Ha Chong-Hyun | Media Coverage | KUKJE GALLERY

Ha Chong-Hyun (b. 1935)
ⓒ Ha Chong-Hyun
Photo: Sang Tae Kim
Image provided by Kukje Gallery

Ha Chong-Hyun works with plain, woven hemp into which he pushes thick paint from the obverse side of the canvas; his unique artistic vocabulary has been widely acclaimed not only throughout Korea but also the rest of the global art scene. The accumulation of works that are now referred to as the Conjunction series explores non-traditional materials including plaster, newspaper, barbed wire, and burlap that was used to transport ration from the U.S. following the Korean War, all of which possess an innate calmness and simplicity yet are charged with dramatic physicality. Ha’s choice of these ordinary but politically charged materials, found throughout Korea and immediately recognizable, set the stage for a radical confrontation between traditional painting and his politicized milieu. In particular, his practice has paved headways beyond expectations for Korean traditional painting by developing on conventional Korean colors and materials, thereby building the foundation for the rise of abstract art in his native country.
Ha Chong-Hyun has lived and worked in Seoul since graduating from Hongik University in 1959. He was the professor of the College of Fine Arts at his alma mater from 1962 to 2001 and served as the Dean from 1990 to 1994. He remains to this day as an emeritus professor. From 2001 to 2006, Ha was the Director of Seoul Museum of Art. Ha Chong-Hyun was the subject of a comprehensive retrospective at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon (2012), and held solo exhibitions at both renowned international and domestic institutions including the Mudima Foundation of Contemporary Art, Milan (2003) and Busan Museum of Art (2002). He has also been widely exhibited in group exhibitions including When Process becomes Form: Dansaekhwa and Korean Abstraction in collaboration with the Boghossian Foundation, Brussels (2016), Dansaekhwa, an official Collateral Event in the 56th Venice Biennale (2015), Dansaekhwa: Korean Monochrome Painting at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon (2012), the 9th Bienal de São Paulo (1967), and the 4th Biennale de Paris (1965).

두꺼운 물감을 촘촘히 짜인 마대 뒷면에서 밀어 넣는 배압(背押)법으로 작업하는 하종현은 이 방식을 한국은 물론 세계 미술계에서도 독창적인 언어로 인정 받았다. 특히 그가 집대성한 <접합> 연작은 밀가루, 신문, 종이, 철조망 등과 한국전쟁 전후 군량미를 담은 포대자루 같은 비전통적 매체를 활용한 작품으로, 간결하고 고요하면서도 강렬한 물성이 느껴진다. 이렇듯 일상적인 동시에 정치적인 소재를 사용함으로써 작가는 당시의 주류 미술에 맞서는 등 자신을 둘러싼 여러 정치적 상황을 대변했다. 특히 한국 전통의 중성적인 색깔과 요소를 변용하면서 기존 회화의 고정관념을 넘어선 추상회화의 새로운 장을 마련했다.
하종현은 1959년 홍익대학교 졸업 후 1962년부터 2001년까지 홍익대학교 미술대학 교수를 역임, 1990년부터 1994년까지 홍익대학교 미술대학의 학장을 지냈으며, 현재 명예교수로 남았다. 또한 2001년부터 2006까지는 서울시립미술관 관장으로 재직하였다. 하종현은2012년 국립현대미술관에서 대규모 회고전을, 2004년 경남도립미술관, 2003년 밀라노 무디마 현대미술재단, 2002년 부산시립미술관에서 개인전을 가졌으며, 2016년 벨기에 보고시안 재단에서 연 《과정이 형태가 될 때: 단색화와 한국 추상미술》 특별전, 2015년 제56회 베니스 비엔날레의 병행전시로 열린 《단색화》전, 2012년 국립현대미술관 《한국의 단색화》전, 1967년 제9회 상파울루 비엔날레, 1965년 제4회 파리비엔날레 등에 참여했다.

