Contemporary Korean Art
Since antiquity, Korea has been a major point of contact between China and Japan. Both countries have always had strong cultural, political, and artistic influences over Korea. However, as South Korea rapidly modernized in the late twentieth century, the country stepped out of the shadow of China and Japan, becoming a powerful nation of its own. With the rise of economic abundance amidst political chaos and ideological conflict, Korean artist use their work to negotiate
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Contemporary Korean Art
Since antiquity, Korea has been a major point of contact between China and Japan. Both countries have always had strong cultural, political, and artistic influences over Korea. However, as South Korea rapidly modernized in the late twentieth century, the country stepped out of the shadow of China and Japan, becoming a powerful nation of its own. With the rise of economic abundance amidst political chaos and ideological conflict, Korean artist use their work to negotiate the dichatomy between progress and the bonds to tradition and religion. Although contemporary Korean art lacks in unifying theme, individual artists explore and create artworks that are rich in ironies, satire and metaphors of conflicting values that are often hidden in the daily life of Korean society.
Many contemporary artists take on traditional and familiar Eastern values and integrate them with western influences. For instance, to redefine the traditional landscape, Seung Ho Yoo replaced brushwork and lines of eastern landscape with onomatopoeic words, preserving tradition while creating new and unique artworks. So Young Choi used denim fabric to construct collages in traditional landscape format of the artist’s hometown. In Choi’s landscapes, the traditional values of Far East landscape became deconstructed and unfamiliar; commentating on the cloth we wear and the world we live in.
Other contemporary Korean artists examine the sociological effects of Korea’s rapid modernization; exploring the question of individual identity in today’s increasingly transnational global society. Joon Kim used tattoos as a social metaphor by branding computer generated nude figures with corporate logos; the artist explicitly mocks South Korea’s increasingly westernized consumer culture. Osang Gwon created photography sculptures that reflect the artist’s own fascination with today’s forced-fed consumer culture; questioning the culture that is taking over our identity. As Korea continues to transform, artists continue to explore the themes of loss of identity and the meaning of tradition and new iconography.
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Examples of Contemporary Korean Art at Auction
Artists Associated with Contemporary Korean Art — 27 artists:
Auction Houses that have sold Contemporary Korean Art works - 11
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