Chun Kyung-ja’s war painting revealed to public for the first time

A battlefield full of combat helicopters, tanks, and gunfire, is depicted against a dense forest of palm trees and flowers on canvas. During the raging days of the Vietnam War in 1972, the Korean government dispatched ten artists to Vietnam to record the war. This painting, titled “Flowers, Soldiers, and Gunfire (1972),” was created by Chun Kyung-ja (1924∼2015, photo), the only female artist among the artists dispatched to Vietnam. This work, which was owned by the Ministry of National Defense, was revealed to the public for the first time through the exhibition ‘Age of Upheaval, Art of Women’s Life,’ which opened on Thursday at the Seoul Museum of Art.

The painting is 185 centimeters wide and 284 centimeters high and is one of the artist’s masterpieces. What is unique is the content of the painting, which appears somewhat romantic. While Chun’s sketches, such as ‘Helicopter Transport Operation’ and ‘Ambush Operation,’ which are also displayed in the exhibition hall, are realistic, the landscape stands out more in “Flowers, Soldiers, and Gunfire.” “It appears that the author revealed her taste and identity for ‘flowers’ more strongly than scenes of war,” explained Curator Han Hee-jin.

The exhibition ‘Age of Upheaval, Art of Women’s Life’ commemorates the 100th anniversary of Chun Kyung-ja’s birth and highlights the world of work by 23 female oriental painters who lived at the same time as Chun. It examines Korean modern and contemporary history, including the Japanese colonial period and the Korean War, as reflected in the works and author's life. ‘Outing to a Cloth Shop’, in which the artist depicts herself visiting a cloth shop in the 1950s, will be displayed for the first time to the public. The painting was owned by a private collector and shows the artist's profile pouring over various fabrics. The person with a black umbrella next to her is said to be the artist's mother. The exhibition will be open until November 17.

A permanent exhibition titled ‘Toward the Wind that Touches the Soul’ opened on Aug 6 at the Seoul Museum of Art. Works donated by Chun herself to the city of Seoul in 1998 have been exhibited since 2002. The exhibition, which was renovated for the first time in a decade, following ‘The Soul of Chun Kyung-ja’ and ‘The Eternal Narcissist, Chun Kyung-ja,’ features 30 works, including paintings and drawings.


Min Kim kimmin@donga.com