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121-543: Dansaekhwa ignited a series of debates on how to define and understand not only Dansaekhwa, but contemporary Korean art as a whole. It was at the center of discussions in Korea during the latter half of the 20th century on how to narrativize a history of Korean abstract art connected to, but distinct from the rest of the world. Promoted in Seoul , Tokyo , and Paris , Dansaekhwa grew to be the international face of contemporary Korean art and

242-460: A green belt aimed at preventing the city from sprawling out into neighboring Gyeonggi Province. These areas are frequently sought after by people looking to escape from urban life on weekends and during vacations. Air pollution is a major issue in Seoul. According to the 2016 World Health Organization Global Urban Ambient Air Pollution Database, the annual average PM2.5 concentration in 2014

363-455: A 12.85% increase from June 2010. The next largest group was Chinese citizens who were not of Korean ethnicity; 29,901 of them resided in Seoul. The next highest group consisted of the 9,999 United States citizens who were not of Korean ancestry. The next highest group were Taiwanese citizens, at 8,717. The two major religions in Seoul are Christianity and Buddhism . Other religions include Muism (indigenous religion) and Confucianism . Seoul

484-513: A clear legal framework of responsibility, publicly checkable results and a major focus on reduction of transport pollutants. In July 2020, South Korea, then the 11th largest world economy, announced a US$ 35 billion position on ending investment in coal. In November 2020, South Korea committed to a carbon-neutral economy by 2050. Between 2005 and 2021 annual concentration levels of small particulate matter (PM10) fell by 30-40 % in Seoul, whilst concentrations of larger particulate matter (PM 2.5) in

605-403: A cornerstone of contemporary Asian art. Artists associated with Dansaekhwa include Cho Yong-ik , Choi Myoung Young, Choi Byung-so, Chung Chang-sup , Chung Sang-Hwa , Ha Chong Hyun , Hur Hwang, Kim Guiline, Kim Tschang-yeul , Kwon Young-woo, Lee Dong-Youb , Lee Kang-so, Lee Seung-jio, Lee Ufan , Park Kwang-Jin, Park Seo-Bo , Suh Seung-Won, and Yun Hyong-keun . Dansaekhwa is only one of

726-452: A debate in the Korean art world on how to define Korean modern art in relation to the global art world and through style ( realism vs. abstraction ), and compelled younger artists who did not want to fall into either camp to create their own collectives and movements. Curator Alexandra Munroe argues that Dansaekhwa's simultaneity with other conceptualist and Postminimalist movements across

847-453: A dictatorship into democracy. They used art to represent their support for the shift away from dictatorship during these times of extreme political turbulence in their country. During the Early 1950s, France was a hotbed for Informalist art, referred to as Un art autre, or art informel , which were terms coined by French art critic Michel Tapié, who published a book by the name of Un Art Autre

968-466: A native Korean (as opposed to Sino-Korean ) common noun simply meaning 'capital city.' The word seoul is believed to have descended from Seorabeol (서라벌; historically transliterated into the Hanja form 徐羅伐 ), which originally referred to Gyeongju , the capital of Silla . Wiryeseong ( 위례성 ; 慰禮城 ), the capital settlement of Baekje , was located within the boundaries of modern-day Seoul. Seoul

1089-516: A new capital. After several governmental debates, Yi Seong-gye chose Hanyang (Sindo) instead of Muak in September 1394. As Joseon's new capital, Hanyang was planned as a geographic embodiment of Korean Confucianism . Construction of the city began in October 1394. During its early construction stages, some major palaces, including Gyeongbokgung , were finished in 1395. The Fortress Wall surrounding Hanyang

1210-404: A number of terms used to describe the set of works that have been identified as falling under this rubric. Other terms include dansaekpa (monochromatic wave), "white painting," "monochrome painting" (translation used instead of the transliteration), and "monotone school." Art historian Kim Mikyung has advocated for the replacement of Dansaekhwa with dansaek-jo hoehwa (monotone painting) to signal

1331-487: A platform to show their work. But unlike the contemporary artists who sought to change the Korean art world through organized collectives and manifestos , Dansaekhwa artists did not band together to create a new artistic movement . A number of Dansaekhwa artists were active in the late 1950s - mid 1960s Art Informel movement in Korea, and Park Seo-Bo traces the tendency to use a limited color palette in Dansaekhwa back to

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1452-538: A real and imagined Korean past to create a definition of modernism for themselves that was distinct from the West and Japan . Yoon Jin Sup believes that the recent interest in Dansaekhwa in the global art world is partially due to its aesthetic qualities unique to South Korea , such as an attention to spirituality , materiality, and performativity. The national and international interest in Dansaekhwa has led to exhibitions showing

1573-454: A result, the Ministry of Culture and Public Information -organized National Art Exhibition ( Daehan minguk misul chollamhoe —known as Kukchon for short) no longer functioned as the main stage for exhibiting young Korean artists. Media coverage and public interest instead shifted towards these experimental and international exhibitions.These efforts prompted major changes in the Korean art world to

1694-784: A spate of survey shows in Korea and the United States triggered renewed critical and commercial interest in Dansaekhwa. Some of these shows are listed below: Seoul Seoul , officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City , is the capital and largest city of South Korea . The broader Seoul Capital Area , encompassing Gyeonggi Province and Incheon , emerged as the world's sixth largest metropolitan economy in 2022, trailing behind Paris , San Francisco , Los Angeles , Tokyo , and New York , and hosts more than half of South Korea's population. Although Seoul's population peaked at over 10 million, it has gradually decreased since 2014, standing at about 9.6 million residents as of 2024. Seoul

1815-474: A trend moving away from experimental sculpture and installation to painting characterized by an "absence of image." Oh later declared the "École de Seoul" exhibitions at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art beginning in 1975 as best representing Dansaekhwa. These exhibitions featured artists who would later be identified as part of Dansaekhwa, and evinced a shift in Korean contemporary art towards

1936-558: Is a pictorial movement from the 1943–1950s, that includes all the abstract and gestural tendencies that developed in France and the rest of Europe during the World War II , similar to American abstract expressionism started 1946. Several distinguishing trends are identified within the movement such as lyrical abstraction , matter painting , New Paris School , tachisme and art brut . The French art critic Michel Tapié coined