Ha Chong-Hyun

Born in 1935, Sancheong, Korea

Education

1959    B.A. in Painting, Hongik University, Seoul, Korea

Selected Solo Exhibitions

2022
The 59th Venice Biennale Collateral Event, Palazzetto Tito, Venice, Italy
Kukje Gallery, Seoul, Korea

2021
Tina Kim Gallery, New York, US

2020               
Almine Rech Gallery, London, UK
Daejeon Museum of Art, Daejeon, Korea

2019               
Kukje Gallery, Busan, Korea
Cardi Gallery, Milan, Italy
Blum & Poe, Tokyo, Japan

2018               
Tina Kim Gallery, New York, US

2017               
Almine Rech Gallery, London, UK
Almine Rech Gallery, Paris, France

2016               
Blum & Poe, Los Angeles, US

2015               
Tina Kim Gallery, New York, US
Kukje Gallery, Seoul, Korea

2014    
Blum & Poe, New York, US
Wooson Gallery, Daegu, Korea

2013               
Pyo Gallery, Seoul, Korea

2012               
National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
Galerie Winter, Wiesbaden, Germany

2010               
Severance Art Space, Seoul, Korea

2009               
Seok Gallery, Daegu, Korea
Bluedot M Gallery, Changwon, Korea
Galerie Winter, Wiesbaden, Germany

2008               
Gana Art Center, Seoul, Korea

2006               
Pyo Gallery, Seoul, Korea

2004               
Gyeongnam Art Museum, Changwon, Korea
Gallery Bizutsu Sekai, Tokyo, Japan

2003               
Fondazione Mudima, Milan, Italy

2002               
Gallery Bizutsu Sekai, Tokyo, Japan

2001               
Kamakura Gallery, Tokyo, Japan,
Chosunilbo Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
Park Ryu Sook Gallery, Seoul, Korea

2000               
Hongik Museum of Art, Hongik University, Seoul, Korea

1999               
Espace Paul Ricard, Paris, France

1997               
Wellside Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Kamakura Gallery, Tokyo, Japan,

1996               
Biever-Risch Gallery, Luxembourg, Luxembourg

1995               
Hanlim Gallery, Daejeon, Korea

1994              
Waserman Galerie, Munich, Germany
Kamakura Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

1992               
Nabis Gallery, Seoul, Korea

1990               
Kamakura Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

1985              
Kamakura Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

1984              
Gallery Hyundai, Seoul, Korea

1979              
Muramatsu Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

1977              
Space Gallery, Seoul, Korea

1975               
Munheon Gallery, Seoul, Korea

1974              
Myongdong Gallery, Seoul, Korea

1972              
Gin Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

Selected Group Exhibitions

2021              
Meeting the Monochrome: ZERO and Dansaekhwa, Zero Foundation, Düsseldorf, Germany
Rho Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Jamunbak Museum Project: Part I, Gana Art Center, Seoul, Korea
Resonance, Horim Museum, Seoul, Korea

2019               
War Within, War Without, Collection 1940s-1970s, Museum of Modern Art, New York, US
Awakenings: Art in Society in Asia 1960s-1990s, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
Abstraction, Song Art Museum, Beijing, China
Approaches to Abstraction, Almine Rech Gallery, Shanghai, China
Landloard Colors: On Art, Economy, and Materiality, Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield Hills, US

2018               
Korean Abstract Art: Kim Whanki and Dansaekhwa, Powerlong Art Museum, Shanghai, China
Renegades in Resistance and Challenge, Daegu Art Museum, Daegu, Korea
Topologies, curated by Mika Yoshitake, The Warehouse, Dallas, US

