Gallery Hyundai
A gallery located at Samseong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul. The gallery opened in April 1970 in Gwanhun-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, under the joint management of Han Yong-gu and Park Myung-ja. Started as Hyundai Hwarang (Hyundai Gallery), it was renamed as Gallery Hyundai in 1987. When it first opened, the gallery contributed to the development of contemporary Korean art, featuring the work of contemporary artists instead of antique calligraphy and paintings, which were actively exhibited and traded in Insa-dong. In September 1973, the gallery published an art magazine titled Hwarang, with an editing staff consisting of Lee Heung-u, Lee Gu-yeol, Park Rhaikyoung, Heo Yeonghwan, and Oh Kwang-su. After 1988, the magazine was renamed Hyundai Misul and it continued to be published until 1992. The gallery regularly held exhibitions of major figures in Korean contemporary art, such as Park Sookeun, Lee Jungseop, To Sangbong, Nam Kwan, Yoon Jungsik, and Chun Kyungja. After it moved to a new building in Sagan-dong in 1975, the gallery expanded the base for Abstract art through exhibitions featuring Yun Hyongkeun, Kim Tschang-Yeul, Park Seobo, Chung Sanghwa, and Lee Ufan.
Chun Kyungja
Chun Kyungja (1924-2015), (born Chun Okja), was the daughter of Chun Sungwook, a gunseogi (clerk) of Goheung-gun, Jeollanam-do, and Park Un-a. She graduated the Gwangju Public Girl's high School and completed the Japanese art program at the Joshibi University of Art and Design. After independence, she was hired as a teacher of art at the Jeonnam Girls High School, her alma mater. Her private exhibition received positive reviews, and she was hired as an instructor of art at the Chosun University. Afterwards, she worked as a professor of the College of Fine arts at the Hongik University from 1954 to 1973, and she achieved renown as one of the foremost women artists in Korea, winning the Great Korean Art Association Exhibition President's Award in 1955, the National Academy of Arts, Republic of Korea Award in 1979, and the Eungwan Order of Cultural Merit in 1983. Her primary subject matter consisted of feminine subjects, to the extent that she was described as the artist of "flowers and women." Her work is celebrated as being entirely distinct from the contemporary Korean art styles of the period, and defined by its autobiographical themes and fantastical colorwork.
Misul Segye
Misul Segye is an art magazine that was launched in October 1984 by the Gyeongin Museum of Art. It is significant as the first art monthly in South Korea. At the time of its launch, Jang Sang-seop was the editor-in-chief, whose goal was to develop art culture in South Korea by introducing elite Korean artists and art sites to the wider public. In addition to providing details on the status and trends in international art, Misul Segye provided art-related information and academic materials from writers at home and abroad to readers. It also contributed to the establishment of the archive of Korean art by publishing history books of major South Korean art organizations and catalogue raisonné of senior national artists. It is currently in recess following the 31st anniversary issue in November 2019.
Kkumim
Kkumim (Embellishments) was a bimonthly design magazine that began to be published in December 1976 (first volume issued in January 1977) by Moon Shin-kyu, the head of Total Design. Gum Nuri served as the editor-in-chief from the first volume through the seventeenth (except the fourth), and Ahn Sang-Soo joined the publication of the magazine as art director. Its editorial staff included Kang Chankyun, Kwak Daeung, Kim Gilhong, Oh Kwang-su, Jeon Donghun, and Chung Shihwa. Kkumim led the discourse on Korean design in the late 1970s, along with the architecture magazine Gonggan (Space) founded in 1966, Dijain pojang (Design packaging) founded in 1970, and Wolgan dijain (Design monthly) founded in 1976. Since its inception, Kkumim had been an all-encompassing design magazine, covering a wide range of issues related to design, crafts, and architecture. However, as it transformed into an architectural criticism magazine beginning with the twenty-eighth volume published in 1981, design-related articles were naturally scaled back. Kkumim actively implemented modular grids, an unconventional format at the time. In terms of content, it pushed to develop a public taste for letters in the public sphere and the establishment of an institutional system for it. It also contributed to shaping the discourse on Hangeul (Korean alphabet) typography in the late 1970s by featuring remarks and writings by figures representing Hangeul typography at the time.
Pictorial Korea
Pictorial Korea is a photographic publication that the International Publicity League of Korea had issued to publicize a positive image of Korea to foreign countries from 1950 through 1970. The titles of each volume are not listed, but it has been said that about twelve volumes were published. Pictorial Korea contained photographs showing the then-current status of the Republic of Korea, its rural and urban landscapes, historical traditions and customs, modern factories and industries, arts and culture, and exhibitions, accompanied by their descriptions in English. The first volume of Pictorial Korea published in January 1950 was about 250 pages long and included more than 100 photographs, indicating that great emphasis was placed on international publicity via visual images. In Pictorial Korea published from 1953 through 1954, the photographers Lee Gyeongmo and Kim Hanyong were in charge of photographs and editing. In some cases, photos by domestic photographers were selected for inclusion through internal photography contests. The works by prominent Korean photographers, such as Limb Eungsik, Han Youngsoo, Lee Hyungrok, and Choi Minshik, were featured in Pictorial Korea.