Korean Dansaekhwa Artists Enter a New Market Phase But Please Don’t Talk About Bubbles 

Colin Gleadell gives a brief synopsis of the rise of Korea’s Dansaekwa artists. The first phase of interest followed two precedents, the rise of Lee Ufan’s stature in the market and museum community and the success of the Gutai artists from Japan who share an interest in abstraction (and little else.)

Gleadell also suggests the interest in these artists is entering a new phase as their historical works remain highly valued, the artists are increasingly pushing to have their recent work featured in shows at Western galleries:

At Mayfair’s Levy Gorvy Gallery, the pristine space is currently decked with seven similarly sized white paintings by Chung Sang-Hwa that are textured with geometric cracks and folds that look at first sight like craquelure on an old painting. But they are all recent works. Chung’s early works can sell for up to $1 million, but these are pitched at around $250,000.

At the Almine Rech Gallery nearby, prices for new work on smoke-charred canvases by Ha Chong-Hyun, whose prices reached $232,000 at auction in 2015 in Seoul, start at $180,000, compared to $1 million for a rare early work from the 1970s.

The Dansaekhwa bubble? 1970s Korean art phenomenon sees meteoric rise (Telegraph)