The exhibition titled Heritage: Time Inherited, celebrating the 20th anniversary of Gallery Now, runs from April 2 to April 30, 2026.
This showcase emphasizes that maintaining a single field throughout the flow of time is a sublime act that transcends mere preservation. Just as every nation possesses a unique cultural DNA, the spiritual context of Korea has been layered over thousands of years to form its distinct identity.
In this era where K-Culture resonates globally, the exhibition asks fundamental questions about our spiritual roots and the identity that defines us. It focuses on the narratives of artistic families that bridge generations—fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, and grandchildren—who have shattered barriers to inherit shared artistic values.
These artistic lineages form the sturdy trunk of Korean contemporary art, where children sprout new leaves upon the fertile soil tilled by their parents.
The exhibition honors the first generation’s aesthetic archetypes while showcasing the unique, contemporary reinterpretations of the second generation.
Gallery Now expresses deep respect for this persistent artist spirit that connects the pulse of the nation through creative language.
This 20th-anniversary event serves as a vital bridge where past, present, and future intersect, treating the gallery as a space that paves the way for art to flow like an unblocked river.
Director Soon-sim Lee hopes this record of inherited spirit allows visitors to savor the enduring value of artistic creation and rediscover the DNA of Korean art.
Historically, the tradition of artistic succession is found across the globe, from the Yuan Dynasty’s Zhao Mengfu and his son Zhao Yong to the Southern Song’s Ma Yuan and Ma Lin.
In the West, families like the Bruegels in the Netherlands and the Holbeins in Germany maintained family legacies, while Artemisia Gentileschi famously rose to surpass her father Orazio’s reputation.
Influential figures such as Katsushika Hokusai in Japan worked closely with his daughter Oi, and Guillermo Kahlo served as a spiritual mentor to the iconic Frida Kahlo.
In France, Camille Pissarro’s guidance to his son Lucien provided a living record of art history, while the Wyeth family in America established a three-generation dynasty of realism.
The Korean lineage is equally profound, rooted in the Joseon era with the families of Kang Se-hwang and the legendary Kim Hong-do, whose son Kim Yang-gi inherited his father’s style.
In the modern era, the philosophy of Park Soo-keun is reinterpreted through the aesthetics of light by his son Park Seong-nam and grandson Park Jin-heung.
The daughter of Chun Kyung-ja, Sumita Kim, transitioned from being her mother’s model to becoming a distinct artist and professor in the United States.
The Oh family represents a rare four-generation legacy starting from Oh Ji-ho, while Kim Kang-yong and Kim In-ok have seen their daughters continue the family’s creative and administrative artistic work.
The exhibition further highlights Kim Byung-jong, whose sons explore themes ranging from modern loss to psychological sculpture, and the Nam-nong legacy, which has maintained the Southern School of painting for five generations since Heo Ryeon.
Lee Seong-ju and Lee Sara connect the legacy of theater giant Lee Hae-rang to hyper-realism and pop art, while Kim Han-yong and Kim Dae-su bridge the gap between early advertising photography and philosophical fine art.
the late Ha In-doo’s abstract vision is carried forward by Ha Tae-im’s vibrant color bands, and legendary cartoonist Huh Young-man finds a contemporary colleague in his daughter, painter Huh 보리.
By internalizing artistic language from childhood, these families prove that artistic DNA is inherited through the way one views the world, ensuring that art remains a vital cultural lifeblood.
