The Seoul Museum of Art is holding an exhibition titled 2013 Seoul Focus (Beyond Korean Painting) at the Buk Seoul Museum of Art. 

The Seoul Focus exhibition (previously titled the Seoul Art Exhibition) is celebrating its 28th anniversary this year. The preceding 27th exhibition was a turning point that saw a breakaway from the conventional exhibition format and suggested a new direction for the Seoul Art Exhibition, with a focus on special exhibitions to be held under various themes and issues through specific media. As the new name of the Seoul Art Exhibition (held annually throughout the long history of the Seoul Museum of Art), Seoul Focus alludes to the staging of special exhibitions with more clearly defined themes. 

Under the theme of Modern Korean Painting, this exhibition attempts to shed light on the future vision of Korean painting in the midst of contemporary art trends by inviting artists who have majored in Korean painting and who continue breaking new ground in terms of format and content. To explore this new movement in Korean painting which emerged around 2000, the exhibition will focus intensively on the creative tendency among artists who are now in their 30s and 40s and who are experimenting freely under the influence of the 1st generation, who opened up a new field in Korean painting after much experimentation with traditional Korean writing brushes and ink sticks. 

This exhibition aims to enhance visitors’ understanding and appreciation of the production techniques of Korean painting by offering a number of exhibition-related programs specially designed to enable them to try their hand at applying techniques of Korean painting themselves with the help of participating artists. 

Through the voice of contemporary artists who are at the juncture between traditional genres and an exciting new contemporary art field and who are engaged in a quest for new ideas, this exhibition will suggest a new direction for future artists and serve as a great venue where visitors can sense the evolution of Korean painting. 

*image (left)
Where is my mother?, 2013
Mixed Media, 130.5x194cm
© Kuk Joo Ahn
courtesy of the artist and Seoul Museum of Art