2057-791: Is an exit exam for graduating from high school and many students proceeding to the university level are required to take the College Scholastic Ability Test that is held every November. Although there is a test for non-high school graduates, called school qualification exam, most Koreans take the test. Seoul is home to various specialized schools , including three science high schools, and six foreign language High Schools. Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education comprises 235 College-Preparatory High Schools, 80 Vocational Schools, 377 Middle Schools, and 33 Special Education Schools as of 2009 . Art informel Informalism or Art Informel ( French pronunciation: [aʁ ɛ̃fɔʁmɛl] )

2178-448: Is common for many Dansaekhwa artists, such as Chung Sang-Hwa who has called his artworks "processes." A focus on physicality is also manifest in the artists' use of material. Dansaekhwa artists' rejection of the flat and solid picture plane has led to a range of experiments that manipulate material to ascribe these supposed flat surfaces new forms of objecthood . Kim Guiline's repeated layers of paint on mulberry added dimensionality to

2299-486: Is evidence of the consumption of cooked grain and fish by 3,000 B.C. Around 1,500 B.C., communities began transitioning into the Bronze Age and farming at scale. Due to modern Seoul's significant urbanization, Amsa-dong Neolithic Site  [ ko ] is the only known major archaeological site in Seoul where Stone Age materials have been found, although such materials have also been found in minor sites throughout

2420-472: Is evident in the artistic process, such as Park Seo-Bo 's continuous and repetitive movements to create flowing lines, and remnants of Lee Ufan 's gestures captured on canvas. Lee has even described his movement in relation to performance . Some like Kwon Young-woo and Park Seo-Bo have asserted the necessity of creating work without a predetermined technique or concept in mind, underlining the role of action and deemphasizing intention. This emphasis on process

2541-441: Is headed by a mayor and three vice mayors, and is divided into 25 autonomous districts and 522 administrative neighborhoods. Seoul is divided into 25 " gu " ( 구 ; 區 ) (district). The gu vary greatly in area (from 10 to 47 km or 3.9 to 18.1 sq mi) and population (from fewer than 140,000 to 630,000). Songpa has the most people, while Seocho has the largest area. The government of each gu handles many of

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2662-449: Is hereby constituted a municipal corporation to be known as SEOUL. The boundaries of the municipal corporation are the present limits of the City of Seoul consisting of the following eight districts: Chong Koo , Chong No Koo , Sur Tai Moon Koo , Tong Tai Moon Koo , Sung Tong Koo , Ma Po Koo , Yong San Koo , and Yang Doung Po Koo , and as such may be extended as provided by law. Seoul under

2783-708: Is home to one of the world's largest Christian congregations, Yoido Full Gospel Church , which has around 830,000 members. According to the 2015 census, 10.8% of the population follows Buddhism and 35% follows Christianity (24.3% Protestantism and 10.7% Catholicism). 53.6% of the population is irreligious. Seoul is home to the world's largest modern university founded by a Buddhist Order, Dongguk University . Compulsory education lasts from grade 1–9 (six years of elementary school and three years of middle school). Students spend six years in elementary school, three years in middle school, and three years in high school. Secondary schools generally require students to wear uniforms. There

2904-576: Is in the northwest of South Korea. Seoul proper comprises 605.25 km (233.69 sq mi), with a radius of approximately 15 km (9 mi), roughly bisected into northern and southern halves by the Han River . The river is no longer actively used for navigation, because its estuary is located at the borders of the two Koreas, with civilian entry barred. There are four main mountains in central Seoul: Bugaksan , Inwangsan , Naksan and Namsan . The Seoul Fortress Wall , which historically bounded

3025-586: Is not a Sino-Korean word, 'Seoul' has no inherently corresponding Hanja ( Chinese characters used in the Korean language). Instead of phonetically transcribing 'Seoul' to Chinese, in the Chinese-speaking world, Seoul was called Hànchéng ( 汉城 ; 漢城 ), which is the Chinese pronunciation of Hanseong . On 18 January 2005, the Seoul Metropolitan Government changed Seoul's official Chinese name from

3146-826: Is the seat of the South Korean government . Seoul's history traces back to 18 BC when it was founded by the people of Baekje , one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. During the Joseon dynasty, Seoul was officially designated as the capital, surrounded by the Fortress Wall of Seoul. In the early 20th century, Seoul was occupied by the Japanese Empire , temporarily renamed " Keijō " ("Gyeongseong" in Korean). The Korean War brought fierce battles, with Seoul changing hands four times and leaving

3267-596: The 2002 FIFA World Cup . Seoul is geographically set in a mountainous and hilly terrain, with Bukhansan positioned on its northern edge. Within the Seoul Capital Area lie five UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Changdeokgung , Hwaseong Fortress , Jongmyo , Namhansanseong , and the Royal Tombs of the Joseon dynasty . Furthermore, Seoul has witnessed a surge in modern architectural development, with iconic landmarks including

3388-643: The Hanja ' 漢 ' (a transliteration of a native Korean word 한 ; han ; lit.  great), which may also refer to the Han people or the Han dynasty in Chinese and is associated with 'China' in Japanese context. After World War II and the liberation of Korea , Seoul became the official name for the Korean capital. The Standard Korean Language Dictionary still acknowledges both common and proper noun definitions of seoul . Unlike most place names in Korea, as it

3509-716: The N Seoul Tower , the 63 Building , the Lotte World Tower , the Dongdaemun Design Plaza , Lotte World , the Trade Tower , COEX , IFC Seoul , and Parc1 . Seoul was named the World Design Capital in 2010 and has served as the national hub for the music, entertainment, and cultural industries that have propelled K-pop and the Korean Wave to international prominence. Traditionally, seoul ( 서울 ) has been

3630-618: The Second Sino-Japanese War , Yeongdeungpo District was annexed into Seoul on April 1, 1936, to function as an industrial complex for steel and other metalworking factories. The city was liberated by U.S. forces at the end of World War II . In 1945, following the liberation from Japanese colonial rule, the American military assumed control of Korea, including its capital city, then referred to as Kyeongseongbu in line with Japanese nomenclature. The U.S. military government published

