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| Kwon Jin-kyu, a pioneer of modern sculpture in Korea, left, and his "Self Portrait" (1968) / Courtesy of Kwon Jin Kyu Commemoration Foundation, SeMA |
By Park Han-sol
A documentary film examining the life and works of the pioneering realist sculptor Kwon Jin-kyu (1922-73) will go into production, according to film studio Myung Films.
The production house signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) this week with the Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA) and the Kwon Jin Kyu Commemoration Foundation on the filming of the movie tentatively titled, "The Story of Kwon Jin-kyu."
Myung Films and the foundation are set to take charge of the production, and SeMA will cooperate by providing relevant archival materials and facilitating the shoot taking place inside the museum.
In 2021, SeMA became the recipient of the late artist's sculptures, paintings and drawings totaling 141 ― all donated by the Kwon Jin Kyu Commemoration Foundation. The museum subsequently mounted "Kwon Jin Kyu Centennial: Angel of Atelier" last year, the largest retrospective of the artist to date, in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of his birth.
More than 240 works of terracotta and lacquer sculptures, reliefs, drawings and oil paintings spanning between the 1950s and 1970s were put on view.
And in the first half of this year, SeMA will establish a permanent exhibition hall dedicated to Kwon at the Nam-Seoul Museum of Art in Gwanak District.
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| From left, Lee Eun, chief executive of the production house Myung Films, Beck?Jee-sook, director of the Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA), and Huh Kyung-hoe, chairman of the Kwon Jin Kyu Commemoration Foundation pose together after signing a memorandum of understanding on the production of a documentary movie on the late sculptor Kwon Jin-kyu at the SeMA in central Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of Myung Films |
Born in 1922 during the 1910-45 Japanese colonial era in the now-North Korean city of Hamheung, Kwon was a child fascinated by the materiality of dirt and clay. Following Korea's liberation, he went to Japan to study sculpture at Musashino Art University, Tokyo, under the renowned artist, Takashi Shimizu.
Upon his return to Korea in 1959, what put his sculptural works on the map was his decision to diverge from the latest western abstract techniques he learned as a student and to focus on creating figurative forms of self-portraits, as well as portrayals of animals and humans modeled after his acquaintances.
The artist's goal to visualize the most primitive, yet purest notion of the spiritual beauty of "Korean realism" led to his exploration of different materials like terracotta and lacquer.
"The sculptor would closely observe objects and human models around him, but instead of simply replicating their physical realness, he would encapsulate the invisible essence that lies within each of them and eternalize it," SeMA's curator Han Hee-jean noted last year during a press conference held for the centennial exhibition.
"The Story of Kwon Jin-kyu" is set to hit theaters next year.
