Between Black and White: Wu Guanzhong’s East–West Dialogue
The Seoul Calligraphy Art Museum is presenting Between Black and White, a landmark exhibition featuring 17 works by Wu Guanzhong (1919–2010), the pioneering artist who reshaped the trajectory of Chinese modern art. Running from July 25 to October 19, 2025, the exhibition highlights Wu’s radical fusion of traditional Chinese ink painting with the formal strategies of Western modernism.
Wu Guanzhong, Nest, 2010. Ink on paper. Collection of Hong Kong Museum of Art. Donated by Mr Wu Guanzhong and his family
Wu, often described as the bridge between East and West, challenged the binaries of tradition and innovation, calligraphy and abstraction, figuration and geometry. His compositions—at once spare and dynamic—demonstrate a mastery of brushwork rooted in classical training, yet transformed through encounters with Western post-impressionism and abstraction. In doing so, Wu opened a new path for Chinese ink art, one that remains profoundly influential today.
“To express sincere thoughts is a great solace; I feel the liberation of Buddha. Looking back, I see the shore from afar, having traversed the three pure lands: grey, white, and black.”
Dialogues Across Media
Extending the exhibition’s scope into the present, media artist Chris Cheung (aka XCEED) presents Sentient Pond, an AI-driven installation that processes hundreds of Wu’s works through machine learning. The result is an immersive environment that reframes Wu’s visual language for a contemporary audience, echoing the artist’s own pursuit of synthesis between past and present, East and West.
Hong Kong Week in Seoul
The exhibition forms part of Hong Kong Week 2025 (@hongkongweek), a month-long cultural program in Seoul showcasing Hong Kong’s creative vitality across 14 events spanning visual art, performance, and media. In this context, Between Black and White not only celebrates Wu’s enduring legacy but also situates his work within a broader cross-cultural exchange.
Official poster of the Hong Kong Week 2025 @ Seoul
Exhibition Information
Wu Guanzhong Art Sponsorship Overseas Exhibition Series:
Wu Guanzhong: Between Black and White
July 25 – October 19, 2025
at Seoul Calligraphy Art Museum, Seoul Arts Center
Free admission (closed on Mondays)
Museum Website
Between Black and White offers a rare opportunity to encounter the work of a seminal figure in modern Chinese art while experiencing how contemporary technology continues to extend his vision into new realms.
