Brushstrokes of brilliance: Exhibition highlights three artist maestros

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Brushstrokes of brilliance: Exhibition highlights three artist maestros

Published: 05 Feb. 2025, 16:25

SHIN MIN-HEE
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

The ″Uhwadungson, a scene of riding and departing a boat at the Uhwa Pavilion″ painting as part of ″Yongang Imsulchob, The Painting Album of the Yon River in the Year of Imsul″ (1742) by Gyeomjae Jeong Seon [S2A]

Landscape painter Gyeomjae Jeong Seon, calligrapher Chusa Kim Jeong-hui and abstract painter Yun Hyong-keun are three individuals who each lived in different time periods of Korea and are considered masters in their respective fields.

The one thing that links them together is the fact that their practices centered on using brushes and ink. Their work is collectively being highlighted in a new exhibition, titled “Stroke and Ink: Three Maestros,” on view at the S2A gallery space in Gangnam District, southern Seoul. S2A is managed by the apparel exporter Global Sae-A Group.

″Daepaeng Gohoe, Great Dishes and High Gatherings″ (1853) by Chusa Kim Jeong-hui [S2A]

The exhibition has a total of 40 paintings and calligraphy pieces on display.

Gyeomjae (1676-1759), which is the pen name of the artist, pioneered realistic depictions of vast mountainsides during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), a time when landscape paintings were more conceptual.

His masterpiece “Yongang Imsulchob, The Painting Album of the Yon River in the Year of Imsul” (1742), which was made in his later years, is being shown to the public for the first time in a decade. The artist is also known for his love for pine trees, which were a recurring motif in his paintings.

“Gyeomjae was so diligent that it’s said that if you stacked up all the brushes he’s used in his lifetime, they would form a burial mound,” said art historian Yu Hong-june, chaired professor at Myongji University — who also curated this exhibition.

Chusa (1786-1856) is renowned for developing the distinctive “Chusa-style” epigraphy during Joseon, which is characterized by being based on traditional methods while establishing a unique aesthetic at the same time. Prof. Yu said that even his drawings of orchid leaves stood out, as they were created from a calligraphic approach.

″Burnt Umber″ (1992) by Yun Hyong-keun [S2A]

Yun (1928-2007) is an influential figure in Korea’s dansaekhwa (monochrome painting) scene from the late 20th century. Yun minimized brushstrokes and ink for his paintings to emphasize simplicity, and heavily relied on colors of burnt umber and ultramarine blue. As a result, they produced smeared effects on the canvas, giving impressions of deepness and self-reflection.

But as different as their works were, Yun was apparently highly influenced by the calligraphy prodigy.

“The foundation of my brushstrokes should be attributed to Chusa Kim Jeong-hui. I learned how to make strokes through Chusa’s methods,” Yun told Prof. Yu in 1979.

“Stroke and Ink: Three Maestros” continues until March 22. S2A is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day except Sundays and Mondays. The exhibition is free.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [[email protected]]