한국 현대조각 연구사

김이순(金伊順) 한국미술연구소 2020 美術史論壇 Vol.- No.50

This paper studies history of the research on Korean sculpture after the liberation. In the same manner of analyzing modern art as before and contemporary art as after the liberation in Korean modern and contemporary art history, this paper studies Korean sculpture after the liberation. In fact, a significant development in sculptural works has occurred then. In 1925, when Kim Bok-jin graduated from Tokyo Fine Arts School in sculpture and was actively working as a sculptor, his sculpture began to develop completely different from the traditional one. Instead of functional ones such as Buddhist or tomb sculptures, sculpture as fine art began to emerge as a new genre in Korean art history. In Korean modern days, not only were there just a few sculptors, their works were mostly based on methods such as carving or modeling realistic figures. Therefore, studies on Korean modern sculpture do not exist abundantly. After the liberation, abstract sculpture as well as newly approached sculpture with various methods and materials began to rise. However, a spectrum of contemporary sculpture became very broad that it was difficult to even categorize sculpture as one genre. After three-dimension was developed, its term has been used along with the term sculpture. Also, anti-sculpture became apparent as dimensions being involved and materials becoming diverse, and yet it came to have inseparable relationship with installation art. Although, a boundary between genres became obscure, this paper analyzes various studies on sculpture within art genre in Korean contemporary art history. Studies of Korean contemporary sculpture can be classified into before and after the 1990’s while studies before the 1990’s were largely based upon its overview and the secondary element of studies in painting. In 1990’s, scholars of sculpture began to emerge, and studies on characteristics of Korean contemporary sculpture started to expand deeply. Furthermore, objectives and perspectives on research came to accumulate little by little in various ways. This paper seeks the aspects of this phenomenon in detail, and the discussion is organized as follows: first, it overviews the development of Korean contemporary sculpture, and analyzes the studies that achieved concept and terminologies of sculpture. Then it examines into two subject matters, sculpture as fine art and sculpture as public art. The subject of discussion is based on research papers, academic journals, scholarly articles from anthology, and writings from the exhibition catalogue from the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art covering Korean sculpture after the liberation. The ultimate purpose of this study is to exceed discussions which have been primarily in painting, and to examine Korean contemporary art history in equitable perspectives.

