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CULTURE A Look at Contemporary Korean Artists in Paris BY LEE JI-YOON STAFF WRITER “A High Place” by Oh You-kyeong “Deux Sceurs-Tricoteuse (A Woman Who is Knitting)” by Sung Ji-yeon While New York is a dynamic art market where artists compete fiercely for artistic opportunities, Paris has long been an inspiration in itself for many renowned artists around the world. Korean artists are no exception. According to the Korean Embassy in Paris, there are some 1,000 Korean artists officially registered in its database. Many belong to local galleries and are helped financially by the French government, which supports artists regardless of nationality. “France is a country that has a long artistic tradition of respecting artists and art. People there understand and accept any forms of artistic trials. So artists can attempt anything regardless of the trend at the time,” said Kim Mi-jin, art director of the exhibition “Contemporary Korean Artists in Paris,” which was held in November at Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul. Last year the museum launched a city-themed project introducing artworks of Korean artists doing art in overseas countries. Following the first New York exhibition, this year’s exhibition featured 21 artists based in France coming from different generations. The first section “Root of a Myth” showed works by the first generation of artists who were sent to the country as government scholarship students in the 1950s and 1960s, the artistic heyday of Paris. They explored the root of contemporary Western art based on Asian identity. Rhee Seun-dja, now in her 90s, expresses beautiful nature treasured in childhood memories through trees and light. Inspired by Buddhism and Taoism, Kim Tschang-yeul, who has stayed in Paris since 1969, examines the movement of water drops that change and disappear as time goes by. The next generation has pursued the essence of art by dealing with the issue of abstractness and representation, as presented in the “Exploring Expression as the Material” section. Kwon Sun-cheol, 65, focuses on faces of ordinary Koreans by using thick and rough matiere. Kwon stayed at an atelier building, called “Sonamu” (pine trees in Korean), located in Elssyles-Moulineaux, southwestern Paris, in the 1990s. Some Korean artists transformed a steel structure, once a military hangar during the Second World War, into an artistic space housing 46 ateliers — 20 for Koreans. Until its dissolution in 2001, it had been a beloved space where expat artists from around the world used to exchange artistic ideas. Much attention was paid especially to the “Temperate Desire” section, which showed unique and exciting artworks of young artists ranging from those who worked in the 1990s to 20-somethings who recently arrived in Paris. Yoo Hye-sook, who moved to France in 1987, takes everyday objects such as towels and clothes, turning them into a black mass. With countless pencil touches on them, the mass becomes a lively fur-like creature. “A pencil was the most humble tool I could take,” she said. For Yoo, France has been a space where she is able to concentrate solely on herself and understand other people and things, she said. The photography of Park Soohwan, who majored in composition, visualizes city landscapes through musical images. “We are living in a world where visual images are dominant. I want to revive our losing sense “Le Visage (The Face)” by Kwun Sun-cheol “METRONOME II” by Park Soo-hwan of hearing along with imagination,” Park, who has been in Paris for 13 years, said in an e-mail interview. Park pointed out the family atmosphere of the city’s Korean art community as the most special thing about Paris. “Unlike New York, Korean artists in Paris get along with one another like family members. We don’t hesitate to talk about the works of others and accept their advice very sincerely.” Contemporary Korean art has been overshadowed by Japanese and Chinese art in the international art scene. Compared to those of the other two countries, Korean artists have expressed Asian identity less openly and people regarded Korean art as not unique, said Kim, the art director. “Times have changed. Old boundaries that divided and defined the art world have disappeared. Ironically, the high quality of Korean art and the newness of ideas started to be reappraised and are gaining attention. And that is best represented by Korean artists in Paris,” she said. ■ (Photos courtesy of Seoul Arts Center) 30 KOREA DECEMBER 2008 DECEMBER 2008 KOREA 31
CULTURE Royal Protocols of the Joseon Dynasty Palace Records Revived in Digital Form BY SHIN BYEONG-JU HISTORY PROFESSOR AT KONKUK UNIVERSITY (Left) Protocols of the investiture of King Gojong’s two sons (for the king’s perusal) (Right) Protocols of Gyeongmo Hall for Crown Prince Jangheon (for the king’s perusal) Since June 2008 the Cultural Heritage Administration web site has featured digitalized palace records of the Joseon Dynasty (1391-1910). These fascinating digital files cover part of some 300 volumes of official records on court events of Korea's last monarchy, which are currently kept by the French National Library (Bibliotheque nationale de France). The Joseon palace documents were carried away from the royal archives in Ganghwa Island by invading French troops in 1866. Expatriation of the displaced royal documents has been a prominent pending issue between Korea and France over the past decades. Official Reports on State Events The Joseon Dynasty maintained a unique tradition of compiling detailed reports on major state rites and events in the royal household throughout its five-century rule. These reports were usually accompanied by colorful illustrations. They were primarily intended for use by the throne and concerned offices as references for organizing similar events. Hence they were called uigwe, literally the "exemplary protocols." Among the recorded state and royal household events were weddings of kings, investitures of crown princes, feasts and funerals for the royal family members and construction of palace pavilions. Detailed records were made on the entire procedures of these events and afterwards, a temporary office was set up to compile the records into a full report. What singles out these reports is a strong commitment to documentation. The reports fully described the procedures of an event, and listed all the participants and logistics as well as leftover goods, thereby ensuring thorough transparency and openness in state management. Another prominent characteristic is the rich visual material, including illustrations and diagrams. Most of the reports were actually fantastic picture books that featured realistic depictions of grand processions of officials of all ranks as well as diagrams of ritual objects and pavilions. The colorful illustrations offer vivid glimpses of the circumstances of the events and the equipment and objects used, which defy accurate description through words alone. The Joseon royal protocols are now scattered at several places such as the Kyujanggak Institute of Korean Studies at Seoul National University, the Jangseogak Archives at the Academy of Korean Studies, the Japanese Imperial Household Agency and the French National Library. In 2006 the Korean government nominated the entire uigwe collections at the two Korean national archives for inscription on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register. In 2007, a total of 2,940 volumes of 546 kinds of Joseon royal protocols at the Kyujanggak Institute of Korean Studies and 529 volumes of 287 kinds at the Jangseogak Archives were placed on the UNESCO list of documentary literature of "outstanding universal value." Suffering of Palace Documents As one of the first projects upon his accession in 1776, King Jeongjo, the 22nd ruler of the Joseon Dynasty, established Kyujanggak as a royal library and palace institution for academic research. When Kyujanggak was set up completely in Changdeok Palace, he ordered the construction of another royal archive building on Ganghwa Island, where he believed the valuable books and documents of the royal palace could be preserved in a safer environment. In the second month of 1782, the sixth year of the reign of King Jeongjo, the Protocols of the daesarye by King Yeongjo (daesarye: a rite where a king shoots an arrow after paying respect to his ancestors) 32 KOREA DECEMBER 2008 DECEMBER 2008 KOREA 33
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Seoul Lights Up for the Holiday Season - Korea.net

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