This year, South Korea is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the March 1st Independence Movement— one of the earliest public displays of Korean resistance during the rule of Korea by Japan from 1910 to 1945.
In commemoration of the spirit for the movement, Korean Cultural Centre India (KCCI) is organising an art exhibition titled One Shiny Day. The brainchild of KCCI director Kim Kum Pyoung, the exhibition will be inaugurated by Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (Independent Charge) Prahlad Singh Patel at the National Gallery of Modern Art, today.
A follower of Mahatma Gandhi, Pyoung says, “The idea of exchange exhibitions came to my mind when I saw Dandi Yatra exhibition at NGMA. Korea and India have a similar history.
Both marched towards a new beginning after overcoming the colonial era.” Artworks of 12 artists (teams), including Kwon Hayoun, Kim BoMin, Kim Woojo, Bae Sungmi, Shon Sunghyun, Ahn Eun-me, Ahn Changhong, Lee Sanghyun, Lee Woosung, Jeong Jae-wan, Jo Dongwhan and Jo Haejun, will be on display till September 29.
The exhibition has been curated by Gyeyoung Lee of Daegu Art Museum, Gyeyoung.
Talking about the show, Lee says, “The exhibition consists of three elements — Memory, Record and Commemoration. These artworks depict all kinds of struggles without any discrimination of class, caste, creed or religion.”
While memories represent how the war, national division and family separation impacted individuals, including artists, records are based on the voices of people and commemoration is not only a homage to the centennial history and the people who lived through it but also a love song for people who disappeared.
A joint effort of Daegu Art Museum and NGMA, the exhibition’s opening also celebrates August 15 — Liberation Day of both Korea and India.
“It’s an expression of the spirit of Independence Movement and history of Korea through the works of Korean artists,” says Pyoung, adding that for improving the bilateral relationship the KCCI had also organised the second Korea-India Friendship Painting Competition.
Held under three themes – ‘South Korea, as I see it’, ‘Legendary Indian Princess Huh Hwang-ok to Korea’ and ‘Korea and India’s independence Movement’, the competition had 28,523 students from 329 schools of India as participants.