3751-486: The 17th century. Thus, the Joseon capital of Hanseong was widely referred to as the seoul. Due to its common usage, French missionaries called the Joseon capital Séoul (/se.ul/) in their writings, hence the common romanization Seoul in various languages today. Under subsequent Japanese colonization , Hanseong was renamed as Keijō (京城, literally 'capital city') by the Imperial authorities to prevent confusion with

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3872-472: The 1950s and 1960s, at the height of the Venezuelan dictatorship, Venezuelan artists, such as Carlos Cruz Diez , Gego , and others, used Informalist art in response to the shift from dictatorship to democracy that their country was dealing with during this time. Their art represented their feelings on the matter as well as their response to this shift and to represent a lot of huge figures in the change over from

3993-403: The 1960s, urbanization also accelerated and workers began to move to Seoul and other larger cities. In 1963, Seoul went through two major expansions that established the shape and size of the present-day Seoul—barring minor adjustments to the borders later in 1973 and 2000. In August 1963, Seoul annexed parts of Yangju-gun , Gwangju-gun , Siheung-gun , Gimpo-gun , and Bucheon-gun , expanding

4114-421: The 1980s, Dansaekhwa became the face of Korean modern art, resulting in a number of the artists taking on leadership and teaching roles in art associations and universities, and being spared from government censorship. Dansaekhwa's preeminence was propelled by Korea's rapid economic growth that allowed for the expansion of the Korean domestic art scene with new museums, galleries, arts publications, and fairs, and by

4235-549: The 1988 Summer Olympics, is the largest park. The areas near the stream Tancheon are popular for exercise. Cheonggyecheon also has spaces for recreation. In 2017 the Seoullo 7017 Skypark opened, spanning diagonally overtop Seoul Station. There are also many parks along the Han River , such as Ichon Hangang Park, Yeouido Hangang Park, Mangwon Hangang Park, Nanji Hangang Park, Banpo Hangang Park, Ttukseom Hangang Park and Jamsil Hangang Park. The Seoul National Capital Area also contains

4356-406: The 5th century. However, according to Samguk sagi , both Baekje and Silla described the land as frontier border of Baekje, not as the capital region. Moreover, Jinheung Taewang Stele found at current day Bukhansan tells that the place was underdeveloped as of 6th century AD, suggesting that the first capital Wiryeseong was not located in or nearby Seoul. In July or August 553, Silla took

4477-446: The 60s and 70s underlines the influence of urban architecture and dominance of mass production on Korean art in the 20th century. The tumult of postwar Korea was in some ways mirrored in the discourse around art, especially in discussions on the role of abstraction. Experimental and avant-garde artists clamored for institutional support that would reflect the major changes occurring in the Korean art world, and provide emerging artists

4598-482: The 80s. In response to curatorial and art historical attempts to identify Dansaekhwa artists, some artists have pushed against their inclusion. Lee Kang-so and Choi Byung-so have rejected the association, stating that the categorization misunderstands both their own work and characteristics of Dansaekhwa. Dansaekhwa is often characterized by a distinct attention to the three-dimensionality of works—even if they are on two-dimensional canvases. The physicality of Dansaekhwa

4719-515: The 90s onwards has had difficulty in determining its contours. For example, critic Lee Dong-Seok argued that visual and stylistic differences between Lee Ufan and Dansaekhwa made it difficult to group the former under the latter. Critics like Robert C. Morgan still had to clarify where Dansaekhwa stood in relation to artistic movements abroad, with Morgan arguing that even though Dansaekhwa artists were likely aware of minimalism in New York, their approach

4840-453: The Charter of the City of Seoul in the official gazette on October 10 of the following year. The charter declared Seoul as the name of the city and established it as a municipal corporation . Seoul's status as a municipal corporation mirrored the independent cities in the United States that do not belong to any county, and Seoul was established as an independent administrative unit, separate from

4961-571: The Improvement of Air Quality in the Seoul Metropolitan Area" was passed in December 2003. Its 1st Seoul Metropolitan Air Quality Improvement Plan (2005–2014) focused on improving the concentrations of PM10 and nitrogen dioxide by reducing emissions. As a result, the annual average PM10 concentrations decreased from 70.0 μg/m in 2001 to 44.4 μg/m in 2011 and 46 μg/m in 2014. As of 2014,

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5082-625: The Informel generation used Dansaekhwa in the 70s and 80s to regain their status, Yoon claims that their resistance to these groups signified a crisis for their own. Without, as Lee Ufan describes an "-ism," or movement, to guide it, Dansaekhwa artists instead busied themselves with formal concerns that unsettled the boundaries between abstraction and figuration, painting and sculpture, tradition and modernity, and local and global. Their focus on material rejected these sharp aesthetic divisions. A few artists who spent time abroad like Kwon Young-woo argued for

5203-593: The Korea Arts Management Service (KAMS) also credits the use of "Dansaekhwa" in the international art world to this show. Art historian Joan Kee has opted for the romanization "Tansaekhwa" instead because the McCune-Reischauer system is still in use for English-language databases, archives, and libraries when identifying Korean-language sources. Dansaekhwa artists were born during Japan's occupation of Korea , and began building their careers during

5324-433: The Korea Arts Management Service (KAMS) published a compilation of primary documents spanning 1960s to the 2010s on Dansaekhwa. The introduction to the volume describes the difficulty and disagreement in determining which artists should be included, and the terminology that should be used. Of particular note is co-editor Lee Phil's acknowledgement of their inability to find primary sources on women artists who were active during

5445-619: The North Koreans in the June 1950 First Battle of Seoul , recaptured by UN forces in the September 1950 Second Battle of Seoul , falling to a combined Chinese-North Korean force in the January 1951 Third Battle of Seoul , and finally being recaptured once more by UN forces in Operation Ripper during the spring of 1951. The extensive fighting left the city heavily damaged after the war. The capital

5566-557: The Seoul Capital Area, which has major technology hubs, such as Gangnam and Digital Media City. Seoul is ranked seventh in the Global Power City Index and the Global Financial Centres Index , and is one of the five leading hosts of global conferences. The city has also hosted major events such as the 1986 Asian Games , the 1988 Summer Olympics , and the 2010 G20 Seoul summit , in addition to three matches at

