By Seo Dong-shin
Staff Reporter
Reflecting the dominance of contemporary Chinese arts in global art market, most popular contemporary Chinese artists have already been introduced in major Korean galleries based in Seoul. The National Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province is currently holding a massive exhibition focusing on rising young Chinese artists.
It is unlikely the rather unilateral trend will show any signs of relenting in the near future. But next month, Korean artists and art galleries will at least make an attempt _ by making inroads to China, hoping to share some of the global attention it's been receiving.
It begins with SH Contemporary scheduled Sept. 6-9 in the booming area of Shanghai. At the inaugural art fair designed to become a new match point for the Asian art scene, only invited exhibitors can take part. Six major South Korean galleries are expected to participate this year ― Kukje Gallery, Gallery Hyundai, Park Ryu-sook Gallery, PKM Gallery, Gallerie Bhak, and PYO Gallery.
The art fair features prominent European art experts on its organizing team, including artistic director Pierre Huber, owner of the Geneva-based gallery Art & Public who served as an Art Basel's strategic committee member, and fair director Lorenzo A. Rudolf, who served as Art Basel director from 1991 to 2000.
Huber traveled throughout Asia selecting the artists to be featured in ``Best of Discovery'' section, which is aimed at presenting 20 internationally unknown artists to ``introduce contemporary Asian art and its artists into the global art scene, and to offer collectors the possibility of exciting new discoveries,'' according to Rudolf. The section lists two of the artists presented by PKM: Ham Jin and flyingCity, a Seoul-based group of artists aiming to research and criticize the city structure and culture.
A number of Korean galleries also plan to participate in ``Art Beijing,'' which is scheduled to take place Sept. 20-23 in the capital city, and ``Shanghai Art Fair,'' a closing event of Shanghai International Art Festival, slated for Nov. 15-19. Amid the growing advance of Korean galleries to China, doART Gallery, which is fronting young contemporary artists run by Gallery Hyundai, will also open a Beijing branch, following the examples of numerous galleries that have already done so ― Arario Gallery, PKM, Gallery Artside, Keumsan Gallery and PYO, among others.
PKM Beijing will showcase more Korean artists in the gallery's upcoming exhibition in September, along with artists from China, Japan, and Europe.
Meanwhile, at the National Museum of China, located in the heart of Beijing, works of 15 young Korean artists will be exhibited from Sept. 7-28 under the title ``Wonderland.''
It is an exchange exhibition that comes with ``Floating,'' an exhibition featuring young Chinese artists, currently underway at South Korea's MOCA in Gwacheon. Korean artists to be featured in ``Wonderland'' include Jung Yeon-doo, who was designated as ``Artist of the Year'' by MOCA this year, Lee Hyung-koo, whose works were exhibited in South Korean pavilion at this year's Venice Biennale, and Hong Kyoung-tack, whose work ``Pencil I'' earned a record price of 770 million won at Christie's auction in Hong Kong in May.