조각의 근대성과 현대성: 한국근현대조각사 서술의 쟁점들

홍지석 한국근현대미술사학회(구 한국근대미술사학회) 2023 한국근현대미술사학 Vol.46 No.-

한국 근대조각의 근대성을 관찰한 다수의 미술사가와 미술비평가들은 서구조각의 수용을 통한 전통조각과의 단절을 강조했다. 논자들의 입장은 그 수용을 수동적인 것으로 보느냐 아니면 능동적인 것으로 보느냐에 따라 갈라졌다. 전자는 ‘모방과 이식’을 후자는 현실의 리얼리티를 반영한 사실주의를 내세웠다. 좀 더 최근에는 근대조각을 가능케 했던 사회적 조건이나 물적 토대를 강조하는 논의들이 등장했다. 한편 한국 현대조각의 현대성에 관한 논의는 추상조각에 집중됐다. 많은 논자들이 해방 이후 추상조각의 도입과 전개에 각별한 의미를 부여하면서 추상조각을 근대조각과 구별되는 현대조각으로 내세웠다. 이렇듯 추상조각을 중심에 놓는 한국 현대조각사 서술은 추상조각의 역사-사회적 정당성을 주장하기 위해 추상조각의 한국적 변용 내지 재해석을 강조했다. 하지만 현대조각으로서 구상조각의 위상에 주목한 논자들도 있었다. 이들은 구상조각의 크고 작은 변화들에 주목하여 추상조각의 역사와 나란히 구상조각의 역사를 서술했다. 1960년대 이후 현대조각-추상조각의 전개를 다룬 논의들은 추상조각의 역사적 변화에 집중하면서 시대구분을 수행하는 통시적 관찰보다는 그 유형화 양상에 집중하는 공시적 접근에 주력하는 경향을 보였다. 이러한 경향은 조각 자체가 그와 유사하지만 동일하다고는 말할 수 없는 비조각, 오브제미술, 입체, 설치미술 등 새로운 미술형태들, 개념들의 등장에 따라 위기 상태에 처하게 된 1970년대~1980년대 이후의 조각사 서술에 보다 뚜렷하게 나타난다. 특히 1990년대 이후 조각사 서술은 조각 개념의 확장, 다원화, 해체로 지칭된 급격한 변화에 직면하여 ‘조각’이라는 개념을 유지하면서 확장, 다원화, 해체적 양상을 조각사 서술에 반영하는 문제에 골몰해 왔다. Many art historians and art critics who have observed the modernity of Korean modern sculpture have emphasized the disconnection from traditional sculpture through acceptance of Western sculpture. The position of art historians was divided depending on whether they viewed the acceptance as passive or active. The former advocated ‘imitation and transplantation’, and the latter advocated realism that reflected social reality. More recently, discussions have emerged that emphasize the social conditions and material foundations that made modern sculpture possible. Meanwhile, the discussion on the contemporaneity of contemporary Korean sculpture has focused on abstract sculpture. Many art historians put special meaning on the introduction and development of abstract sculptures after liberation period and put abstract sculptures as contemporary sculptures that are distinct from modern sculptures. As such, the description of contemporary Korean sculpture history, which puts abstract sculptures at the center, emphasized the Korean transformation or reinterpretation of abstract sculptures to claim the historical and social justification of abstract sculptures. However, there were also art historians who paid attention to the status of figurative sculptures as contemporary sculptures. They described the history of figurative sculptures in parallel with the history of abstract sculptures, paying attention to the large and small changes in figurative sculptures. Since the 1960’s, discussions on the development of contemporary sculpture have tended to focus on the typification rather than the approach that focuses on the historical changes of sculpture. This trend is more evident in the description of sculpture history since 1970’s~1980’s, when the sculpture itself was in a state of crisis due to the emergence of new art forms and concepts, such as non-sculpture, object art, three-dimensional art, and installation art, which are similar but cannot be said to be the same. Since the 1990’s, the description of sculpture history has been focused on reflecting the expansion, diversification, and dismantling aspects of sculpture while maintaining the concept of sculpture.

이승택의 (비)조각 연구: 『세계여체조각』을 중심으로

임수영(Sooyoung Leam) 현대미술사학회 2021 현대미술사연구 Vol.- No.49

조각의 전통적 물질성과 개념을 전복한 ‘비(非)조각’으로 대표되는 작가 이승택(李升澤, 1932~)의 작품세계에 대한 역사화와 담론화는 그 어느 때보다 현재 활발하게 형성되고 있다. 1950년대 후반부터 매체와 장르를 넘나들며 지금까지 왕성한 작업을 이어 온 작가에 대한 논의는 체제에 대한 부정과 실험성을 중심으로 전개되며, 특히 한국의 전위예술과 행위예술의 범주 안에서 중요하게 다루어져 왔다. 본 논고는 이러한 담론 속에서 지속적으로 배제되거나 간과되어 왔던 이승택의 1976년도 단행본 『세계여체조각(Woman Sculpture of the World)』에 주목한다. 그 방법으로 출판 배경과 제작 의도, 도판 중심의 구성을 분석하고, 책의 주제와 편집과정이 어떻게 ‘비조각’을 향했던 이승택의 초기 작업과 연결되어 있는지 탐색한다. 마지막으로 ‘세계’를 대상으로 조각의 역사를 스스로 구축함으로써, 자신의 작업을 맥락화한 다양한 시도를 추적한다. 이를 통해 본 논고는『세계여체조각』을 ‘비조각’이라는 표현을 구체화하기에 앞서 ‘조각이 될 수 없는 것’에 지속해서 괄호 치기를 시도한 이승택의 ‘(비)조각적’ 탐구의 일환으로 바라본다. This paper offers a close reading and a ‘deep’ contextualization of Woman Sculpture of the World (sic), a photographic compendium authored by Lee Seung-taek and published by Yeolhwadang in 1976. Best known for his subversive experimentation with traditional materiality and the concept of sculpture, known as ‘non-sculpture’, critical studies on Lee’s artistic practice continue to grow, yet remain fragmented: his non-sculptures have variously appeared in the contexts of Korean avant-garde art, conceptual art, and postmodernism, among others. Futhermore, they have repeatedly undermined the significance and relevance of Woman Sculpture of the World , a magnum opus which contains carefully selected, edited and arranged black-and-white photographic plates of sculptures from different historic periods and cultures. Revisiting this hitherto overlooked publication, this paper examines its objectives, editorial composition, and the ways in which Lee sought to situate his own practice by ‘re-worlding’ the history of sculpture. This paper thus argues that the publication takes part in Lee’s experimentation with sculpture, which arises from bracketing the conventional notion of the genre with that which it is not.

