Ha Chong-hyun was experimental artist before he became Dansaekhwa master

Korea Herald

24-02-2025

Little-known aspects of Ha's early career get spotlight at Art Sonje Center in Seoul
Ha Chong-hyun, 90, is widely known as a master of Dansaekhwa, a Korean genre of monochrome painting, but before that, he was an artist who constantly experimented with his art.
His solo exhibition 'Ha Chong-Hyun 5975' sheds light on the master's early works spanning from 1959 to 1975, exploring his use of varied techniques and diverse materials. Amid the influx of Western art, Ha agonized over how to maintain his artistic identity while embracing global art trends.
Ha is most popularly known for the so-called 'baeapbeop,' literally meaning "back-pressure technique."
His 'Conjunction' series, which the artist embarked on in the 1970s, overturned the concept of painting using canvases made of hemp cloth. Baeapbeop involves pushing thick layers of paint from the back side of the burlap canvas so that the paint oozes through, creating a unique texture on the surface. It is for this technique that he later came to be identified as a Dansaekhwa artist.
But the Art Sonje exhibition starts with his early art, from 1959 to 1965, where he used informalism, a global art style that emerged after the Second World War. He drew inspiration from the informalist movement, using it to reflect the chaos and scars of the Korean War (1950-1953).
'He visualized the collective memories of war and social upheaval, laying the foundation for his later experiments with material possibilities and the expansion of painting's boundaries,' according to the museum.
A decade later, as the country was swept in with rapid industrialization, Ha began focusing on the social changes driven by urbanization. His 'White Paper on Urban Planning' series demonstrates how he visualized the transformation of cities — the painting 'White Paper on Urban Planning 67' shows horizontal folds in the lower part of the canvas with bold color painting. It is reminiscent of a fast-changing society on the one hand and traditional Korean garments or house on the other, due to the colors that are often seen in traditional Korean objects.
It is generally not well-known that Ha was one of the figures who led the establishment of the Korean Avant Garde Association in 1969. The artists in the group aimed to push the boundaries of Korean contemporary art through experimental approaches using everyday materials — from wire to newspaper, plaster and springs, among others. His art from 1969 to 1974 is shown in the 'New Art Movements' section of the exhibition.
Coinciding with the exhibition, a lecture entitled 'Ha Chong-Hyun: An Enduring Spirit of Experimentation' by An Kyung, curator of Asian art initiative at the Guggenheim Foundation in New York will take place at Art Sonje Center at 2 p.m., March 22.
Some 40 works are on display at the exhibition, running through April 20. The museum is closed on Mondays.