Chōsen Art Exhibition
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The Chōsen Art Exhibition (Japanese: 朝鮮美術展覽會, Hepburn: Chōsen Bijutsu Tenrankai, Korean: 조선미술전람회; short names 鮮展; 朝鮮美展) was an annual art exhibition and competition in Korea, Empire of Japan that ran between 1922 and 1944.[2]
The exhibition ran during the 1910 to 1945 Japanese colonial period. It was established by the Japanese Government-General of Chōsen as part of its reform efforts in the wake of the 1919 March First Movement protests.[2][3] At the time, there was no major organization for the arts in Korea.[3] The government first considered establishing an art school, but considered that too expensive. They established this art exhibition instead.[3]
The first exhibition was attended by around 3,000 people. People stood in line before the doors opened for hours in advance. This and each exhibition thereafter was covered in detail by newspapers of the time, including the Korean-owned The Dong-A Ilbo and The Chosun Ilbo, as well as the Japanese-owned Maeil Sinbo.[3] The second and third exhibitions had around 30,000 visitors each.[3] Admission fees were collected, with adults charged 20 sen, children 10 sen, and 5 for students or group visitors.[3] In its first year, 291 people submitted 430 works, and 215 works by 171 people were selected. Each year, the number of entrants increased, with over 1,000 per year by the 1930s.[3]
For much of the exhibition's history, it did not have a consistent venue.[3] In the early 1920s, it was held at a Government-General building normally used for trade shows (now in Jeo-dong). Later that decade, it was held in the Government-General of Chōsen Library (now in Sogong-dong). From 1930, it was held in the former royal palace Gyeongbokgung, using facilities created for the 1929 Chōsen Exhibition. Finally, in 1937, a hall specifically for the Chōsen Art Exhibition was added to the Government-General Museum of Chōsen, at the rear of Gyeongbokgung.[3]
The first Korean allowed to be a judge, Kim Ton-hŭi, judged in 1930 and 1931. It was not until 1937 that another Korean was allowed to be a judge, but he reportedly was not allowed much influence on the decisions.[3]