TEHRAN – A joint exhibition of Korean and Iranian art highlighting beautiful Korean landscapes and the revered art of Persian calligraphy opened at the residence of the South Korean ambassador in Tehran on Saturday.

The exhibition features works by Korean artists Kwak Suk-son, Chung Sung-tai, Chung So-yeon and Jin Li Ba, and Iranian calligraphers Ali Shirazi and Esrafil Shirchi. 

The artists are members of the Korean Art Association and were invited through the association to the exhibit whose theme is the beauty of Korea.

“In Korea, there are specific types of paintings with their own special styles,” Suk-son told the Tehran Times at the opening ceremony.

“Paintings are divided into two types in Korea; one is made with black ink, which is considered the traditional painting of Korea. The other type is made with a distinct kind of Korean color, which is created on special varieties of papers with particular types of powder used for paintings,” he added.

In this exhibit, the participating Korean artists have displayed both types of the paintings, he noted.

Birth, life, dream, love, festival and mountain views are among the topics of the works on display in the exhibit.

Suk-son also said that the artists have created these paintings especially for the exhibit each in his or her own studio.

He also added that they don’t know much about Persian calligraphy but calligraphy is famous in Korea and they really want to learn more about Persian calligraphy.

“I believe calligraphy is the interaction of alphabets and forms, which look like paintings, and we believe if we attend this joint exhibit we could learn more from one another,” Suk-son noted.

However, Shirchi, who also attended the opening ceremony of the exhibition, said that there is one specific character that is reflected in the art, poetry, literature and music of the Far East.
 
“They have created this character with ink in black and white, which has an impressive impact on the visitors,” he added.

“And it is not just the form but that specific character that is portrayed with only one or two colors. I think we have good relations with those from the Far East like Korea and Japan. They are our spiritual friends,” he stated.

Shirchi also noted that the exhibit could be the first step towards forming a bridge between Iranian and Korean artists.

“This exhibit may not be a powerful one, however, it has a good cultural feeling and it will probably be held in Seoul, which I think can be a good connection. Korea’s calligraphy is very specific and is somehow close to ours in forms, meaning and concept,” Shirchi added.

Korea Ambassador Ryu Jeong-hyun also told the Tehran Times that his motivation for holding the exhibit is to expand bilateral cultural collaboration.

“Culture and art is a universal language and we can better understand each other through the exchange of culture,” he said.

“We can become friendlier through these cultural activities; this is the reason I like to promote these types of cultural events,” he mentioned. 

He added that there are a variety of art fields in his country, and that this time he invited very traditional artists of Korea and artists of Persian calligraphy from Iran, which results in good harmony.

“Also we have very modern style artists who we are planning to hold an exhibit of their works next,” he noted.

Jeong-hyun also mentioned that he is planning to hold a joint exhibit of Korean and Iranian art back in his country later on.

The exhibit will be running until November 6.

Photo: Korean artists Kwak Suk-son, surrounded by guests, does a painting at the opening ceremony of a joint exhibition by Korean and Iranian artists at the South Korean ambassador residence in Tehran on November 2, 2019.

RM/MMS/YAW