Exhibition Information

			Illumination of Local Writers in 2020

Celebrating the 100th anniversary of Lee Sang-kap's birth

The Gyeongnam Provincial Museum of Art has continuously held exhibitions of local artist's illumination, which introduce works of artists from Gyeongsangnam-do who have achieved admirable achievements in the art world.

The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Lee Sang-kap (1920-1996), a first-generation painter who was born in Masan and led the Korean and Western gallery in Gyeongsangnam-do after liberation, who spent most of his life in Korea and devoted himself to nurturing younger artists.

So far, Lee Sang-kap has been known as a local art pioneer and a local artist, and his works have been introduced from time to time, but there have been no exhibitions covering his life and overall work. 

In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of his birth this year, Lee Sang-kap's 60-year-old painting business was organized to shed light on the world of his works. 

Born in 1920 in Masan City Neutral Dong, Lee Sang-kap graduated from Seongho Elementary School, went to Joongdong Middle School in Seoul, and moved to Japan in 1934 at the age of 14. In April 1938, when he transferred to Tokyo-Buguk Middle School and graduated, he entered the Department of Western Painting at Musashino University of Art. Starting with the Joseon Art Exhibition in 1938, he was admitted to the '二科展' and '獨立展' , two major Japanese art contests, in 1940 and 1941, and was recognized for his artistic talent.

After studying in Japan, he returned to Korea in 1946 and worked as an art teacher in Geochang, Gyeongsangnam-do for eight years through Seoul and Jeju island. He settled in Masan, his hometown, since 1959 and focused on painting, showing his passion as an educator.

Lee Sang-kap's works mainly consist of conceptual paintings that are closer to impressionism than realism. Most of them use natural landscapes such as mountains, fields and seas, and friendly objects that can be easily seen around us such as human beings and livestock, as the subjects of the work, and create a pastoral atmosphere by using warm and soft colors based on the horizontal and stable composition of the expression.

The emotional and material affluence of childhood, which he spent enjoying the beauty of the mountains, fields, seas and beaches of his hometown Masan, is revealed throughout his work with a warm and stable pictorial expression, along with awe of nature and life. His hometown has always been the foundation for the material and emotions he purses in his works. Regretful that the beautiful scenery of Masan was being devastated by industrialization, he captured the affectionate images of his hometown and nearby countryside. At the base of Lee Sang-kap's work, which was devoted to conceptualizing everyday materials such as children, women, girls, middle-aged gentlemen, cattle, markets, village, and indoor scenes, is characterized by the admiration and love of a simple and true life. 

This exhibition is divided into the 5th and 4th exhibition hals of the Gyeongnam Provincial Museum of Art(1930-80) and the 2nd half(1980-90), respectively, to examine the great flow of Lee Sang-kap's works, focusing on the representative works of the period. The exhibition hall, located in the lobby of the third floor, features drawings, watercolors and oil painting props that were worked in Geochang, Gyeongsangnam-do in the 1950s, giving a more meaningful look to the world of Lee Sang-kap's works.

The exhibition will feature more than 100 oil paintings, 25 drawings and color paintings covering the artist's entire life, ranging from self-portraits he painted while studying in Japan in 1936 to his last unfinished work in 1966. You can also see a major exhibition leaflet, as well as archive materials such as drawing books, photos and videos. I hope you will have time to take a deep look at the life and art world of first-generation painter Lee Sang-kap who was born in Japanese colonial era 100 years ago and led Korea's Western art gallery by living in a fierce modern era.

[Source] Gyeongnam Provincial Museum homepage