2017               
Arts of Korea, Brooklyn Museum, New York, US
The Ascetic Path: Korean Dansaekhwa, Erarta Museum of Contemporary Art, St. Petersburg, Russia
Rhythm in Monochrome | Korean Abstract Painting, Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Dansaekhwa, Museum SAN, Wonju, Korea
Asian Diva: The Muse and The Monster, SeMA, Buk-Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
Thinking Out Loud: Notes for an Evolving Collection, The Warehouse, Rachofsky Collection, Dallas, US
Who Can Be Strangers / The Art of Mono-ha and Dansaekhwa, Adrian Rosenfeld Gallery, San Francisco, US
Unpacked: Contemporary Works from Private Collections of Northern California, Museum of Sonoma County, Santa Rosa, US
Seeking Stillness, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, US

2016               
Permanent Collection, Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, US
Dansaekhwa and Minimalism, Blum & Poe, New York, US
Korean Abstract Art: Early Works, Waldorf Astoria Hotel, New York, US
KM 9346: Korea-Morbihan 9,346km, Domaine de Kerguéhennec, Bignan, France
Dansaekhwa, l'aventure du monochrome en Corée, des années 70 à nos jours, Domaine de Kerguéhennec, Bignan, France
Masterworks on Loan, Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, US
Hybridizing Earth, Discussing Multitude, Busan Biennale, Busan Museum of Art, Busan, Korea
30 Years 1986-2016: As the Moon Waxes and Wanes, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
When Process Becomes Form: Dansaekhwa and Korean Abstraction, Boghossian Foundation – Villa Empain, Brussels, Belgium
Dansaekhwa and Minimalism, Blum & Poe, Los Angeles, US
New Beginnings: Between Gesture and Geometry, The George Economou Collection, Athens, Greece

2015               
Dansaekhwa, Palazzo Contarini-Polignac, Venice, Italy
PROPORTIO, Palazzo Fortuny, Venice, Italy
Bold Abstractions: Selections from the DMA Collection 1966-1976, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, US
Avant Garde Asia: Lines of Korean Masters, Sotheby’s Hong Kong Gallery, Hong Kong
45th Anniversary of Gallery Hyundai: Korean Abstract Painting, Gallery Hyundai, Seoul, Korea

2014               
The Art of Dansaekhwa, Kukje Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Overcoming the Modern: Dansaekhwa, The Korean Monochrome Movement, Alexander Gray Associates, New York, US
Empty Fullness: Materiality and Spirituality in Contemporary Korean Art, Korean Cultural Center, Beijing, China; traveled to SPSI Art Museum, Shanghai, China; Koreanisches Kulturzentrum, Berlin, Germany; National Museum of Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia
Unconstraint Creation, Hakgojae Gallery, Shanghai, China
From All Sides: Dansaekhwa on Abstraction, Blum & Poe, Los Angeles, US

2012               
Dansaekhwa: Korean Monochrome Painting, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea

2011              
Qi is Full, Daegu Art Museum, Daegu, Korea
The Spectrum of Contemporary Korean Art, Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
The Great Artists of Korean Art, Ulsan Culture Art Center, Ulsan, Korea

2010              
Korean Avant-Garde Drawing: 1970-2000, Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
Him of Gyeonggi-do, Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art, Ansan, Korea
The 33rd Anniversary Special Exhibition, Sun Gallery, Seoul, Korea
In the Midst of the Korean Contemporary Art, Gallery Hyundai, Seoul, Korea

2009              
Bong Whang 137, Sunshine International Art Museum, Beijing, China
The Three, Imazoo Gallery, Seoul, Korea
8 Artists of the Korean Contemporary Art, Gallery Pakyoung, Paju, Korea
Monochrome Art in Korea, Wellside Gallery, Shanghai, China
4th Prague Biennale, Prague, Czech Republic

2008              
The 5th Busan Biennale, Busan, Korea
9 Korean Contemporary Artists, Rho Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Korean Abstract Art 1958-2008, Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
The Color of Nature: Monochrome Art in Korea, Pyo Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Contemporary Art for 30 years Part 1, Kamakura Gallery, Kanagawa, Japan

