Go Hui-dong

Go Hui-dong was born in 1886 in Seoul, Korea, into a high-ranking aristocratic family. His father, Go Yeong-cheol, was a Chinese interpreter who learned English while living in China and his three uncles were all interpreters. Go Hui-dong studied French in Seoul from 1899 to 1903 and briefly took a post with the Korean government. Leaving the post in 1905, he studied Korean painting for several years and then traveled to Japan, where he studied Western-style painting under Kuroda Seiki from 1909 to 1915. He returned to Korea in 1915 and sought to fuse traditional and Korean styles. He painted landscapes, portraits, still lifes, and genre scenes, using oil, watercolor, and pastel. He also experimented with abstract and expressionist techniques. He was influenced by Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, and Fauvism, as well as by Korean folk art and calligraphy. He was one of the founders of the Korean Fine Arts Association in 1922 and participated in many exhibitions. He also taught at various schools and institutions, including the Joseon Art School, the Gyeongseong Art School, and the Seoul National University. He was active in the Korean independence movement and was arrested by the Japanese colonial authorities in 1943. He was released in 1945 after the liberation of Korea. He became a member of the South Korean government of Syngman Rhee and served as the director of the National Museum of Korea from 1948 to 1950. He continued to paint until his death in 1965. He was buried at the Seoul National Cemetery. He is widely regarded as the first Korean painter to adopt Western styles and one of the pioneers of modern Korean art. He left behind many paintings that fuse traditional and modern elements, reflecting his unique vision and style. He also wrote essays and poems under the pen name Chun-gok. He was honored with various awards and recognitions, including the Order of Cultural Merit in 1962.