Geometric Abstraction in Korean Art: MMCA Gwacheon

Geometric Abstract art is a style of painting that emphasizes geometric shapes, primary colors, and a flat picture plane. In the West, it emerged through works by Piet Mondrian, Wassily Kandinsky, and Kazimir Malevich and was considered a significant trend within modern and contemporary art throughout the twentieth century. Similarly, Geometric Abstraction first appeared in Korea in the 1920s and 1930s and was materialized in different forms at every major juncture in Korean art history. It spread so widely from the late 1960s through the mid-1970s that these years are considered Korea’s Geometric Abstraction period. However, Geometric Abstraction has always been criticized within the country as a mere decorative art with no roots in Korean culture. As a result, it has been somewhat undervalued by Korean art historians.

Geometric Abstraction in Korean Art is organized to trace the history of this style in Korea, particularly from the 1920s through the 1970s. The exhibition is designed to highlight the interfaces within Geometric Abstraction by related fields such as architecture and design beyond the realm of the fine arts and the role Geometric Abstraction played in expanding the scope of Korean art in connection with the changes taking place in the Korean society of the time. Abstract art is often thought of as something unrelated to the outside world or society, but it is in fact very much a product of the times in which it emerged. Geometric Abstraction in South Korea is similarly closely interwoven with the social and historical situation of the era in which it was created. It is hoped that this exhibition will offer an interesting exploration of the social and historical circumstances of South Korea at the time through Geometric Abstract art and reveal the significance and uniqueness of the Korean experience with the movement.