2007               
Contemplation on a Space, Gana Art Busan, Busan, Korea
Korean Contemporary Art, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Seoul, Korea
Homage100, Korea Art Gallery, Busan, Korea
Abstract Art: Amusement on the Border, Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea

2004              
Korean Contemporary Paintings: Past and Now, Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea

2003              
The Seoul Art Exhibition, Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
D.I.Y., Total Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea

2002              
Understanding of Abstract Art, Sungkok Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
Korean Contemporary Art from the Mid-1970s to the Mid 1980s: Age of Philosophy and
Aesthetics, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea

2001              
Buncheong Ware Exhibition II, Hoam Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Journey of Contemporary Korean Art of the 21st Century, Sejong Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Which ART Do You Like Best?, Kamakura Gallery, Kanagawa, Japan

2000              
Postwar Abstract Art in Korea and West: Passion and Expression, Hoam Gallery, Seoul, Korea
The Facets of Korean & Japanese Contemporary Art, Gwangju Biennale, Gwangju, Korea
A Passage to New Millennium, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
12 Contemporary Artists, Sun Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Nature, POSCO Art Museum, Seoul, Korea
Plane as Spirits, Busan Museum of Art, Busan, Korea
The Horizontal for a New Millenium, Gallery Hyundai, Seoul, Korea

1998              
Les peintres du silence - Huit maitres contemporains, Musées de Montbéliard, Montbéliard, France
PICAF, Busan Museum of Art, Busan, Korea

1996              
Korean Monochrome Paintings in 70’s, Gallery Hyundai, Seoul, Korea
96 Joongang Biennale, Joongang Ilbo, Seoul, Korea

1995              
The Tiger’s Tail: 15 Korean Contemporary Artists for Venice 95, Palazzo Vendramin, Venice, Italy
Seoul International Painting Exhibition, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
École de Séoul: The 20th Anniversary Special Exhibition, Kwanhoon Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Korean Contemporary Paintings, Hanlim Gallery, Daejeon, Korea
Contemporary Korean Paintings, Paris City Museum, Paris, France
Nature of Korea, Park RyuSook Gallery, Seoul, Korea

1993              
12 Contemporary Artists from Korea, Miyagi Museum, Sendai, Japan
The 45th Biennale de Venice, Venice, Italy
Korean Contemporary Art, Total Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea

1992              
Flows from the Far East: Recent Korean Art Scene, Concourse Gallery, Barbican Centre, London, UK

1991              
Korea Contemporary Paintings, Zagreb, National Museum Zagreb, Ljubljana, Cankarjevdom,
Sarajevo, Collegium Artisticum, Belgrade, Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade, Yugoslavia

1990               
Korean Art Today, Seoul Arts Center, Seoul, Korea

1989    
Hiroshima, Hiroshima City Museum of Modern Art, Hiroshima, Japan

1988               
The 4 Korean Artists, Tokyo Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
The 24 Olympiad Arts, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea

1987               
The 31st Toyama International Arts Exhibition, Toyama, Japan
4 Korean Contemporary Artists, Laboratory Gallery, Sapporo, Japan

1986               
Korean Arts Yesterday and Today, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
Asia Contemporary Arts, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea

1985              
The 3rd Human Documents 1984-1985, Tokyo Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
70 Years of Korean Western Painting, Hoam Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Modern Art from the Past 40 Years, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Deoksugung, Korea

1984               
Contemporary Korean Art: The Late ‘70s - A Situation, Korean Culture and Arts Foundation Art Center, Seoul, Korea
Korean Contemporary Art 84’, Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
Korean Arts of 60’s, Walker Hill Museum, Seoul, Korea
Korean Contemporary Art in 60’s, Duson Gallery, Seoul, Korea

