Massive Art Scene Corruption Revealed

A large group of active and former executives of the Korean Fine Arts Association (KFAA) were caught by police after they decided the prize winners of the Grand Art Exhibition of Korea in advance in exchange for bribes.

In addition, most of the bad rumors that have circulated in the art world turned out to be true. Some renowned painters were exposed to have painted for contestants for money, while suspicions that the association accepted unqualified members in order to have a certain figure elected as the chairman of the board of directors were confirmed.

Corruption in the chairman election-

The Special Criminal Investigation Division of the Korean National Police Agency applied on May 16 for arrest warrants for nine people, including former chairman Ha (54), on charges that they took kickbacks from their students or fellow painters in exchange for prizes in the scholastic paintings section of the exhibition. Among the 112 suspects, 49, including judges, high-ranking association officials, and artists were booked for their fraudulent deals in the Grand Art Exhibition, while other 46 were accused of involvement in the corrupt chairman election.

After being paid 10 million won on April 28 last year by a person identified as Lee, Ha, the chairman at the time, compelled judges to grant him a special award in the Korean paintings section of the 25th Grand Art Exhibition. Up until December, he committed three more crimes of this kind.

Two suspects who were staffs in the scholastic paintings section, including section leader Kim (53), were bribed 56 million won by their students. On April 16 last year, they brought seven out of eleven members of the judging committee to a motel located in Seocho-dong, Seoul, and had them stay there for two to three days to memorize the paintings they were supposed to vote in favor of with photo images.

Two renowned artists, including Yoo (65), accepted 10 to 15 million won from other artists in 2005 and 2006 and created paintings for them that were to be displayed in the Grand Art Exhibition. It has been revealed that “ghost painting” is rampant in Korea.

The incumbent chairman Noh (57) is facing allegations that he collected votes in his chairman campaign by issuing memberships to hundreds of unqualified artists by the end of last year.

Sharing prizes under collusion-

In the 25th Grand Art Exhibition of Korea held in April last year, 2,000 paintings were submitted to the scholastic paintings division, and 391 of them were accepted to the exhibition after the first screening. Out of them, 113 were given a special award after the second judgment.

Hwang Yong-su, head of the Special Criminal Investigation Division, said, “More than 95 percent of the works that passed the first and second stages were involved in bribery. It is said in the art world that for acceptance, you need three to five million won, and for a special award, you need 15 to 20 million won: in other words, You have to return the prize money.”

Another police authority said, “Judges and executives have discussed and decided their shares in advance and gave prizes to their protégés. It seems that the whole art scene is corrupt.”

The Grand Art Exhibition was established in 1949 and had been held by the government until 1982, when the Korean Culture and Arts Foundation became the new host. In 1989, the administrative role was transferred to KFAA, and it has been the largest gateway for young artists aspiring to make their debut.

The art association has 137 branches and some 20,400 members all over the nation. Yearly membership fees are 25,000 won for local residents and 36,000 won for those in Seoul. In order to submit work, an additional 50,000 won per piece is required.

The National Police Agency is planning to extend their investigation, as it assumes that similar cases are widespread in other bigger art sections as well, such as Oriental paintings, Western paintings, and calligraphy.

creating@donga.com