Landscape (Yi Eungro, 1950)

This painting is an early example that captures Ungno’s major step into abstract art. Although it is still suggestive of specific forms such as tree branches and leaves, the painting shows the artist’s inclination to a rather subjective interpretation of natural forms, which signalled the succeeding phase of his career in which he represented the feelings aroused by an object. In this work, Ungno abbreviated forms with his dynamic brushstrokes while infusing it with the expressive as well as illusionistic quality of an ink painting; all that characterized his semi-abstract canvas, which was the mid-point to abstract painting. This piece abstracted the rhythmic interaction between entwined branches as cursive scripts, showing a great similarity to his late abstract paintings; however, the seal on the lower left puts this work still within the category of East Asian painting.