'Monochrome Master' Painter Park Seo-bo Passes Away... "I Wanted to Draw One More Line Until the End" (Comprehensive)

'Korea's Leading Abstract Art' First Generation Dansaekhwa Master
Announces Lung Cancer Diagnosis, Saying "I Want to Draw One More Line"

‘Monochrome Painting Master’ Park Seo-bo (real name Park Jae-hong) passed away on the 14th. He was 92 years old.

Artist Park Seo-bo.
Photo by Yonhap News

Earlier, in February, he shared on his Facebook about being diagnosed with stage 2 lung cancer. The late artist said, “Even if I die immediately, people will say I lived a long life, but I think of this time as a gift. I want to draw one more line on the canvas,” expressing his commitment to his work and his intention to spend his remaining time meaningfully. Until recently, he continued his vigorous artistic activities and even met audiences in person at Frieze Seoul held in September.

Born in 1931, he was a representative artist symbolizing Korean abstract art and the monochrome painting movement. In the 1950s, he led the domestic abstract art movement through the Informel movement, and from the early 1970s, he created a stir with his ‘Myobeop’ series, which involved continuously drawing lines in a single color.

He revealed that he got the idea for Myobeop after seeing his five-year-old second son practicing writing by opening his older brother’s Korean language notebook. He explained the background of the work’s concept: “The paper was crumpled and he couldn’t write as he wanted, so in frustration, he just drew lines continuously. I wanted to imitate that resignation and gesture of my son.”

In 1973, through the introduction of fellow artist Lee Ufan, who saw his Myobeop works, Park held his first exhibition at the Muramatsu Gallery in Tokyo, which allowed him to officially make his name known in the overseas art world. He defined Myobeop as “the work that became a milestone in my life.”

Since the 2000s, Park introduced color Myobeop works, emphasizing rich colors and creating forms with grooves at regular intervals instead of highlighting the traces of the hand.

By attaching three layers of hanji (traditional Korean paper) soaked in water for more than two months onto the canvas and drawing lines with a thick pencil before the surface dried, Park created mountain and valley forms of hanji pushed left and right, as if a farmer plowing a rice field ridge. He repeated the process of painting with acrylic paint and drawing with pencil, and the completed works were evaluated as embodying the time he accumulated, the natural landscapes he experienced, and his philosophy and contemplation.

During his lifetime, Park said, “Painting is a tool for self-cultivation,” and he also emphasized, “21st-century art must become art of healing.”

His works, exhibited in numerous solo exhibitions at home and abroad, are held in major museums worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Guggenheim Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the M+ Museum in Hong Kong.

From 1962 to 1997, he nurtured younger generations as a professor at his alma mater Hongik University. He also served as dean of the Hongik University College of Fine Arts (1986?1990) and chairman of the Korea Fine Arts Association (1977?1980).

He was awarded the Order of Civil Merit, the Peony Medal (1984), the Order of Cultural Merit, Ok-gwan (1994), Eun-gwan (2011), and Geum-gwan (2021). He also received the 64th Republic of Korea Academy of Arts Award.

In 2021, French luxury brand Louis Vuitton released a handbag using Park’s works, marking the first time for a Korean artist.

A museum named after him is currently under construction in Jeju Island.

He is survived by his wife, Yoon Myung-sook, and two sons and one daughter. The funeral is being held at Seoul National University Hospital Funeral Hall. Condolences are being received from the afternoon of the day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.