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| Busan Biennale, held from September to November, was one of the few international art events that opened despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Courtesy of Busan Biennale. |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
1 Public museums closed for half year
The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) is currently on hiatus upon guidelines from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism that have forced the shutdown of state-run museums as a precautionary measure against COVID-19.
In fact, the museum's Seoul and Deoksu Palace branches have been closed for over 170 days this year, repeatedly opening and closing doors in accordance with the spikes and declines of the number of COVID-19 cases.
Other public museums also face a similar situation and many long prepared, highly anticipated exhibitions cannot be seen by visitors.
2 Exhibitions go online
As museums were advised to shut down to prevent spread of coronavirus, they tried to reach art lovers via various online platforms.
"Our major concern was how to present art in a contact-less way while the museum is physically closed. We tried to devise ways to exhibit and communicate online," said Tiffany Yun, MMCA's public relations deputy director.
The MMCA showed its exhibitions through tours guided by curators on YouTube and Instagram. "The Modern and Contemporary Korean Calligraphy" was the first to open online via YouTube. "Conservator C's Day" was also available as a VR exhibition.
In addition to online exhibitions, the museum's director Youn Bum-mo took part in a video series introducing masterpieces of Korean modern art such as Park Saeng-kwang's "Jeon Bong-jun."
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| Curator Bae Won-jung gives a tour of "The Modern and Contemporary Korean Calligraphy" exhibition at MMCA Deoksugung on YouTube on March 30. Korea Times file |
3 Auction sales plummet
Along with the economic recession, art auction sales are down significantly from a year ago.
According to the Korea Arts Management Service, the total art auction sales amount in 2020 by November was 101.7 billion won, 29.3 percent down from the previous year's 143.9 billion won.
The drop was larger in offline auctions, which decreased 34.9 percent from 121.9 billion won in 2019 to 79.3 billion won this year.
Though still taking up a smaller amount in the total market, online auctions found room for growth during the pandemic and social distancing challenges. Online sales rose 1.4 percent, from 22 billion won in 2019 to 22.3 billion won in 2020.
The slump also caused the disappearance of record-breaking sales by big name artists.
This year, the most expensive artwork sold online came from antique art ― a Joseon era folding screen bearing an image of "The Immortals' Feast on Yoji Pond" sold for 2 billion won at My Art Auction in September.
It could come as a disappointment after Kim Whan-ki "05-IV-71 #200 (Universe)" sold for 13.2 billion won, setting a new record for Korean art, in 2019.
4 Biennales make different choices
A variety of biennales, large-scale biannual international contemporary art exhibitions which play an important role in shaping the art world, have taken a blow from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Venice Architecture Biennale, originally scheduled for May opening, postponed the date to August, but in the end put the international event off to next year over concerns from the escalation of COVID-19 in Europe and the rest of the world.
Gwangju Biennale, the largest art event in Asia held in southwestern city of Gwangju, also postponed this year's event to 2021. Themed "Minds Rising, Spirits Tuning," the 13th Gwangju Biennale will be held from Feb. 26 to May 9.
Some biennales chose to go on despite the pandemic. Notably, Busan Biennale, Changwon Sculpture Biennale and Yeosu International Art Festival were held this year, navigating the role of art amid a pandemic through new ways of collaboration.
Directed by Jacob Fabricius, Busan Biennale was praised for connecting literature, art and the southern port city's identity. Most international participants weren't able to come to Busan, and so curators explored the city upon artists' instructions to create new works.
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| The National Museum of Korea purchased two Buddhist sculptures from the collection of the Kansong Art Museum in August after they failed to attract bidders at an auction in May. Korea Times file |
5 Kansong Museum sells two treasures
The Kansong Art Museum, the Korea's first private art gallery, sold two Buddhist statues from its collection to the National Museum of Korea (NMK), after failing to attract bidders at an auction.
Initially, the gilt-bronze standing Buddha and the gilt-bronze standing Bodhisattva were up for auction in May, but failed to find a new owner. Later in August, the state-run museum announced that it purchased the two statues.
Founded in 1938 by Jeon Hyeong-pil under the name of Bohwagak, the Kansong Art Museum has been home to many Korean cultural properties, including a handful of National Treasures. Jeon, a businessman and appreciator of fine art, devoted his fortune to collecting the works to protect them from colonial Japan's plundering of Korea.
The private museum's financial difficulties after the former director and son of founder Jeon Seong-woo passed away was cited as the reason for the first-ever sell-off from its collection.
6 'Sehando' donated to National Museum
Art collector Sohn Chang-kun donated "Sehando" by Kim Jeong-hui, National Treasure No. 180, to the NMK in August.
Sohn already donated over 300 art works, collected by him and his late father Sohn Se-ki, to the museum in 2018 and added a masterpiece from the Joseon era painting to the list.
Sohn was awarded with the Order of Cultural Merit Geumgwan, the highest honor in the field of culture, in early December for his efforts in preserving Korea's cultural heritage and the donation of his collection.
The painting is on display at the "After Every Winter Comes Spring" exhibition, however the museum is currently closed due to the pandemic.
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| The late sculptor Kwon Jin-kyu |
7 Kwon Jin-kyu museum scrapped
Over 700 pieces of sculptor Kwon Jin-kyu's works are still waiting for a permanent place to call home as a plan to build the Kwon Jin Kyu Museum in his hometown of Gangwon Province was scrapped.
Kwon is best known for his elegant terracotta and bronze sculptures despite his short life. After his death, his family established the Kwon Jin Kyu Commemoration Foundation to protect and manage his sculptures posthumously.
The foundation donated a collection of some 700 art pieces by Kwon to the brewery company Hite in 2004 on the condition of establishing a museum dedicated to Kwon. However, the company returned the works in 2010 after giving up the plan for a museum.
The works were then transferred to a Gangwon-based mining company Daeil Mining on the same condition in 2015, but as the company did not work on the museum, the foundation filed a lawsuit for the return of the artworks that it won in August.
Then the family announced a plan to donate Kwon's works to the Seoul Museum of Art, but had to put one of his sculptures up for auction to raise money to return Daeil's payment upon the transfer back in 2015. However, they withdrew from the auction just a few hours before it was scheduled to start, with a hope to donate all of the collection to a public museum.
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| RM of BTS appreciates avant-garde artist Lee Seung-jio's works at "Advancing Columns" exhibition at MMCA Gwacheon in August. Korea Times file |
8 RM's influence on art
BTS leader RM is a known art aficionado. Whether he intended to or not, he has had an influence in popularizing fine art, which is often regarded as abstruse.
RM visits art museums and galleries regularly amid busy international tours and promotional schedules and where he visited immediately becomes crowded with his fans.
Some exhibits he paid a visit to this year include "Yun Hyong-keun 1989-1999," Kim Bo-hie's "Towards" and a'strict's "Starry Beach" as well as "Lee Seung-jio: Advancing Columns" at MMCA, Gwachen.
He also donated 100 million won ($84,000) to the MMCA Foundation for an art book campaign in September.
