KIM KI-CHANG (Korean, 1913-2001)

Spinning Tops; Playing Shuttlecock

Circa 1930

Print on washi paper and another on wove paper, both mounted in glazed frames

Artist's colophon and red seal

53.5cm high, 39.7cm wide; 72cm high, 39.5cm wide

(2)

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Provenance: From the collection of British journalist and presumed diplomat, John Newall.

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Note: These two prints are the work of Kim Ki-Chang, a Korean artist famous for his traditional coloured paintings, ('chaesaekhwa'), which were influenced by Japanese ink and colour painting styles, and his figure paintings were known for their delicate renderings. These works formed the basis of two 'Christmas seals', from 1937 and 1938, commissioned by Dr. Sherwood Hall.

Dr. Sherwood Hall was the first Western person born in Korea, his father being a Canadian medical evangelist during the early 1890s. In 1892, Hall married Rosetta Sherwood, an American missionary, and their wedding was the first Western-style wedding ceremony held in Korea, which generated a great deal of public curiosity. In order to raise money and educate Koreans about tuberculosis, Dr. Hall introduced the first Korean 'Christmas seals' in 1932. The first seals featured Namdaemun (South Gate). He donated the entire series of seals (1932-1940) to the Smithsonian Museum in Richmond, Ontario. In 1940, the Japanese colonial government subjected the Halls to a court trial, in which they were accused and convicted of supposed 'espionage activities', and were sentenced to a three year jail term. They were forced to stop all their activities and were promptly deported out of Korea.