Art world welcomes eased rule on exports of post-1946 Korean art

A revision to the Cultural Heritage Preservation and Utilization Act's enforcement decree that had banned works of art at least 50 years old from being taken out of the country went into effect Tuesday, allowing for Korean art created after 1946 to be moved out of the country more easily.

The art circle welcomed the long-awaited change, which, they said, would make it possible to more effectively promote Korean contemporary art.

The previous enforcement decree required any transportable artifact of cultural heritage that is 50 years old or older to be appraised to determine whether it could leave the country “based on its scarcity, artistic, historical and academic value.” Works by living artists were exempt from the requirement.

The revised enforcement decree stipulates that works created in 1946 or later are exempt from the requirement, allowing them to be taken out of the country without restrictions.

“This should have been done much earlier. The old law was such a regressive regulation in the global era, especially as Korean contemporary art is active in the international art scene,” said Woo Chan-kyu, CEO of Hakgojae Gallery in Seoul.

The gallery had to scrap its plans to present Korean avant-garde artist Quac In-sik’s work “62-602” at Frieze London last year, as the work had been created in 1962. The artist died in 1988.

“When it comes to modern works created before 1946, we hope the appraisal process proceeds with greater speed – at least for those that will be traveling just for an exhibition abroad,” Woo added.

Over the years, there have been calls to revise the enforcement decree, as galleries and museums faced difficulties in exhibiting or selling contemporary works of art.

"I am pleased that we can finally introduce works that show the beginning of contemporary Korean art. It (the revision to the enforcement decree) will allow us to present a wider spectrum of contemporary Korean works, encompassing those from the past, present and the future," said Do Hyung-teh, owner and CEO of Gallery Hyundai.

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea welcomed the revised enforcement decree. The state museum recently opened the exhibition, “The Modern and Contemporary Korean Calligraphy,” in Taiwan jointly with the Taoyuan Museum of Fine Arts.

“At a time when overseas exhibitions of Korean art are being held one after another, the change to the enforcement decree will help promote Korean art globally, and we believe we will have more chances to present works by Korean artists,” Park Mi-hwa, the director of the MMCA's collection and archive department, told The Korea Herald.