Yun Hyong-keun

On the occasion of the 58th Venice Biennale, a major retrospective of Korean artist Yun Hyong-keun (1928–2007) will be presented at Palazzo Fortuny by the MMCA (National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea) and MUVE (Civic Museums of Venice). One of the most significant Korean artists of the 20th century, Yun became associated with the influential Dansaekhwa movement: a monochromatic style of painting that appeared in Korea in the 1960s.

The exhibition will be the first international retrospective show of the artist since his death in 2007 and follows a critically-acclaimed exhibition of his work at MMCA Seoul. The show will focus on Yun’s extraordinary life and work and will present more than 60 works that span his entire career. One of the highlights of the exhibition will be a meticulous reproduction of Yun’s atelier which will include outstanding works by other artists (Kim Whanki, Jeon Roe-jin and Choi Jong-Tae), which Yun had in his studio. While recognising his role in the development of Dansaekhwa, this retrospective aims to examine Yun’s work in its own right and from a new perspective.

Curated by Kim Inhye, from the MMCA, this exhibition is filled with dark and poignant paintings that magnificently capture the shattered national psyche of the time, highlighted by works that Yun painted in the wake of the Gwangju Massacre (May 1980). Most notably, the displays feature a wealth of personal materials, including early drawings, a large archive of photos, and strikingly honest excerpts from Yun’s private journals.

Based on traditional elements of Korean beauty and aesthetics, Yun’s canvasses simply and gracefully intertwine individuality and contemporary relevance, never losing the sense of refined modern sophistication which extends its influence across borders and into the rest of the world.

Twelve years after his death, this exhibition explores Yun’s life and art with unprecedented range and depth—through diverse materials and displays—bringing to life many details and perspectives that have not yet received adequate attention.

Born in 1928 in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, Yun Hyong-keun lived through one of the most traumatic periods of Korean history, suffering great misfortune related to Japanese colonial rule, the Korean War, and the post-war dictatorship. Yun was incarcerated four times and was once faced with near-certain death, simply for standing up for his beliefs. Only after surviving these harrowing incidents did Yun fully commit himself to making art, in 1973 when he was 45 years old.

The artist’s work was first recognised in Japan in the 1970s when Muramatsu Gallery (1976) and Tokyo Gallery (1978) invited him for a solo show, and when the South Korean government started to “open” the country to the world in the 1990s, Yun’s works were introduced to Europe and the U.S.

To coincide with the exhibition there will be a printed catalogue available for purchase in English and Italian, published by Hatje Cantz, in June 2019.

Curator: Kim Inhye, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea

The exhibition is a collaboration between National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) and the Civic Museums of Venice (MUVE) with the support of the Korea Foundation.

Representing Galleries:
PKM Gallery, (Seoul) - Representative of the Estate of Yun Hyong-keun
Blum & Poe (LA, New York, Tokyo)
Axel Vervoordt Gallery (Antwerp, Hong Kong)
Simon Lee Gallery (London, New York, Hong Kong)
David Zwirner Gallery (New York, London, Hong Kong)

For press information, interview requests and images, contact:
Brunswick Arts
Christopher Calvert / Annabelle Türkis
yhkfortuny [​at​] brunswickgroup.com
T +44 (0)75 8703 7263 / T +33 (0)1 85 65 83 24