설치미술의 국제화 흐름 속 1980-1990년대 한국현대조각의 변화

안소연 한국근현대미술사학회(구 한국근대미술사학회) 2018 한국근현대미술사학 Vol.36 No.-

In this study, based on the context of history of Korean contemporary sculpture, structures of contemporary visual culture will be analysed. It is 88 Olympics when the rapid globalization was accelerated, and international art trends were introduced and influenced Korean artists. In the 1950s and '60s, beginning with discussions on modernity through the expansion of medium and abstraction which was required in the fields of Korean sculpture, various styles of contemporary Korean sculpture began to be developed. This led to avant garde practice through experimental art in the 1960s and '70s, and various discussions on modernity became possible. In the meantime, due to the changes in the social structure around the 88 Olympics, contemporary perspective spread rapidly. This eventually changed the terrain of the sculptural scene through the expansion of the installation art. Therefore, in this study, I would like to investigate how the contemporary discussions focused on the installation art in the '90s after the debate on modernity in Korean contemporary sculpture is developed through individual artworks and exhibitions.

매체의 기억과 한국 현대미술: 이승택의 작품 세계를 중심으로

한정민 한국미학예술학회 2024 美學·藝術學硏究 Vol.71 No.-

This paper aims to explore the possibility for a new interpretation of contemporary Korean art based on critical reflection on mediums, which is a fundamental element that make up works of art. The main task of this study is to find clues to trace the historical trend of contemporary Korean art and its conditions by examining the multilayered perspectives that run through the works of Seung-taek Lee, which has been discussed and interpreted in terms of issues such as “non-sculpture,” “experimental art,” and “avant-garde.” Seung-taek Lee has pursued artistic practice by rejecting existing frameworks and stereotypes in art and propounding the concept of “non-sculpture” as an alternative to the conventional idea of art. On the other hand, the sensitivity to matter, materials, techniques, and skills observed in Lee’s journey from sculptor and to non-sculptor can be a key issue that runs throughout his entire work. His artistic struggle to constantly delve into the matter, skills, and visual elements that make up each art genre and sociocultural customs or structures brings back memories of mediums that are sometimes forgotten in the rapidly changing artistic environment of today. In this respect, mediums as a catalyst for mnemonic techniques can serve as a substantial stepping stone for exploring the development and structure of Seung-taek Lee’s art, and can further provide methodological possibilities for a new reading of contemporary Korean art.

