Yoo Young-kuk rediscovered in landmark retrospective

At the age of 48, Korea’s abstract art pioneer Yoo Young-kuk opened his first solo exhibition in 1964 after devoting himself fully to painting.

That had meant giving up on juggling art with his other work as a fisherman and running his family’s brewery business in his hometown of Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province.

He turned away from academic posts as well, believing that an artist should commit fully to developing their own artistic world.

The year marked a turning point for Yoo, whose iconic mo ...