Across the Decades

4 Jul-23 Aug 2024

Overview

The Korean Cultural Centre UK’s summer exhibition ‘Across the Decades’ will commemorate the 70th anniversary of the National Academy of Arts of the Republic of Korea.

The National Academy of Arts (NAA), Republic of Korea is an institution dedicated to celebrating the works and insights of master artists over the past 70 years. As the most prestigious art and culture association in Korea the Academy boasts seventy-one academicians (with a maximum membership of 100) spanning six divisions: Literature, Fine Art, Music, Theatre, Film, and Dance. The exhibition ‘Across the Decades’ retraces the remarkable contributions of renowned masters who have significantly advanced modern and contemporary arts and culture in Korea since the founding of the NAA in 1954.

The exhibition features 27 works by 17 luminaries, Jongsang Lee (b.1938), Kyungja Chun (1924-2015), Se-ok Suh (1929-2020) who represented Korean painting; Myeungro Youn (b.1936), Heeyoung Yoo (b.1940), Kwangjin Park (b.1935), Souckchin Kim (b.1931), Sanghwa Chung (b.1932) and Whanki Kim (1913-1974) who epitomised Western painting; Loijin Jeun (b.1929), Jongtae Choi (b.1932), Taijung Um (b.1938), Euisoon Choi (b.1934), a master of sculpture; Shinja Lee (b.1931) and Chankyun Kang (b.1938) masters of crafts; Seungjoong Yoon (b.1937), an authority of architecture and Changryun Kwon (1943-2024) a specialist of calligraphy.

With their unwavering dedication to the creative process, the exhibition highlights how Korea’s academicians have they not only paved unforeseen paths in Korean arts but also contributed significantly to the rapid development of Korean culture.