5687-700: The U.S. military government between 1945 and 1948 was much smaller than it is today. It only covered the Fortress Wall , marked by the Eight Gates , and the districts incorporated during Japanese rule to prosecute imperial Japan's war efforts. During the Korean War , Seoul changed hands between the Soviet- and Chinese-backed North Korean forces and the American-backed South Korean forces four times: falling to

5808-562: The Urgency of Method by Joan Kee. Kee employs formalist readings of Dansaekhwa work to show how these artists were engaged with the outside world, challenging aesthetic parameters that were indelibly marked by the rapid social and political changes in Korea during the time: Tansaekhwa was not about the mastery of technique, the transmission of meaning, or even the manipulation of materials. Its makers were primarily concerned with bringing together certain materials and material properties so as to break

5929-505: The Young Artists Coalition, A.G., and S.T. who turned away from established practices in painting to focus on installation and performance. Dansaekhwa artists' lack of involvement aligns with Yoon Jin Sup's argument that the rise of Dansaekhwa was in some part a response to the rejection of two-dimensional surfaces common to many of the 60s and 70s avant-garde movements in Korea. While the dominant art historical opinion has been that

6050-498: The annual average PM10 concentration was still at least twice than that recommended by the WHO Air Quality Guidelines. The 2nd Seoul Metropolitan Air Quality Improvement Plan (2015–2024) added PM2.5 and ozone to its list of managed pollutants. Investment in air quality improvement between 2007 and 2020 in the order of US$ 9 billion on the part of three key local authorities, namely Gyeonggi, Incheon and Seoul, delivered

6171-509: The area of approximately 4 km (2.5 miles) radius surrounding the Fortress Wall (i.e., Outer old Seoul ; 성저십리 ; 城底十里 ). On October 1, 1910, Imperial Japan demoted Seoul as no different than any other city within the Gyeonggi Province . After Imperial Japan's redistricting, Seoul only included the area inside the Fortress Wall and present-day Yongsan District . In the 1930s, as part of Imperial Japan's war efforts leading up to

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6292-494: The artists' use of one tone of color rather than a single color. Curators of the 2014 show "Overcoming the Modern: Dansaekhwa: The Korean Monochrome Movement" (Alexander Gray Associates, New York ) Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath have proposed the term "process" rather than "monochrome" to emphasize the physicality rather than color palette of Dansaekhwa works. Curator Yoon Jin Sup attributes

6413-436: The beginning of these efforts: "The Age of Philosophy and Aesthetics" ( National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art , 2002) and the foreword to this exhibition, "Korean Monochrome and Its Identity," by Oh Kwang-su. The show and essay are two of many offering their own timelines and cast of characters. Some have sought to draw new connections or find predecessors for Dansaekhwa, including Kim Whanki and Quac Insik, and identify

6534-491: The canvas on the ground, and restricting the color palette. Many Dansaekhwa artists have reevaluated the relationship between figure and ground , emphasizing the role of the canvas as a part of the image in itself, resisting the use of sharp edges, and working both on and through surfaces. Dansaekhwa defied easy categorization for contemporary critics, falling somewhere between modern oil and traditional ink painting . The difficulty locating Dansaekhwa's origins—in relation to

6655-472: The city Gyeongseong ("Kyongsong" in Korean and " Keijō " in Japanese). The city saw significant transformation under Japanese colonial rule. Imperial Japan removed the city walls, paved roads, and built Western-style buildings. Seoul was deprived of its special status as the capital city and downsized under imperial Japan, compared to the traditional notion among people of the Joseon dynasty that Seoul included

6776-458: The city as the provincial capital. Based on the naming system, the actual name of Han River during this time was likely Namcheon (Nam River) itself or should have the word ending with "cheon" ( 천 ; 川 ) not "gang" ( 강 ; 江 ) nor "su" ( 수 ; 水 ). In addition, "Bukhansan" Jinheung Stele clearly states that Silla had possession of Hanseong (modern day Pyongyang ), thus Bukhansan has to be located north of Hanseong. Modern day Pyongyang

6897-423: The city mostly in ruins. Nevertheless, the city has since undergone significant reconstruction and rapid urbanization. Seoul was rated Asia's most livable city, with the second-highest quality of life globally according to Arcadis in 2015 and a GDP per capita (PPP) of approximately $ 40,000. 15 Fortune Global 500 companies, including industry giants such as Samsung , LG , and Hyundai , are headquartered in

7018-527: The city, often through rescue archaeology . Seoul is first recorded as Wiryeseong, the capital of Baekje (founded in 18 BC) in the northeastern area of modern Seoul. There are several city walls remaining in the area that date from this time. Pungnaptoseong , an earthen wall located southeast Seoul, is widely believed to have been at the main Wiryeseong site. As the Three Kingdoms competed for this strategic region, control passed from Baekje to Goguryeo in

7139-527: The city, goes over these mountains. The city is bordered by eight mountains, as well as the more level lands of the Han River plain and western areas. Seoul has a large quantity of parks. One of the most famous parks is Namsan Park , which offers recreational hiking and views of the downtown Seoul skyline, especially via its N Seoul Tower . Seoul Olympic Park , located in Songpa District and built to host

7260-536: The control of the region from Baekje, and the city became a part of newly established Sin Province ( 신주 ; 新州 ). Sin (新) has both meaning of "New" and "Silla", thus literally means New Silla Province. In November 555, Jinheung Taewang made a royal visit to Bukhansan, and inspected the frontier. In 557, Silla abolished Sin Province, and established Bukhansan Province ( 북한산주 ; 北漢山州 ). The word Hanseong ( 한성 ; 漢城 ; lit.  Han Fortress) appears on

7381-440: The corresponding signs, the artist begins with the making of signs and gives the corresponding meaning. In the works of Laurent Jiménez-Balaguer , the language of signs is further deconstructed, allowing for a universal interpretation of a private language. The contribution of music produced the art of musical informalism. Plastic characteristics of this painting are: spontaneity of the gesture, automatism, expressive use of material,