1983
Korean Contemporary Arts Exhibition of the 70s Exhibition, Tokyo Museum of Art, Tokyo & Tochigi Municipal Museum of Art, Tochigi & Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art, Sapporo Fukuoka City Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
Exchange Exhibition of Print and Drawing Between Seoul and San Francisco, U.S.I.S., USIS,
Seoul, Korea; World Print Council, San Francisco, CA, USA; Korean Cultural Service, Los Angeles, US
Korea: New Paper Works, Spring Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan

1983-1982    
The Art of Contemporary Paper: Korea and Japan, Deoksugung Art Museum, Seoul, Korea & Kyoto, Japan
Municipal Museum, Kyoto & Saitama Museum of Modern Art, Urawa & Kumamoto Folk Museum, Kumamoto, Japan

1981          
Drawing ‘81, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Deoksugung, Korea
Work on Paper: Korean Contemporary Drawings, Dongsanbang Gallery, Seoul, Korea, Art Core Gallery, Los Angeles, US
Drawings by Korean Artists, Brooklyn Museum, New York, US
Contemporary Asian Arts, Fukuoka Museum, Fukuoka, Japan

1978               
The 2nd Rencontres International d’art Contemporain, Galerie National de Grand Palais, Paris, France
The Trend for the Past 20 Years in Korean Contemporary Art, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea

1977               
The 13th Biennale de Sao Paolo, Sao Paolo, Brazil
Korean Contemporary Art, National Museum of History, Taipei, Taiwan

1975               
The 3rd India Triennale, New Delhi, India
The 4th Avant-Garde Exhibition, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea

1974               
The 6th Cagnes International Painting Festival, Cagnes, France
The 1st Seoul Biennale, Korean Avant Garde Association, Seoul, Korea

1973    
Korean Contemporary Art 1957-1972: Formative and Informative, Myungdong Gallery, Seoul, Korea
13 Contemporary Artists, Signum Gallery, Tokyo, Japan
Exhibition for 100 Modern Korean Painters, Deoksugung Palace, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea

1972               
The 3rd Avant-Garde Exhibition, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea

1971               
The 2nd Avant-Garde Exhibition, Reality and Realization, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea
The 7th Biennale de Paris, Paris, France

1970               
The 1st Avant-Garde Exhibition, Korean Information Center Gallery, Seoul, Korea
The 7th Tokyo Print Biennale, National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, Japan
6 Korean Contemporary Artists, Tokiwa Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

1969               
11 Young Artists from Korea, Solidaridad Gallery, Manila, Philippines
The Contemporary Art Exhibition, organized by Chosun Daily Newspaper, Deoksugung Palace,
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea
Korean Contemporary Painting Exhibition, traveled to Japan, India, Pakistan, and Nepal

1968               
Korean Contemporary Painting Exhibition, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan

1967               
The 9th Biennale de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

1965               
The 4th Biennale de Paris, Paris, France
The 4th Cultural Freedom Invitational Exhibition, Yechong Gallery, Seoul, Korea

1961               
The 2nd Paris Youth Biennale, Paris, France

Selected Public and Private Collections

M+, Hong Kong
Museum of Modern Art, New York, US
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, US
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, US
The Rachofsky Collection, Dallas, US
The Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
Museum Voorlinden, Wassenaar, The Netherlands
National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Gwacheon, Korea
Leeum Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
Seoul City Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea
Hoam Museum, Seoul, Korea
Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art, Ansan, Korea
Gwangju Museum of Art, Gwangju, Korea
Hong Ik University Museum, Seoul, Korea
Ewha Womens University Museum, Seoul, Korea
Art and Culture Foundation of Ilshin, Seoul, Korea
Posco Art Gallery, Seoul, Korea
Hwajeong Museum, Seoul, Korea
Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan
Fukuoka Museum, Fukuoka, Japan
The Museum of Modern Art, Toyama, Japan
Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Hiroshima, Japan
Simonoseki Art Museum, Simonoseki, Japan
Miyagi Art Museum, Miyagi, Japan
OCT Boxes Art Museum, Guang Dong Province, China