Cheongju: The lifelong works of Bang Hai-ja (1937-2022), whose light-inspired creations embellish the Chartres Cathedral in France, will be highlighted in an upcoming retrospective at the Cheongju branch of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA).
According to Yonhap News Agency, the large-scale exhibition, titled "Bang Hai-ja: Sowing Light Across Heaven and Earth," will bring together 67 pieces of her artworks spanning from her early to late years, along with over 200 archival materials. This collection offers a comprehensive overview of her artistic philosophy and oeuvre.
The exhibition of the late artist, who spent most of her life living and working in France, marks the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and France. Notably, more than half of the works on display are being shown in her home country for the first time, including pieces from the Centre Pompidou and other museums in France.
Born in 1937 in Seoul, Bang showed a natural gift for art from an early age. Although she aspired to study literature to become a poet, her high school teacher encouraged her to pursue art. "Painting is done not by the hand but by the heart. And you already have it in you," she recalled her teacher's words during an interview with Yonhap News Agency in April 2018.
After graduating from Seoul National University, she moved to Paris in 1961 to pursue her art career, supported by her art-loving parents. In Paris, she met Pierre Courthion, a respected art historian and critic who became her biggest supporter until his death in 1988.
During the interview, Bang shared the moment light first called to her while watching sunlight glitter off a small stream near her grandparents' house. Light, she said, chose her as its subject.
One of her notable achievements was being commissioned to create windows for the historic cathedral, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. She decorated the four contemporary windows, each themed around light, life, love, and peace, explaining, "This creates a virtuous cycle in which light is life, life is love, and love in turn is peace."
MMCA Director Kim Sung-hee noted that the late artist did not receive the recognition she deserved during her lifetime, stating that the exhibition "offers an important opportunity to fully reexamine" her artistic world. "By presenting both works from the MMCA collection and works held in France which have never before been introduced in Korea, we hope to provide an occasion for visitors to explore this artist's practice more broadly," she said in a statement.
"Bang Hai-ja: Sowing Light Across Heaven and Earth" opens on Friday and runs through Sept. 27 at the MMCA's Cheongju branch.