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7502-417: The country and according to satellite data, the persistent carbon dioxide anomaly over the city is one of the strongest in the world. Air quality is monitored by geo-stationary satellite measurements centred on Korea and its immediate neighbours. In January 2024 Seoul Metro , whose passengers at the time numbered approximately 7 million a day, announced plans for extensive pollution reduction measures across

7623-514: The current Ichon-dong , the Banpo apartment complex , Apgujeong-dong and Jamsil-dong . Until 1972, Seoul was claimed by North Korea as its de jure capital, being specified as such in Article 103 of the 1948 North Korean constitution . Seoul was the host city of the 1986 Asian Games and 1988 Summer Olympics as well as one of the venues of the 2002 FIFA World Cup . South Korea's 2019 population

7744-514: The deemphasis of the distinction between painting from the East versus the West, arguing that attempts to distinguish paintings as belonging to one or the other usually rely on superficial differences based on medium or the image in the work. Some of the earliest Dansaekhwa artists began experimenting with a wide range of materials that rejected painterly traditions, but also emerged out of a lack of resources in postwar Korea and rising oil prices .In spite of

7865-531: The difficulty in obtaining and linguistic mediation of information on art from outside Korea in the 60s and 70s, Korean artists began thinking about their connection to a global art world, and how they might shape it. The early 1970s saw a series of exhibitions, such as the "White Exhibition" (Myeongdong Gallery, Seoul , 1972-3), "The Korean Modern Art Union Exhibition" (1973), and " Park Seo-Bo : Ecriture" (Muramatus Gallery, Tokyo ; Myeongdong Gallery, Seoul, 1973), that critic Oh Kwang-su identified as being part of

7986-453: The early 1990s, the reasons being the high costs of living, urban sprawling to Gyeonggi region's satellite bed cities and an aging population. As of 2016, the number of foreigners living in Seoul was 404,037, 22.9% of the total foreign population in South Korea. As of June 2011, 186,631 foreigners were Chinese citizens of Korean ancestry. This was an 8.84% increase from the end of 2010 and

8107-476: The existing provinces. The Korean version of the Charter translated " municipal corporation " as " special free city " ( 특별자유시 ; 特別自由市 ), which later became special metropolitan city (or special metropolitan city; 특별시 ) in the Local Autonomy Act of 1949  [ ko ] . Seoul has retained its status as the only special metropolitan city in South Korea (i.e., 서울특별시 ). The City of Seoul

8228-544: The former to the latter. Park's position as first the vice chairman (1970–77) and then chairman (1977-1980) of the International Division of the Korea Fine Art Association allowed him to organize large-scale exhibitions of experimental art that kickstarted the careers of emerging experimental artists and provided the crucial visibility needed for avant-garde artists to enter the international art arena. As

8349-507: The fortress), and areas 10 Ri (Korean mile) around the Fortress Wall, which were named as Seongjeosimni ( Korean :  성저십리 ; Hanja :  城底十里 ; lit.  10 Ris around the fortress). The Doseong-an area later gained the informal but popular name Sadaemun-an ( 사대문 안 ), which literally means 'areas inside of the Four Great Gates ', and became the one and only downtown (city center) of Hanyang city . In

8470-479: The functions that are handled by city governments in other jurisdictions. Each gu is divided into " dong " ( 동 ; 洞 ), or neighborhoods. Some gu have only a few dong s while others like Jongno District have a very large number of distinct neighborhoods. Seoul has 423 administrative dongs ( 행정동 ) in total. Seoul proper is noted for its population density , which is almost twice that of New York City and eight times greater than Rome . Its metropolitan area

8591-566: The growing interest in and development of Dansaekhwa to himself as an intermediary between Korea and Japan, and Park Seo-Bo as the central figure in Korea. After moving to Japan in 1956, and living between Paris and Kamakura from the early 1970s onwards, Lee played a significant role in promoting Dansaekhwa artists so that they could show their work in Japan and France. But Lee claims that Dansaekhwa would have been impossible without Park's mediation between institutions and artists to allocate resources from

8712-405: The historic Hànchéng to Shǒu'ěr ( 首尔 ; 首爾 ). Shǒu'ěr is a phono-semantic match incorporating both sound and meaning (through 首 meaning 'head', 'chief', 'first'). There is evidence of human habitation in the area now corresponding to Seoul from 30,000 to 40,000 years before the present. Around 4,000 B.C., people of the area lived in huts with lowered floors called umjip ( 움집 ). There

8833-585: The hottest month, has average high and low temperatures of 30.0 and 22.9 °C (86 and 73 °F) with higher temperatures possible. Heat index values can surpass 40 °C (104.0 °F) at the height of summer. Winters are usually cold to freezing with average January high and low temperatures of 2.1 and −5.5 °C (35.8 and 22.1 °F), and are generally much drier than summers, with an average of 24.9 days of snow annually. Sometimes, temperatures drop dramatically to below −10 °C (14 °F), and on some occasions as low as −15 °C (5 °F) in

8954-562: The importance of texture in these pieces. Others like Bang Geun-taek and Oh Kwang-su honed in on the weaknesses they saw in Dansaekhwa, with the former dismissing it for its semiotic failures, and the latter claiming that the growing popularity of Dansaekhwa had transformed it into a shallow trend for contemporary artists to conform to. As Dansaekhwa gained solid footing in contemporary art discourse, critics like Toshiaki Minemura have reaffirmed its superiority and thus longevity contra movements like Minjung art. But even writing on Dansaekhwa from

9075-476: The importance of the color white in Korean culture, and reliance on the perspectives of prominent artists in Dansaekhwa have stagnated discourse on Dansaekhwa. Kim calls for the diversification of viewpoints and construction of new frameworks when analyzing Dansaekhwa. In 2013, the University of Minnesota Press published the first English-language academic book on Dansaekhwa: Contemporary Korean Art: Tansaekhwa and

9196-468: The increase in international visibility with the Asian Games and Olympics held in the country in 1986 and 1988 respectively. Some art historians have interpreted Dansaekhwa artists' lack of figuration as a form of defiance against the figuration that was dominant in political propaganda . Nonetheless, Dansaekhwa's unique status as a distinctly Korean style led to its cooptation as a soft power tool for

