Yun Hyong-keun

Yun Hyong-keun was a pivotal figure in Korean Dansaekhwa (monochrome painting), renowned for his deeply meditative works created with umber and ultramarine oil paint thinned to near-translucency on raw linen or cotton. His paintings, often large-scale and spare, explore themes of emptiness, impermanence, and spiritual quietude rooted in Buddhist philosophy and his harrowing experiences surviving the Korean War. Major retrospectives of his work have been held at institutions including the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid and the Blum & Poe gallery network, cementing his status as one of the most significant postwar Korean painters internationally.