Catalog (335)

Very Rare Joseon Period Lacquered Bamboo Fan with the Korean Taegeuk National Symbol.The last photo here shows a similar fan in a recent Korean auction with an estimate of $3,000 to $5,000. You can see similar examples on page 475 of the catalogue of the Korean art collection of the Grassi Museum in Leipzig, Germany. The Taegeuk symbol has been used in Korea for thousands of years and is the center of the Korean flag. The three colors here, yellow, red, and a very light blue, represent balance in the universe, and Humanity, Earth, and Heaven, respectively. These fans very rarely come up for sale and are highly desired by collectors and museums. We offer this opportunity for one of our clients to make this rare acquisition of a sublime and contemplative 19th Century Korean meditative object at a generous price. 13 inches (33 cm) high x 9 inches (23 cm) wide.

Incised and Inlaid Stoneware Vessel by Cho Chung Hyun (born 1940), a retired professor and Dean of Fine Arts at Ehwa Womans University. This piece was recently featured in an exhibition at the Korea Society. Cho Chung Hyun's work is inspired by Korea’s onggi pots. This piece tells a 3,000 year-long story of Korean ceramics, from red-bodied Neolithic pottery, the triangle patterns of Silla ware, the inlaid work of Goryeo ceramics, the form of onggi pots from the Joseon Dynasty, right up to today with a modern sensibility and contemporary rendering. Cho Chung Hyun’s works are in the permanent collections of the British Museum, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena, the National Museum of Scotland, and the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Seoul, among other museums. She has curated numerous exhibitions of contemporary ceramics, including the first exhibition of Korean contemporary ceramics to travel to major museums around the world, From the Fire: A Survey of Contemporary Korean Ceramics. Cho Chung Hyun is a leading figure in the world of contemporary ceramics, as an artist, educator, curator, and author. 15h x 9w inches, 38 x 23 cm.

West Nepalese Mask with Yak Hair, 13 inches, 33 cm.

White Celadon Jar Number Two by Kim Young Mi. This beautiful and unusual shade of celadon is achieved by the artist's skillful manipulation of the glaze. 7.5h x 7w inches, 19h x 18w cm.

Woo Jong Taek (born 1973) paints with ink and watercolor on both sides of the paper, combining the ancient techniques of Goryeo Dynasty Buddhist painting with modern techniques to create compositions that are deeply contemplative meditations on our modern times, casting the 21st Century everyman as Bodhisattva, offering us a thoughtful way to see our world. Woo is in touch with Korea's ancient history while he is also informed by the modern minjung 'people's movement' in art. His paintings are a rare and paradoxical combination of bold brushwork and sensitive rendering, and characters that seem timid, but are confident in their compassion. They reward repeated viewing with a variety of emotions, ‘hope’ being chief among them. 60 x 60 inches, 150 x 150 cm.

Woo Jong Taek (born 1973) paints with ink and watercolors on both sides of the paper, combining the ancient techniques of Goryeo Dynasty Buddhist painting with modern techniques to create compositions that are deeply contemplative meditations on our modern times, casting the 21st Century everyman as Bodhisattva, offering us a thoughtful way to see our world. Woo is in touch with Korea's ancient history while he is also informed by the modern minjung 'people's movement' in art. His paintings are a rare and paradoxical combination of bold brushwork and sensitive rendering, and characters that seem timid, but are confident in their compassion. They reward repeated viewing with a variety of emotions, ‘hope’ being chief among them. Frame: 48.5 x 23.5 inches, 123.5 x 59.5 cm; Painting: 41 x 15 inches, 104 x 38 cm.

Woo Jong Taek (born 1973) paints with ink and watercolor on both sides of the paper, combining the ancient techniques of Goryeo Dynasty Buddhist painting with modern techniques to create compositions that are deeply contemplative meditations on our modern times, casting the 21st Century everyman as Bodhisattva, offering us a thoughtful way to see our world. Woo is in touch with Korea's ancient history while he is also informed by the modern minjung 'people's movement' in art. His paintings are a rare and paradoxical combination of bold brushwork and sensitive rendering, and characters that seem timid, but are confident in their compassion. They reward repeated viewing with a variety of emotions, ‘hope’ being chief among them. 51 x 27 inches, 130 x 69 cm.

