Magic of beauty

The Minhwa: Art of Korea exhibition at the National Art Museum introduces the unique flavour of Korean folk painting

The National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus features an unusual exhibition. The Minhwa: Art of Korea project, realised with the support of the World Peace Art Exhibition Committee and the Embassy of the Republic of Belarus in the Republic of Korea, gives an insight into traditional Korean painting. Minhwa is a truly folk art, an important and recognisable part of the historical and cultural heritage of Koreans. And besides, it is truly beautiful!

 
  












Masterclass on Korean painting                                                      Viktoria Kuzmina and Lee Jon-Young

The Minhwa genre is an ancient folk art that originated in opposition to ‘high’ court painting. In fact, the word ‘minhwa’ itself translates as ‘folk painting’. These bright images adorned the homes of ordinary people. Minhwa has its own subjects (often satirical, fabulous, full of folk humour), its own symbolism and traditions: peonies and lotuses bloom in colourful paintings, phoenixes and dragons soar, and animals enact scenes from fairy tales and legends.
The images are made on hanji rice paper, specially designed for painting. Minhwa artists use special paints in their work, similar to watercolour. The difficulty lies in the fact that these paints are light and transparent; one wrong stroke — and the whole work has to be started all over again, as explained by Lee Mihyeong, Doctor of Art History specialising in minhwa and Professor at Myongji University (Republic of Korea), at the masterclass. Participants in the masterclass were delighted to paint Korean fans with drawings symbolising good wishes — in this, minhwa painting is related to Belarusian vytinanka [art form of papercutting] and the practice of creating protective dolls: bright, colourful images were given to each other on holidays and hung in homes to attract good luck and well-being. Thus, one of the most popular subjects of Korean folk painting is the ‘ten symbols of longevity’: the sun, mountains, water, pine tree, stone, moon or cloud, mushroom of immortality, turtle, deer and crane.
“Minhwa painting is deeply symbolic,” noted Viktoria Kuzmina, First Deputy Director General for Scientific, International and Educational Work at the National Art Museum. “It is an art that originated in everyday life and became very popular. True, artists working in these techniques do not always have professional training, but it is worth noting their skill and amazing symbolism, syncretism, a multitude of subtexts and the stunning emotional flavour of such painting.”
The exhibition showcases more than 50 works specially created by Korean minhwa masters for demonstration to the Belarusian public. The Korean side has donated over 30 of them to Belarus’ National Art Museum. “The exhibition has a dual significance for us: it is not only a presentation of the vibrant Korean minhwa paintings to the Belarusian audience, but also an enrichment of our extensive museum collection,” emphasised Viktoria Kuzmina. “We are immensely grateful to both the Korean public organisations, which are highly active, and the Embassy of the Republic of Belarus in the Republic of Korea. Today, this exhibition brings our peoples closer together, giving us an understanding of how close we are and what our fundamental values are: peace, harmony and beauty. International activity is one of the main directions in the work of the National Art Museum of the Republic of Belarus, and it is very pleasing that we already have traditional mutual relations and contacts with the Republic of Korea.”  

  













Chairman of the World Peace Art Exhibition Committee, Lee Jon-Young, for his part, underscored the importance of preserving the distinctive cultural traditions of peoples, “Tradition is not a relic of the past, but a mirror reflecting the present, and a light opening up the future. This exhibition is a wonderful opportunity to touch the power of art and the depth of Korean culture through folk paintings that convey the aesthetic feelings and life philosophy of the Korean people. Minhwa is an art of hope and harmony, born from the people. The images of the tiger, the sun, the moon, the lotus, and the symbols of good luck and longevity reflect humanity’s aspiration to peace, happiness and inner balance.” 
Mr Lee Jon-Young expressed his hope that the exhibition would bring Belarus and Korea closer together, becoming a platform for cultural dialogue and diplomacy, “Art is the language of hearts, which knows no borders. Culture is another name for diplomacy, and art is the warmest language that unites peoples. May this exhibition be a bright celebration of friendship between Korea and Belarus!” 
The exhibition of Korean art is being held within the walls of the National Art Museum for the second time, but this year the exhibition space has been significantly expanded. Attaché of the Embassy of the Republic of Belarus in the Republic of Korea, Yevgeny Redko, recounted, “We established contact with the association of artists in South Korea quite long ago. On behalf of our embassy, I would like to express my gratitude to both the National Art Museum and the World Peace Art Exhibition Committee for the fact that, despite the distance, we have managed to unite and connect our peoples through culture, through art, through the stroke of an artist’s brush. Despite the fact that we are separated by more than 10,000 kilometres, there is much in minhwa paintings that is familiar to the Belarusian eye: for example, one of the main symbols of Korea is the crane — isn’t that very similar to our stork?” As noted by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Republic of Korea, Andrei Mikhailovich Chernetsky, “Bridges built by artists and performers sometimes turn out to be stronger than bridges built by engineers and politicians.”

  
















Opening of Minhwa: Art of Korea exhibition at Belarus' National Art Museum

By Irina Ovsepyan

Photos by Kirill Stasko