1 “Beach in Vladivostok” (1972). Etching, 36.7 x 90 cm. Prohibited from entering North Korea, Byun Wol-ryong visited Vladisvostok where he was born almost every year. 2 “Self-portrait” (1963). Oil on canvas, 75 x 60 cm. Although Byun painted numerous portraits of others, this is his only self-portrait, albeit unfinished.
©National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art
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lica panel as part of the introductory timeline. To gain sufficient knowledge about Byun’s activities in the Russian art community as well as his influence on North Korea’s art history, we need to be more proactive in tracking down not only his masterpieces housed in major Russian institutions, but also the other works that are only known from photographs and whose whereabouts remain unknown. And then, we need to consider seriously how this artist and his works can be properly accommodated into Korea’s contemporary art history. The way that people responded to his paintings at the retrospective has convinced me that we have taken the first step in the right direction.
legend of 100 years — Other Masters The exhibition was the first in a series of three retrospectives organized by the MMCA to mark the centennial of the birth of three modern Korean master painters. It will be followed by two others — for Lee Jung-seob (1916–1956, aka Yi Chung-sop), from June 3 to October 3, 2016; and Yoo Young-kuk (1916–2002), from October 21, 2016 to March 1, 2017. Lee is famous for his use of the unique medium of silver foil and familiar forms, as well as his short and tumultuous life story. Yoo Young-kuk, who studied painting at Bunka Gakuen [Cultural Institution] in Tokyo along with Lee, is deemed a pioneer of Korean abstract art. KOREAN CULTURE & ARTS 49