9317-594: The late 19th century, after hundreds of years of isolation, Seoul opened its gates to foreigners and began modernization. Seoul became the first city in East Asia to introduce electricity in the royal palace, which was established by the Edison Illuminating Company . A decade later the city also implemented electrical street lights. After Gojong 's proclamation of Korea as the Korean Empire in 1897, Seoul

9438-445: The local and global, and past and present—produced confused responses to the earliest shows of Dansaekhwa. Some simplified and arguably essentialist readings of Dansaekhwa focused on the use of the color white, inviting comparisons to Korean ceramics , and resonances with Zen Buddhism . Critic Lee Yil drew connections between contemporary abstract Korean artists and monochrome painters abroad (e.g. Yves Klein ), but still distinguished

9559-467: The main actors in promoting the movement. Yoon Jin Sup claims that rather than a native Korean, a foreigner, Tokyo Gallery director Takashi Yamamoto, was the first to discover Dansaekhwa. In addition to outlining the history of Dansaekhwa, some have called for a reevaluation of the conceptual frameworks used to understand the art associated with it. Critic Kim Chan-dong asserts that outdated concepts such as "the indifference of nature" and theorization around

9680-420: The mid winter period of January and February. Temperatures below −20 °C (−4 °F) have been recorded. The Seoul Metropolitan Government is the local government for Seoul, and is responsible for the administration and provision of various services to the city, including correctional institutions, education, libraries, public safety, recreational facilities, sanitation, water supply, and welfare services. It

9801-465: The movement. However, after the Korean Art Informel movement, many of the artists did not participate in avant-garde movements that followed in the late 1960s and 70s initiated by groups like the 1967 Young Artists Coalition, and later A.G. (Avant-garde) and S.T. (Space & Time) . Dansaekhwa artists separated themselves from and stood in contrast to younger generations of artists like those in

9922-413: The need to recognize that while Yun's work might seem rustic and simple, they are the product of complex mental and physical processes. Yun's description of his process matched this statement, with Yun affirming that it can take him several days or even several months to complete a painting. Both Suh Seung-Won and Choi Myoung Young state that the best word to describe their work is "monotony," emphasizing

10043-550: The network. The target was to cut pollution to over 30% below the legal limit of 50 μg/m3. It was 32 μg/m3 by 2026. The outset actuality was 38.8 μg/m3 average concentration of pollution.  Starting in 2024, ₩100 billion annually for three years was earmarked for air pollution reduction measures. These included installation of air conditioning, better ventilation systems and filters, replacement of dust-inducing gravel rail tunnel beds with concrete ones, dust-capture matting at turnstiles, and constant public readings for pollution within

10164-471: The nonexistence of preconceived ideas, the experience that the deed generates the idea, and the work is the place and the privileged moment whereby the artist discovers himself; it is the end of the reproduction of the object for the representation of the theme that becomes the end of the painting, with a sometime calligraphic aspect, referring to a Calligraphic Abstraction in relation to the works of Georges Mathieu , Hans Hartung , or Pierre Soulages . During

10285-624: The northeastern borders of Seoul. In September, Seoul again annexed present-day Gangnam . The two consecutive expansions more than doubled the size of Seoul from approximately 268 km (103 sq mi) to 613 km (237 sq mi). After annexation, Gangnam 's development was spurred by key infrastructure projects: the construction of the Hannam Bridge (1966–1969) and Gyeongbu Expressway (1968–1970). As Seoul's population kept growing, Park 's regime focused its development plans on Gangnam. The main hurdle for Gangnam's development

10406-458: The northern border. The city lost its provincial capital position and was put under Bukhansan Province once again. This further proves that Bukhansan was located in the North of modern-day Pyongyang as changing the provincial name and objective would not be required if Bukhansan was located within Seoul. In the 11th century Goryeo , which succeeded Unified Silla , built a summer palace in Seoul, which

10527-511: The origin of the dominant use of the English transliteration "Dansaekhwa" rather than the translation "Korean Monochrome Painting" to his writing for "A Facet of Modern Korean and Japanese Art." He chose to use the transliteration in the catalogue for the exhibition on Dansaekhwa and Mono-ha held at the Gwangju Museum of Art in 2000. A 2017 collection of primary documents on Dansaekhwa published by

10648-494: The origins of Dansaekhwa to the solo shows of Park Seo-Bo , Kwon Young-woo, Yun Hyong-keun , and Ha Chong Hyun at Myeongdong Gallery from 1973 to 1974. Myeongdong Gallery became one of the main exhibitors of Dansaekhwa in large part due to Kim's willingness to allow young experimental artists to show in the space for free. It was also the home of the first show historicizing postwar Korean abstract art. In addition to Yamamoto, Nakahara, and Myeongdong Gallery, Lee Ufan attributes

10769-553: The painting down. Potentially this opened up room for the reconstruction of a different narrative of painting, one less indebted to reified sets of distinctions founded on particular systems of order and belief repeated over a given period. Thus, in calling tansaekhwa works 'methods,' critics like Lee and Yi inadvertently called for viewers to recognize the degree to which these works were themselves methods of being present outside those systems of order whose seeming dominance relied on their dual claims to historicity and perpetuity. In 2017,

10890-549: The period, and call for future scholars to search for this missing component. However, an excerpt of a journal article by Yun Nanjie offers a broad picture of the role of women in popularizing Dansaekhwa by organizing shows or working as art dealers . Yun also lists a few women artists who were exhibited together with Dansaekhwa artists, including Chin Ohcsun, Lee Hyangmi, and Shin Okjoo in the 70s, and Lee Chungji, Yoon Miran, and Lee Myungmi in

11011-550: The point that it had become a movement. Many Dansaekhwa artists were regularly showing in institutions outside of Korea by that time. A number of Dansaekhwa artists also spent time abroad, including Lee Ufan who went to Japan in 1956, Kim Tschang-yeul who went to New York in 1965 and then Paris in 1969, and Chung Sang-Hwa who moved to Paris in 1967, Japan in 1969, and then back to France in 1977. Their work abroad, and for figures like Lee, promotion of Dansaekhwa art abroad, led to Dansaekhwa's growing international popularity. By