역설과 저항의 미학 - 이승택의 ‘비조각’ -

김이순 ( Kim Yisoon ) 한국영상미디어협회 예술과미디어학회 2020 예술과 미디어 Vol.19 No.2

이 글은 조각가 이승택의 ‘비조각’을 재료, 기법, 개념의 측면에서 고찰한 것이다. 일찍이 기성의 것에 대한 저항의식을 갖고 있던 이승택은 조각개념에 거스르는 작업을 했고 이를 ‘비조각’으로 통칭했다. 최근 미술계에서는 이승택에 주목하여 그의 평면작업이나 퍼포먼스조차도 ‘비조각’으로 설명하고 있다. 그러나 작가 스스로 ‘비조각’을 ‘조각이 아닌 조각’이라고 설명했기 때문에 그의 ‘비조각’을 ‘조각’ 장르의 차원에서 논의할 필요가 있다. 본고에서는 이승택의 ‘비조각’ 작품을 통해 그가 어떻게 ‘조각’ 개념을 해체하면서 전위성을 모색했는지를 살펴본다. 이승택은 오지, 유리, 비닐, 바람, 불과 같은 뜻밖의 재료로 ‘비조각’을 구현했다. 그중에서도 가장 획기적인 표현재료는 바람과 불 같이 비가시적이거나 유동적인 물질인데, 자신의 작품에 기름을 붓고 불을 질러 태워 없애는 <분신행위>에서는 피어오르는 불꽃과 연기, 그리고 열기, 소리, 냄새까지 작품에 포함시켰다. 기법적으로는 조각작품을 살붙이기나 깎기가 아닌 ‘묶기’의 방법으로 제작했으며, 나아가 미술작품은 미술관에서 영원히 보존되어야 한다는 개념을 거부했다. 1958년 대학졸업전에 출품한 <역사와 시간>에서는 표면에 가시철망을 감은 작품을 출품하였고, 그 이후 여성 인체, 도자기, 화강암 덩어리, 나뭇가지, 각목, 파이프, 책, 캔버스, 지폐, 헌옷 등을 실제로 혹은 착시적으로 감거나 묶는 방식으로 사물의 물성에 대한 반전을 보여줌으로써 인간의 시각, 즉 눈으로 보는 것에 대한 믿음에 대한 존재론적(存在論的)인 물음을 던졌다. ‘비조각’의 양상은 이승택이 일찍부터 주력했던 영역인 사진 작업에서도 찾을 수 있다. 그는 자신의 실험적인 작품을 기록하기 위해 사진을 촬영했으며, 때로는 특정 장소나 소재를 선택하여 촬영하기도 했다. 후자의 경우, 뒤샹이 소변기를 선택하여 서명하고 전시회에 출품함으로써 기성의 소변기를 자신의 작품으로 만들었듯이, 제작 과정이 거의 없거나 약간의 개입만으로 대상을 작품으로 만들었다는 점에서 이를 ‘장소적 레디메이드’라고 할 수 있으며 개념적으로 ‘비조각’을 실현한 것이라고 볼 수 있다. 이승택은 ‘비조각’이라는, 고정된 형태가 없는 조각을 제작했고, 나아가 소리, 냄새 같은 비가시적인 요소까지 조각에 담았으며, 이런 작업을 통해 우리의 감각과 상식에 충격을 가하면서 우리의 인식을 확장했다. This paper examines Lee Seung-taek’s ‘non-sculpture’ in terms of materials, techniques, and concepts. Lee sought for new materials in all respects, and he represented ‘non-sculpture’ with unexpected materials. One of the most innovative materials was fire from Self-Burning Performance in 1989. It was a kind of performance art which burns and destroys Lee’s self-portraits along with his other own work, known as ‘the other self.’ A flame, smoke, heat, sound, and smell were the elements that formed while he poured gas over and set a fire on his own work. In the end, it is Lee’s resistance of the conventional system or notion that artwork should be preserved permanently in art museums. Lee has been producing sculptures mainly by tying rather than carving or modeling. In 1958 Lee presented his work, History and Time with barbed wires, wrapped around the surface. Then he used female body, earthenware, book, canvas, bill, old clothing and more to bind, and they all were about ontologistic question. Lee’s interest in photography led him to select place then create photographic artwork. These works can be identified as ‘site ready-made,’ because it has little or no process of production, just as Duchamp made a ready-made urinal into his own work by selecting and signing the urinal and submitting it to the exhibition. Through ‘non-sculpture’, he formed artwork without a fixed form, expressed invisible elements such as sound and smell, and expanded our perception by impacting our senses and common sense.