Woo Jong Taek (born 1973) paints with ink and watercolor on both sides of the paper, combining the ancient techniques of Goryeo Dynasty Buddhist painting with modern techniques to create compositions that are deeply contemplative meditations on our modern times, casting the 21st Century everyman as Bodhisattva, offering us a thoughtful way to see our world. Woo is in touch with Korea's ancient history while he is also informed by the modern minjung 'people's movement' in art. His paintings are a rare and paradoxical combination of bold brushwork and sensitive rendering, and characters that seem timid, but are confident in their compassion. They reward repeated viewing with a variety of emotions, ‘hope’ being chief among them. 67 x 54 inches, 170 x 136 cm.

Yellow Dragon painted in 1998 by Renowned Korean Artist Don Ahn aka Ahn Dong Kuk (1937-2013). We encourage you to research Don Ahn's sales record and market prices on sites such as Artsy, so you can appreciate what a great opportunity this is to purchase an original work of art by the master at a price well below the actual value. Don Ahn was a pioneer of Korean art in America. In the 1950s he was the first to move permanently to the US and receive recognition here, beginning with the 1952 exhibition of his work at the Kilbride Bradley Gallery in Minneapolis, the very first exhibition of Korean contemporary art in America. His work is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and other major museums. There was recently an exhibition of Don Ahn's work at the Walter Wickiser Gallery in New York's Chelsea art district. Acrylic on canvas. Unframed Dimensions 21 x 4.5 inches, 53.25 x 11.5 cm. See also preeminent art critic Holland Cotter's review of Don Ahn's work in the April 4, 1997 New York Times article, Of Asians Among the Abstractionists, where he describes Don's paintings as "Exuberant" and "Inspired by Zen brushwork".

Yoon Kwang Cho had an acclaimed solo exhibition that started at the Philadelphia Museum and traveled to other major museums in America. He is widely recognized as the world's foremost practitioner of Korean Buncheong Art. This is an exemplary piece by one of Korea's most famous, most exhibited, and most collected ceramic artists. His work is in the permanent collections of many major museums around the world. He was selected by Korea's National Museum of Contemporary Art as Artist of The Year in 2004. 8.5 inches (21.5cm)h x 4.5 inches (11cm)w x 3.5 inches (9cm)d.

Framed Zen Crane Under the Moon Painting by the Famous Korean Jeju Island Monk, Ko Chang Nyul aka Jung Kwang Sunim aka the Mad Monk (1935-2002). The third photo here is from a prominent dealer's "sale" going on right now on Jung Kwang paintings, where you will see the prices are several times higher than mine. This other gallery has been in business for over forty years and has sold to many of the major museums. A google search of Jung Kwang Mad Monk will reveal the fascinating life of this character, and you'll find this movie about him (http://www.piff.org/eng/html/archive/arc_search_view.asp?idx=1314&target=search&c_idx=18&m_entry_year=2002) and this exhibition at the Seoul Art Center (http://nwww.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20110807000244) and this book (http://www.amazon.com/The-Mad-Monk-Paintings-Lancaster-Miller/dp/0895810174) and more. He and his work have been featured on CNN, PBS, NHK, and other major broadcasters. He was a famous monk, artist, poet, and actor. His unique paintings are instantly recognizable by their zen approach to form and color. Please look closely at this painting to get a sense of the spiritual quality of the artist's brushwork. The crane is an ancient symbol of longevity. It has further symbolic meaning in Buddhism. The bodhisattvas change themselves into cranes so that they can fly all over the world visiting and helping people. The moon is also an ancient symbol of longevity in Korea. Ink and color on paper. The buyer of this fine painting will receive a PDF file compilation of Jung Kwang Sunim's poems, and a bio. You'll laugh and cry when you read "Zen Poems 1". The recent exhibition of Jung Kwang Sunim's work at the Zen Buddhist Temple in New York City was the most highly-attended exhibition ever presented by the Korean Art Society. At that exhibition, Jung Kwang Sunim's works of similar size and quality sold for multiples of the prices we are asking here. The fourth photo here shows a wall label from that exhibition with a price of $2500 for a painting of similar style and slightly smaller size by Jung Kwang Sunim. Frame: 24 x 20 inches (61 x 51 cm), Painting: 18 x 13.5 inches (46 x 34 cm).