KOREA FOUNDATION

“Reveals the brilliance.” This phrase headlined a review published on June 29 by the Los Angeles Times. The reviewer praised the beauty of Korean calligraphy after viewing the special exhibition Beyond Line: The Art of Korean Writing at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) held on June 16–September 29.

   The fact that the Korean Art Galleries at LACMA were first opened in 1999 makes the exhibition all the more meaningful. The first large-scale Korean calligraphy exhibition in the United States displayed over 100 national treasures and invaluable artifacts that had been loaned by the National Museum of Korea, the National Hangeul Museum, the Kansong Art Museum, and individual collectors. The exhibition presented art works of over two millennia from pre- historic writings to calligraphies by Joseon-era scholars after the birth of Hangeul, the Korean alphabet, and pre-modern and modern calligraphers.

   The exhibition provided a rare opportunity to see the rubbings of the Gwanggaeto Stele, the monument for the Goguryeo king Gwanggaeto the Great, and of the Sataekjijeokbi, the stone monument believed to have been created during the reign of King Uija of the Baekje Kingdom. Also highlighted were the eight works of Kim Jeong-hui, an irreplaceable practitioner of calligraphy in the history of Korean writing. His works testify how the master wielded his brush like a painter, employing five kinds of styles in writing Hanja, or Chinese characters. In addition to all these eye-catching pieces, such olden-day innovations as woodblock printing of the Goryeo period and metal type of the Joseon period drew the viewers’ attention.

   The show was “the first comprehensive exhibition to present a critical new scholarship on the Korean history, culture, and identity through the lens of calligraphy,” said Michael Govan, LACMA CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director. As Govan said, calligraphy is hoped to serve as a means of further publicizing Korean history and culture in the coming days. The KF hopes that the amicable exchange and collaboration that also made last year’s LACMA cultural event Korean Inspiration: A Night of Art & Exploration possible will continue in the future.

Written by Kim Shinyoung

#USA #Los_Angeles#Korea #Exhibition