Korean artists are singled out in general expositions of world forums. For professional art critics and cultural experts, this has not been a secret for a long time. The synthesis of solid academic knowledge and free creative pursuit attracts the art public and art admirers to the abstract canvas paintings of Korean artists. Traditions and innovations confidently help Korean fine art enter world culture.
Learn about prominent Korean artists and their unique works in this article.
1. Nam June Paik (1932-2006)
Nam June Paik is considered to be the initiator of video art Abstract Painting. He not only founded video art but also invented some of the main genres of video art, including video installations, video performances, and video sculpture. In addition, Paik promoted the spread of video as an artistic medium. The artist`s video works are devoted to understanding the functions of television and the place of television in the modern world.
Nam June Paik, Internet Dream, 1994
Nam June Paik positively viewed television. In his opinion, television is a universal means of communication that can unite people. Therefore, it is easy to read his works. For example, in the “Good Morning, Mr. Orwell” project 1984. In this work, as part of a teleconference between America, European countries, and Korea, the artist refutes the ideas of Orwell’s 1984 dystopia that television is a way of total control.
2. Lee Ufan (1936-)
Lee Ufan is an artist, writer, philosopher, and sculptor. He was born in 1936 in Korea and became known in the 1960s as one of the most prominent supporters of the avant-garde movement "Mono-ha" (the so-called "School of Things").
As it is known, "Mono-ha" is the first internationally recognized modern Japanese Large Decor art movement. It rejects Western ideas of representation, focusing not on expression and intervention, as well as on the relationship between matter and sensory perception. Followers of mono-ha created their works from raw materials subjected to minimal impact.
Lee Ufan, Exhibition view, 2020
3. Song Hyun-Sook (1952-)
Song Hyun-Sook is a famous artist from South Korea who creates Minimal Art paintings that require just a few brushstrokes. The technique and style of the artist are very original and combine elements of East and West. Sook uses tempera. This is a special paint obtained by mixing pigments with egg yolk.
Western artists widely used tempera in the Middle Ages due to the fact that such paint was opaque. Song, on the contrary, uses an almost transparent tempera in her work. Song Hyun-Sook's artistic approach was formed under the influence of Eastern philosophy. The artist's love for the body, natural environment, and materials also influenced her style.
Song Hyun-Sook, 3 Brustrokes, 2017
4. Haegue Yang (1971-)
Haegue Yang is another Korean artist whose name you should know. He is known for generating immersive Texture Art environments from a wide variety of materials. Installations and sculptures often use industrial products intertwined with labor-intensive and artisanal processes. Pagan cultures and their important connection with various seasonal rituals associated with natural phenomena are reflected in these processes.
Haegue Yang, When the Year 2000 Comes, 2019
5. Lee Bae (1956-)
Lee Bae is a famous abstract artist from Korea. Black paintings are at the heart of his work. Bae uses the almost limitless possibilities of black color in each of his works. The artist applies raw charcoal to create his masterpieces.
Lee Bae, Untitled, 2020
Famous Korean artists are very different in their work's subject matter and style. So choose the bedroom paintings that you like the most and enjoy modern art!