11132-437: The relief of avant-garde artists like Ha Chong Hyun who critiqued the cronyism, poor management, and conservatism that favored informel over abstract art . The increasing number of exhibitions of and growing interest in Dansaekhwa artists prompted Nakahara to state in the 1977 exhibition catalogue for "Korea: Facet of Contemporary Modern Art" (Tokyo Central Museum of Art) that anti-chromatic art had proliferated in Korea to

11253-502: The role of repetition and uniformity of color, but argue that it is precisely the monotony of the work that opens up the possibility for rich expression and even change. Dansaekhwa artists like Kwon Young-woo and Chung Chang-sup utilized traditional artistic materials like hanji and ink for their work on canvas, rejecting strict dichotomies between tradition and modernity. A few like Yun Hyong-keun worked with oil painting materials, but found alternative ways to wield them, such as placing

11374-446: The same period fell by 19% across the country and more in Seoul and Gyeonggi. Asian dust , emissions from Seoul and in general from the rest of South Korea, as well as emissions from China, all contribute to Seoul's air quality. Besides air quality, greenhouse gas emissions represent hot issues in South Korea since the country is among top-10 strongest emitters in the world. Seoul is the strongest hotspot of greenhouse gas emissions in

11495-419: The show was an interest in the artists' use of white, and expansive understanding of color that is distinct from Euro-American modern art movements. While many hark back to this show when creating a timeline for Dansaekhwa, art historian Koo Jin-Kyung suggests that the 1972 "White" exhibition at Myeondong Gallery was a predecessor to and model for the 1975 Tokyo Gallery show. Yisoon Kim on the other hand attributes

11616-458: The state. The Ministry of Culture and Information sponsored Dansaekhwa artists for shows like the 1978 "Secondes Rencontres Internationales d'Art Contemporain" in Paris . This led to criticism from both Korean writers and artists. The state's promotion of Dansaekhwa in the 70s and 80s that deemphasized its political valences placed it in discursive opposition to the 1980s Minjung art movement . It spurred

11737-663: The stone wall of "Pyongyang Fortress", which was presumably built in the mid to late 6th century AD over period of 42 years, located in Pyongyang, while there is no evidence that Seoul had name Hanseong dating the three kingdoms and earlier period. In 568, Jinheung Taewang made another royal visit to the northern border, visited Hanseong, and stayed in Namcheon on his way back to the capital. During his stay, he set Jinheung Taewang Stele, abolished Bukhansan Province, and established Namcheon Province (남천주; 南川州; South River Province), appointing

11858-550: The style of Dansaekhwa. Curators and art historians often credit "Five Korean Artists, Five Kinds of White," a 1975 group show held at Tokyo Gallery organized by director Yamamoto Takashi with the support of Kim Mun-ho, the owner of Myeongdong Gallery, art critics Nakahara Yusuke and Lee Yil , and Lee Ufan , as the first major exhibition of works that were later identified as part of Dansaekhwa. The five featured artists were Kwon Young-woo, Park Seo-Bo , Suh Seung-Won, Lee Dong-Youb , and Hur Hwang. Yamamoto and Nakahara's impetus for

11979-418: The surface. Chung Sang-Hwa scrapes dried paint, marks both the recto and verso of paintings, and utilizes the canvas surface as a fundamental part of the work by exposing or twisting it. Some artists intentionally tamper with the structural integrity of their material to reshape it. Ha Chong Hyun pushes paint through canvases, while Kwon Young-woo used his hands or tools to rip through paper. While some of

12100-498: The suspension of civil liberties in postwar Korea. Dansaekhwa's questions around form grappled with the limits of representation and agency under the Yushin Constitution . Their material focus also reveals a keen awareness of the rapid industrialization and architectural transformation of the country, evident in, for example, Ha Chong Hyun 's piercing of canvases with wire. Ha's writing on the state of Korean contemporary art in

12221-523: The system. Seoul has a humid continental ( Köppen : Dwa ) or humid subtropical climate ( Cwa , by −3 °C or 26.6 °F isotherm), influenced by the monsoons ; there is great variation in temperature and precipitation throughout the year. The suburbs of Seoul are generally cooler than the center of Seoul because of the urban heat island effect. Summers are hot and humid, with the East Asian monsoon taking place from June until September. August,

12342-583: The term "art autre" (other art) in the homonymous book published in 1952 in relation to non-geometric abstract art. It was instrumental in improving the concept of abstract art in France during the early 1950s. Its use in the expression of political ideologies in South America during the early 1950s was quite common, as it was seen as the main way to show support for the changing political climate. Within this tendency, each artist allows full freedom of expression to

12463-467: The turmoil of multiple military conflicts (most significantly the division of Korea and the Korean War ), and authoritarian regimes of the 60s and 70s. Joan Kee emphasizes the importance of understanding this context in relation to Dansaekhwa, arguing that the artists' emphasis on objecthood was informed by both a history of material dispossession during the Korean War and anxieties around further loss with

12584-549: The two, characterizing the former as viewing color as a psychological space, and the latter viewing color as a materialized space. Lee, as well as critic Lee Gu-yeol, utilized references to painters like Kazimir Malevich when writing about Dansaekhwa painters, but made a point to emphasize that the concept of the void had a much longer history in Asian aesthetics. Lee Yil even traced Malevich's ideas around Suprematism back to Asian philosophy . Tokyo-based American art critic Joseph Love

12705-420: The unforeseen quality of materials (a taste for stains or chance) and randomness of gestures, thus rejecting drawing and control and the traditional conception of painting and its development that evolves from the idea to the completed work via sketches and projects. It is an open work that a spectator can interpret freely. The pictorial adventure is completely new; instead of going from the meaning to constructing

12826-518: The work of second-generation Dansaekhwa artists and art historical efforts to document its history. Critic Seo Seongrok describes the participants of the 1994 "Monochromes after the Monochromes" exhibition at the Whanki Museum , such as Choi Insun, Park Youngha, Kim Tschoonsu, Yoon Myung-Jae, Han Myung-ho, and Han Chung-uk, as part of the "post-monochrome" generation that would revitalize and expand on

