Editor’s Note
This article previews Seoul Auction’s upcoming contemporary art sale, featuring 89 lots and a special exhibition. It highlights the work of first-generation Western-style painter Do Sang-bong, whose life and artistic philosophy are explored.
The first-generation Western-style painter Do Sang-bong (1902–1977) held onto the saying “paintings come from life” as a lifelong theme, painting still lifes and landscapes. Born in Hongwon, South Hamgyong Province, he graduated from Boseong High School and studied painting under Korea’s first Western-style painter, Ko Hui-dong. He then studied abroad in Japan, graduating from Tokyo School of Fine Arts, and participated in the founding of the Korean Art Exhibition (Gukjeon), playing a central role in the early Korean art scene.
His still lifes, capturing chrysanthemums, lilacs, roses, baby’s breath, tulips, and forsythia with neat colors, have been praised for breathing “mental imagery” into their subjects. He particularly enjoyed painting lilacs, where the flower clusters are not large but small and form bundles, earning him the nickname “the lilac painter.”
Do Sang-bong’s still life “Lilac,” Lee Ufan’s abstract painting, Hwang Yeom-su’s rose painting, and works by Japanese artists Yoshitomo Nara and Ayako Rokkaku are heating up the May auction market.
Seoul Auction will put a total of 89 works by domestic and international artists up for auction at its “Contemporary Art Sale” event held at the Gangnam Center on the 27th. The total low estimate is approximately 6.2 billion won. The sale includes a diverse range of genres, from paintings that evoke the feeling of May, “the queen of seasons,” to paintings and sculptures by famous domestic and international artists, and even luxury items.
Seoul Auction has placed masterpieces imbued with spring colors at the forefront. The highlight of the auction is undoubtedly Do Sang-bong’s masterpiece “Lilac.” It is a work where lilac flowers filling a white porcelain jar shine brightly within a dark space. The lavishly blooming lilacs in small clusters harmonize with the sturdy yet elegant white porcelain jar, evoking an elegant and refined aesthetic. The auction estimate is 220–350 million won.
Hwang Yeom-su’s size 8 work (30–50 million won), who has worked with roses, a symbol of May, for 40 years, is also on the bidding block. It is notable for the intense contrast formed by red, white, pink, and other vibrant roses against a deep blue background. Ayako Rokkaku’s 2011 work “Untitled,” filled with spring imagery, also seeks a new owner with an estimate of 300–500 million won. Completed using her unique method of applying paint directly with her fingers instead of a brush, the canvas is filled with vibrant textures and brilliant colors. It draws even more attention as it is the artist’s first work on a large circular canvas.
Seoul Auction is also auctioning a diverse range of works by modern and contemporary art masters. “Dialogue” by Lee Ufan, a master of Korean abstract art, is a large 300-size work featuring only one large dot on a wide canvas. The blue dot gradually fades from right to left, creating a sense of both tension and harmony within the interplay with the surrounding blank space. With an estimate of 1.9–2.5 billion won, it challenges for the highest price at the day’s auction.
Yoshitomo Nara’s work “Untitled-Bomb,” depicting a mischievous young girl, is also offered with an estimate of 220–400 million won. This unique painting shows a girl in a yellow hat, only her head sticking out from underground, gazing somewhere with big eyes as flower-shaped objects reminiscent of bombs pour from the sky. The girl in the painting, rendered with bold omission and distortion, appears cute at first glance but leaves a strong impression with an eerie look. From her gaze, one can read subtle emotions hidden within modern people: fear, loneliness, rebelliousness, and cruelty.
Three-dimensional works utilizing various materials and colors are also not-to-be-missed sights. American sculptor Robert Indiana’s “The American LOVE -White Blue Red” is a sculpture using white, blue, and red, reminiscent of the colors of the American flag. The auction estimate is 280–400 million won.
Yayoi Kusama’s “Pumpkin” (estimate 280–400 million won) creates a strong visual effect with the contrast of white and red, while Chinese painter Zhang Xiaogang’s “Golden Memories” (80–150 million won), made with 24K pure gold, is characterized by its metaphorical depiction of nostalgia and longing for a vanished past.
In the luxury section, Tiffany & Co.’s representative high jewelry line “Amethyst ‘Bird on a Rock’ Brooch” (25–65 million won) is offered. It depicts a bird perched on an approximately 60-carat amethyst, crafted with pink sapphire diamonds and gold. First introduced in the 1960s by Tiffany’s representative designer Jean Schlumberger, it has since been reinterpreted and released in various motifs.
The clutch bag “Koro Koro Clutch,” offered to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the collaboration between Louis Vuitton and Takashi Murakami, and the “Mini Lady Dior Kaleidoscope Bag,” which adds a kaleidoscope pattern inspired by modern dance to the traditional Dior bag design, are also major lots in the luxury section.
The lots can be viewed for free by anyone at the Seoul Auction Gangnam Center until the auction day, the 27th.
Meanwhile, Seoul Auction has prepared a special exhibition titled “Collecting is Building a World” at the Gangnam Center during the offline auction period. A total of 89 works, including paintings and ceramics, submitted by collectors who have been connected with Seoul Auction, are organized into five themes. It sheds light on the act of art collecting as a creative act that reveals an individual’s identity and worldview, beyond mere possession.
It showcases Kim Whan-ki’s dot paintings from his New York period and early work “Bird and Moon,” as well as works by Yoon Hyung-geun, Son Sang-gi, Yayoi Kusama, contemporary ceramic artist Kwon Dae-seop, and pop artist Philip Colbert.