The controversy surrounding the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s (LACMA) exhibition of forged Korean artworks continues to spread.
The case shows the blind spot of the forgery verification process of the institution, which is considered one of the world’s leading art museums, pointing to the need for reform across the art world.
LACMA admitted the possibility of forgery and removed the works from its exhibition “Korean Treasures,” including four paintings by Lee Jung-seob and Park Soo-keun, as well as some paintings and ceramics from the Joseon Dynasty.
Eunice Kim, the director of EK Gallery in Los Angeles, organized a special invitational exhibition of Park’s paintings in May. “At that time, the Park Soo-keun Institute asked LACMA to cancel the exhibition, but it was denied,” Kim said in an interview with the Korea Daily on July 1. “I can’t understand that a world-class museum like LACMA exhibited a masterpiece without verifying the basics,” she said.
LACMA has been displaying the controversial works since February, while Korean art institution officials have repeatedly accused LACMA of forgery. At the same time, visitors continued to flock to the museum to view works by Lee and Park.
The Korean government also recognized the seriousness of the controversy and sent a letter of inquiry to LACMA.
Tammy Cho, an exhibitions specialist at the Korean Cultural Center Los Angeles, said on July 1, “Due to diplomatic reasons, I cannot provide details, but we have sent a letter to LACMA regarding the controversy, although we have not received an answer,” she said.
This suggests the possibility that LACMA was already aware of the allegation of forgeries but remained silent. This is evidenced by the fact that LACMA had strongly denied the alleged forgery and then proceeded with the exhibition.
In a lecture in March, Stephen Little, head of LACMA’s Department of Asian Art, said, “The works by Park Soo-keun and Lee Jung-seob have been verified,” adding, “We are using scientific methods to prove the works.”
Typically, authenticating an artwork involves a series of steps, including eye, material, and scientific examination, followed by infrared photography and tomographic analysis in some cases. It is unclear how closely LACMA’s scientific verification was carried out and whether the verification system well-functioned.
LACMA’s actions might result in a critical loss of credibility. Since the decision to close the Korean pavilion in 2019, LACMA has been presenting Korean-related artworks as special exhibitions. Last year during the construction of a new building, the museum also appointed Hotel Shilla President Boo-jin Lee as its new director on board. The latest controversy is expected to have a negative impact on other Korean-related artworks that LACMA has or plans to exhibit in the future.
“I never thought that a place like LACMA would exhibit a forged work, but now I’m starting to doubt other works,” said Chanyong Kim, 44, of Irvine, who visited LACMA’s “Korean Treasures” exhibition last month. “If they did exhibit a forged work, shouldn’t they be at least sending out apologies to the visitors who went to see it?”
LACMA has since pulled the controversial work from the exhibition on June 30. The Korea Daily visited the museum on July 1 and 2 to hear from LACMA, but was unable to get a response regarding the exhibition. The sign “Korean Treasures” remained on display, but the entrance to the exhibition space was blocked with curtains.
One LACMA representative on-site on July 1 said, “The verification depends on the process by which the works come in,” adding, “Donated works go through a different one.”
The artworks from “Korean Treasures” were donated by Korean American Chester Chang. The Korea Daily reached out to key LACMA officials for comment on the matter but did not receive a response as of July 2.
BY SUAH JANG, KYEONGJUN KIM, HOONSIK WOO
[jang.suah@koreadaily.com, kim.kyeongjun1@koreadaily.com]
