MMCA 이건희컬렉션전: 이중섭

MMCA LEE Kun-hee Collection: LEE Jung Seop

8.12 - 2023.4.23 

국립현대미술관 서울

MMCA Seoul

닭과 병아리, 1950년대 전반, 종이에 유채, 30.5×51cm

Chicken and Chicks, 1950s, Oil on paper, 30.5×51cm

‘MMCA 이건희컬렉션전: 이중섭’은 2021년 4월 고(故) 이건희 회장이 국립현대미술관에 기증한 1,488점 중 이중섭의 작품 80여 점과 국립현대미술관이 기존 소장하고 있던 이중섭 작품 중 10점으로 구성, 총 90여 점의 이중섭 작품만을 선보인다. 본 전시는 국립현대미술관의 소장품으로 이중섭을 다시 보는 시도로서 오랜 기간 미술관이 축적해온 상당수의 미술품 수집과 조사·연구 성과를 전시로 풀어낸 것이다. 이중섭(1916-56)은 일제강점기와 해방 전후시대 한국 화단을 대표하는 작가로 이번 전시는 이중섭의 작품세계를 1940년대와 1950년대로 나누어 소개한다. 1940년대는 이중섭이 일본 유학 시기부터 원산에 머무를 당시 작업한 연필화와 엽서화를, 1950년대는 제주도, 통영, 서울, 대구에서 그린 전성기의 작품 및 은지화, 편지화 등을 선보인다. 전시는 재료와 연대를 조합해 예술가 이중섭과 인간 이중섭을 고루 반영하고, 그의 면면을 보여줄 예정이다.

Among the 1,488 works donated by the former chairman to the MMCA in April 2021, ‘MMCA LEE Kun-hee Collection: LEE Jung Seop’ features around 80 works by LEE Jungseop(1916-56), a leading figure in Korea’s colonial/post-liberation-period art scene, along with 10 other works in the museum collection, compiling a total of 90 works produced by the artist alone. To reassess the artist’s career through the works that the museum now owns, this exhibition details the fruits of the museum’s long journey of work collection, research, and study. This exhibition divides LEE’s oeuvre into two sections by decades—the 1940s and 1950s. The first section presents pencil drawings and postcard paintings produced during LEE Jungseop’s study in Japan and after his return to Korea, specifically Wonsan. The second section splays out works produced in Tongyeong, Seoul, and Daegu during his prime years, including tinfoil paintings and letter paintings. Exploring the various media LEE Jungseop employed in connection to the chronology of his life, the exhibition illuminates both his artistic career and personal life to provide a comprehensive view of his character and work.