 1970s, he met his fate, dakjongi,” said Lee.
“The shades and colors of the works vary although they may be the same kind of dakjongi. The artist hand-dyed dakjongi to bring out the exact color and shade he wanted and made the wrinkles one by one after placing them on the canvas.”
A docent program for the hearing-impaired runs every Wednesday and Saturday, based on reservations.
Musician Hwang Byung-ki’s mini gayageum, or 12-stringed Korean zither, recital will take place at the exhibition hall on Aug.14, which will perfectly harmonize with the exhibition.
The exhibition runs through Oct. 17 at the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province. Tickets are 1,500 won for students and 3,000 won for adults. For more information, call (02) 2188-6000 or visit www.moca.go.kr.
By Park Min-young (claire@heraldm.com)
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답글삭제국립현대미술관 정창섭전 리뷰 Chung’s mulberry papers create cultured calm The second exhibition room in the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Gwacheon, Gyeo..