World-Class Artists

Not a few Korean artists have won international recognition and fame for their creative or artistic talents.

Paik Nam June has led the world in pioneering the new medium of video art. Since making his first work out of television sets in 1963, he has held numerous exhibitions in New York, Switzerland, and Germany as well as Korea, and has won critical acclaim for his creation of a new artistic genre. In 1977 he presented his satellite television show Good Morning Mr. Orwell, and in 1993 he won the Golden Lion Prize in the Venice Biennale.

In the field of music, composer Yun Isang has created numerous master-pieces including his opera Sim Cheong, composed in celebration of the 1972 Munich Olympics; The Butterfly's Dream, composed in prison; and Gwangju Forever, composed on the theme of the Gwangju Democratization Movement of 1980. Violinist Chung Kyung-Wha invariably captivates her audiences with the explosive power and intensity of her performances, and has been judged a rare talent such as is heard only once in a century. The finest orchestras of the world vie with each other to attract this outstanding Korean musician as a concerto soloist. Chung Myung-Whun ranks among the top maestros in the world. Though he started out as a pianist, he became the principal conductor of the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra and went on to assume the role of resident conductor for the Paris Bastille Opera. He has won the prestigious title of maestro even in the home of Western classical music, Europe. And violin prodigy Jang Young-Ju won the hearts of audiences all over the world when she appeared as a soloist with top orchestras after being singled out by conductor Zubin Mehta at the age of 9.

Through the dazzling successes of these brilliant artists at home and abroad, the little East Asian land of Korea has begun to be recognized internationally as a land of art and culture.