Chung Sang-Hwa, born in Korea in 1932, is an artist whose work is synonymous with the Dansaekhwa movement that emerged in South Korea during the 1970s. Alongside fellow artists like Park Seo-Bo and Ha Chong-Hyun, Chung pioneered an abstract painting style characterised by its chiefly monochromatic aesthetic that emphasises a detailed, ritualistic process that produces minimalist yet contemplative outcomes.
Chung Sang-Hwa
Executed in 1990, Untitled 90-12-5 is emblematic of Chung’s expansive oeuvre. The rich cobalt canvas appears blurry from afar, pixelated in a mesmerising fashion that one would deem impossible for a physical painting. Upon closer inspection, the surface reveals an intricate artistic approach, comprising of a network of small, fastidiously painted squares and rectangles, their hues meticulously selected from the blue colour spectrum. The repetitive application morphs into a process within which the artist eventually loses himself in; each dab and stroke of his brush becomes innate, meditative in the same way one repeats a mantra to achieve spiritual transcendence.
The fruit of an undoubtedly labourious process, the present work is representative of Chung’s repertoire and the Dansaekhwa aesthetic as a whole: a powerfully austere yet silently modest piece built upon the foundation of intense focus and commitment.
Chung’s work has been exhibited extensively. Recent solo exhibitions include Chung Sang Hwaat the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Artin Seoul (2021) and Excavations, 1964–78, hosted byLévy Gorvy, in New York (2019). The artist also participated in the Venice Biennale (2015), and his work is collected by many prestigious institutions worldwide, including the Tokyo Museum of Contemporary Art; National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo; National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea; Guggenheim Abu Dhabi; Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC; and M+, Hong Kong, amongst numerous others.
Provenance
Private Collection, Asia Phillips, London, 28 June 2016, lot 111 Acquired at the above sale by the present owner
signed, titled and dated '1990 "Untitled 90-12-5 [in Hanja]" CHUNG SANG-HWA [in Hanja and English]' on the reverse acrylic on canvas 41 x 24 cm. (16 1/8 x 9 1/2 in.) Painted in 1990.