Often found at theaters and museums, Kwon Mee-yoo has covered a wide range of cultural fields from K-pop and dramas to theater and fine art for over a decade. Now as K-Culture Desk editor, she tries to connect Korean culture with global readers through fresh perspectives.
MMCA director under fire for hiring acquaintances
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Chung Hyung-min, director of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art
By Kwon Mee-yoo
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Chung Hyung-min, director of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA), is facing criticism over her selection of new staff members.
According to the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) Friday, which has been looking into the recruitment of curators at state-run museums since June, Chung allegedly intervened in the hiring process of curators in October 2013. She knew a former student and a former junior staff member had applied for the open positions and lobbied the document screening judges. The MMCA's personnel affairs staffer said Chung talked to the judges privately and manipulated score cards to allow her acquaintances pass the application phase.
Chung also took part in the interview, spending more time with the candidates in question. Both the former student and former colleague were hired as curators at the MMCA last November.
The BAI reported the inspection result to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the body governing the art museum.
Chung denied the allegations except for interviewing the candidates, which was allowed by the culture ministry. She said she did not check scores in the document screening process or tell recruiters to fabricate grades.
This is not the first time Chung has been caught up in a controversy over favoritism. A former professor at Seoul National University (SNU), Chung took the museum post in 2012. Since then, she has faced complaints from the Korean Fine Arts Association (KFAA) and other art-related communities for favoring SNU ― one of the MMCA Seoul's inaugural exhibits was organized by an SNU professor and 32 of the 39 participating artists were alumni of that school.
Rep. Jeong Jin-hoo of the minor opposition Progressive Justice Party claimed that the nation's flagship museum has bought many works from SNU artists during Chung's term. Among the artworks the MMCA purchased in 2013, 41.4 percent were from SNU graduates, a big jump from 8.8 percent in 2010. Jeong said Chung discriminated against artists who weren't from elite art schools, which is a problem in the Korean art community.