Great Korean Art Association
An art association that formed in 1948, when the Korean Art Association [Joseon misul hyeophoe], which was established in 1945, reformed in parallel with the establishment of the new Korean government. Following independence, the organization reformed and expanded primarily to foster solidarity and anti-communist sentiment in artists, and held the inaugural Great Korean Art Association Exhibition. In June 1961, the association closed officially with the government's comprehensive art institute reformation policy, and in December that year, the association merged into the Korean Fine Arts Association [Hanguk misul hyeopoe].
hangukhwa
A type of painting created during the 20th century that uses traditional Korean materials, techniques, and styles. The term emerged from the criticism that traditional-style paintings were called Eastern paintings in Korea, in contrast to China, where they were called national-style paintings, and Japan, where they were called Japanese-style paintings. The term hangukhwa (Korean Painting) entered official use following the overhaul of the educational curriculum in December 1981, and the appearance of the term Korean painting, with the subcategories ink wash painting [sumukhwa] and ink and light-colored painting [damchaehwa] were listed in art textbooks from 1983. The Grand Art Exhibition of Korea also began using the term hangukhwa (Korean Painting), as opposed to Eastern painting, in 1982. Prior to this, Hankukhwahui (Korean Painter’s Association) was used as a collective term for such Korean painters in 1964 and Kim Youngki (pen name Chunggang) argued to use the term Korean painting to define national identity in his essay “On hangukhwa (Korean Painting) and Criticism.” Criticism that Korean paintings, unlike the national paintings of China and Japan, do not have a narrative theme, and that the use of such a term was contrary to contemporary artistic trends, resulted in the term “hangukhwa (Korean Painting)” failing to achieve mainstream use. Hangukhwa (Korean Painting) is currently used interchangeably with the term Eastern painting.
Chosun University
A private university located in Seoseok-dong, Dong-gu in Gwangju, Chosun University was founded in 1946 as Gwangju Night University to train local talents who could contribute to the establishment of a nation-state. From the early years of its founding, an art department was installed in the College of Arts and Literature to start art education, and in 1948 the institution was renamed Chosun University. In 1953, the art department came to be affiliated with the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and in the following year the art department was divided into the Department of Fine arts and the Department of Music. Later, new departments were installed not only covering fine arts but also industrial arts, thus encompassing painting, sculpture, applied arts, and industrial design. In 2000, the animation department was established, and in 2010, the Department of Design Engineering was installed. Since the early years of contemporary art after Korea’s liberation from Japan, Chosun University has served as an educational institute that contributed to the development of art culture in the Jeollanam-do provincial region.
Paek Yang Painting Association
An art group formed in 1957 to explore new perspectives on Korean paintings and educate future artists. The group was formed by nine artists including Kim Kichang and Park Rehyun of the Husohoe (who were students of Kim Eunho, also known by his pen name I-dang), Kim Youngki, and Chun Kyungja. In January 1961, the group organized a touring exhibition in Southeast Asia, which is noteworthy as the first overseas exhibition held by a Korean private-sector art organization. In this traveling exhibition, the term “hangukwa (Korean painting)” was used for the first time to refer to traditional ink painting, instead of the previously dominant term “Eastern painting.”
Cho Joonghyun
Cho Joonghyun (1917-1982) was a Korean painter, who went by the pen names Dango and Simwon. He was born in Yeongi-gun, Chungcheongnam-do Province, and after graduating from primary school, he began to teach himself how to paint when he was unable to enter middle school due to his family’s poor financial situation. He went to Seoul and studied Eastern painting in earnest at the Nakcheongheon Studio run by Kim Eunho. He became a founding member of the Husohoe, which was formed in 1936 by disciples of Kim Eunho. He studied abroad in Japan for a year. He made his debut in Korean painting circles by receiving an honorable mention at the fifteenth Joseon Art Exhibition [Joseon misul jeollamhoe] in 1936 with Demoiselle Crane and won honorable mentions several times since then. He became the center of attention in the art scene when he was awarded a special prize at the twenty-first (1942) and twenty-third (1944) editions and the Joseon Governor-General Prize at the twenty-third edition. After Korea’s liberation from Japan, Cho participated in the formation of Dangu Art Academy [Dangu misulwon], making efforts to cleanse the Japanese color and restore the ethnic authenticity of traditional painting of Korea. In 1948, he held the exhibition Seven Eastern Painters at Dong Hwa Gallery (September 25–October 1), along with other established Eastern painters (Kim Kichang, Park Rehyun, Lee Geonyeong, Lee Seokho, Lee Palchan, and Chung Chong-yuo), and opened the Eastern Painting Research Institute [Dongyanghwa yeonguso]. In 1957, Cho and eight other mid-career Eastern painters (Kim Kichang, Kim Youngki, Kim Junghyun, Park Rehyun, Lee Yootae, Lee Namho (Geumchu), Jang Deok, and Chun Kyungja) joined forces to form the Paek Yang Painting Association [Baegyanghoe], which provided important momentum in the transition to contemporary Eastern painting. He was awarded the Chungnam Cultural Prize in 1959 and the Order of Cultural Merit in 1982. Recognizing the unfairness of the jurying process of the National Art Exhibition (Gukjeon), Cho Joonghyun kept his distance from the exhibition and did not participate in it. However, he became a recommended and invited artist at the exhibition, and after 1961 a jury member. He also joined the annual Contemporary Art Exhibit in 1959 and served as a member of the Korean Fine Arts Association [Hanguk misul hyeophoe] and a professor at Ewha Womans University. He was renowned for his bird-and-flower paintings and was skilled in ink-and-wash landscape paintings.