12947-473: The work of their predecessors. In addition to Kim Tschoonsu, Yoon Jin Sup counts Koh Sankeum, Noh Sankyoon, Moon Beom, Cheon Kwangyep, Nam Tchunmo, Jang Seungtaik, Lee Kang-So, Kim Tae-Ho, Kim Taeksang, Park Kiwon, Ahn Jungsook, Lee Bae, and Lee Inheyon among late Dansaekhwa artists. Since the early 2000s, scholars and curators have attempted to construct a history for Dansaekhwa. Art historian Chung Moojeong has identified one show and text in particular as marking

13068-432: The works might appear simple or even effortless, the deliberateness of each and every mark requires close looking on the part of the viewer. For example, while Lee Ufan 's brush strokes might appear uninvolved, his canvases contain pauses and strokes that are evidence of a carefully constructed composition. In writing about Yun Hyong-keun 's work, Lee makes a similar observation about his fellow Dansaekhwa artist, emphasizing

13189-525: The world drew Korean contemporary art out of the periphery that the Euro-American art world had relegated it to, defying the assumption of belatedness in artistic innovation typically assigned to contemporary Asian art. Monroe believes Dansaekhwa can be considered an example of "alternative modernism" that drew from but cannot be reduced to contemporary art movements from abroad that Korean artists were exposed to. Dansaekhwa artists drew aesthetic strategies from

13310-530: Was 24 micrograms per cubic meter (1.0 × 10  gr/cu ft), which is 2.4 times higher than that recommended by the WHO Air Quality Guidelines for the annual mean PM2.5. The Seoul Metropolitan Government monitors and publicly shares real-time air quality data. Since the early 1960s, the Ministry of Environment has implemented a range of policies and air pollutant standards to improve and manage air quality for its people. The "Special Act on

13431-618: Was also known by other various historical names, such as Bukhansan-gun (북한산군; 北漢山郡, during the Goguryeo era), Namcheon ( 남천 ; 南川 , during the Silla era), Hanyang ( 한양 ; 漢陽 , during the Northern and Southern States period ), Namgyeong (남경; 南京, during the Goryeo era), and Hanseong ( 한성 ; 漢城 , during the Joseon era). The word seoul was used colloquially to refer to the capital as early as

13552-497: Was estimated at 51.71 million, and according to the 2018 Population and Housing Census, 49.8% of the population resided in the Seoul metropolitan area. This was up by 0.7% from 49.1% in 2010, showing a distinct trend toward the concentration of the population in the capital. Seoul has become the economic, political and cultural hub of the country, with several Fortune Global 500 companies, including Samsung , SK Holdings , Hyundai , POSCO and LG Group headquartered there. Seoul

13673-456: Was floods because the area is low-lying and prone to flooding. Then Seoul mayor Kim Hyun-ok ordered construction of an expressway that doubled as embankment , which became the present-day Gangbyeon Expressway . The construction started in March 1967 and completed in September of the same year. Similar projects transformed previously flood-prone areas into usable land for development. Such areas include

13794-452: Was fundamentally different. Others have sought to delineate the relationship between politics and Dansaekhwa. Reminiscent of the debates around Korean modern art in the 80s, Kwon Young-jin criticized Dansaekhwa for their silence and passivity in response to the Park regime , and role in stifling the rise of experimental art that could respond to the political realities of the time. Starting in 2014,

13915-505: Was not Pyongyang, Taedong River was likely Han River, and Bukhansan was not Bukhansan during the three kingdoms period. Moreover, Pyongyang was a common noun meaning capital used by Goguryeo and Goryeo dynasties, similar to Seoul. In 603, Goguryeo attacked Bukhansanseong (북한산성; 北漢山城; Bukhan Mountain Fortress), which Silla ended up winning. In 604, Silla abolished Namcheon Province, and reestablished Bukhansan Province in order to strengthen

14036-477: Was partially finished around 1396. The city of Hanyang was governed by the Hanseongbu  [ ko ] ( 한성부 ), an agency of the national government dedicated to affairs on the administration of the capital city. The Hanseongbu divided Hanyang into two major categories: areas inside the Fortress Wall, which were typically named Seong-jung ( 성중 ; 城中 ) or Doseong-an ( 도성 안 ; lit.  Inside

14157-408: Was referred to as the "Southern Capital". It was only from this period that Seoul became a larger settlement. Seoul became the planned capital of Korea by Yi Seong-gye , the founding father of the Joseon dynasty. After enthroning himself as King at the capital of old Goryeo in 1392, Yi Seong-gye changed the name of his Kingdom from Goryeo to Joseon in 1393 and began his search for a place for

14278-514: Was temporarily called Hwangseong ( 황성 ; 皇城 ; lit.  the imperial city). Much of modern development around this era was propelled by trade with foreign countries like France and the United States. For example, the Seoul Electric Company , Seoul Electric Trolley Company, and Seoul Fresh Spring Water Company were all joint Korean–U.S. owned enterprises. After the annexation treaty in 1910, Japan annexed Korea and renamed

14399-486: Was temporarily relocated to Busan . One estimate of the extensive damage states that after the war, at least 191,000 buildings, 55,000 houses, and 1,000 factories lay in ruins. In addition, a flood of refugees had entered Seoul during the war, swelling the population of the city and its metropolitan area to an estimated 1.5 million by 1955. Following the war, Seoul began to focus on reconstruction and modernization. As South Korea's economy started to grow rapidly from

14520-481: Was the most densely populated among OECD countries in Asia in 2012, and second worldwide after that of Paris . As of the end of June 2011, 10.29 million Republic of Korea citizens lived in the city. This was a 0.24% decrease from the end of 2010. The population was 10.44 million in 2012, and 9.86 million in 2015. As of 2021, Seoul's population is 9.59 million. The population of Seoul has been dropping since

14641-520: Was unsure if the focus on process over outcome for avant-garde artists like Park Seo-Bo , Yun Hyong-keun , Kim Han, and Kim Whanki , several of whom became associated with Dansaekhwa and whose works were exhibited at the 1974 2nd Korean Indépendants Exhibition ( National Museum of Contemporary Art , Gwacheon ), might make it difficult for viewers to understand the value of these works. But he lauded how they maintained their strong sense of identity while defying artistic convention, and Love also identified

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