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| "Toward Oneness" by Lim Ok-sang / Courtesy of Lim Ok-sang |
By Nam Hyun-woo
Cheong Wa Dae allegedly pressured a national art museum to withdraw some pieces of art containing socially progressive messages from the gallery's opening exhibition.
Officials from the presidential office ordered the museum to exclude the artwork ahead of President Park Geun-hye's visit to celebrate the opening of the exhibition titled "Zeitgeist Korea," sources said Monday.
On Nov. 7, the officials visited the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) for a security check, and afterwards pointed out that some pieces were "awkward." The gallery dropped the pieces from the exhibition.
Park delivered a ceremonial speech at the opening ceremony of the MMCA in Gyeonggi Province last Tuesday. Fifty-nine works by 39 artists, reflecting the spirit of each time frame in Korean history, were on display.
"A reliable source told me that Cheong Wa Dae officials exerted their influence to prevent some paintings from being displayed, because of the message they thought were implied. After the opening, I found that my painting was one of those," said Lim Ok-sang, a painter whose artwork was excluded at the last minute.
He said six pieces were dropped from the exhibition or replaced with others and two pieces, including his, were excluded because of pressure from the presidential office.
According to Lim, Prof. Jeong Yeong-mok at Seoul National University, the organizer of the exhibit, confirmed that presidential officials influenced selection procedure to remove Lim and another painter's works from the exhibition.
Lim's painting, titled "Toward Oneness," depicts a giant man in traditional Korean attire crossing barbed wires, reminiscent of those along the border between South and North Korea.
"The figure in my painting is Rev. Moon Ik-hwan, who visited the North and met Kim Il-sung, the late leader of the regime, in 1989," the 63-year-old painter said.
The MMCA and Jeong flatly denied the allegation.
"To say that Cheong Wa Dae was involved in the selection process is false," a museum official said, adding pieces were selected according to the organizers intent.
"Lim must have misunderstood. I did not say Cheong Wa Dae influenced the decision," Prof. Jeong also said. "I originally planned to display Lim's piece, but there are other pieces themed on the division of the two countries and it did not fit in with them. There was no external pressure."
Officials from Cheong Wa Dae were not available for comment.
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