Ha Chong-Hyun: Retrospective

Sep 25, 2026 – Jan 25, 2027

Yang Yamazaki Pavilion

A sensory journey through sixty years of innovative abstraction.

For over six decades, pioneering artist Ha Chong-Hyun (b. 1935) has explored what painting becomes when freed from all existing conventions. Ha’s work prizes the interaction of his materials: using pressure, gravity, and tools ranging from torches to everyday utensils, he transforms the surfaces of canvases up to eight feet tall into a treasure trove of texture and physicality. His first museum exhibition in North America, Ha Chong-Hyun: Retrospective offers an unprecedented look at the creative evolution of one of Korea’s most influential contemporary artists.

Press Release: Asian Art Museum presents first North American survey of the acclaimed Korean artist

Press Kit

Top image: Conjunction 25-19, 2025 (detail), by Ha Chong-Hyun. Oil on hemp cloth. Photo © An Chunho. Bottom image: Photo © An Chunho, courtesy Tina Kim Gallery.

Organizers & Supporters

Ha Chong-Hyun: Retrospective is organized by the Asian Art Museum and guest curator Sunjung Kim, Artistic Director of Art Sonje Center, with assistance from Art Sonje Center’s curatorial team.

Presenting sponsorship is provided by SK ∙ PODO Museum.

Leadership support is provided by Timothy and Virginia Foo, and Salle Yoo and Jeffrey Gray.

Generous support is provided by Tina Kim Gallery, Kukje Gallery, and Sundar and Anjali Pichai.

Major support is provided by Canal Projects, Gay-Young Cho and Christopher Chiu, Penny S. and James G. Coulter, Jason M. Fish and Courtney Benoist, Tad Freese and Brook Hartzell, and the Kahng Foundation.

Additional support is provided by Cori and Tony Bates, Lillian K. Chun and David H. Chun, Marie Oh Huber and John Huber, Esther and Thomas “Tom” Lee, Miyoung Lee and Neil Simpkins, Hee-Jung and John Moon, and Gina Sohn and Gregory Lee.

Sustained support generously provided by the Akiko Yamazaki and Jerry Yang Endowment Fund for Exhibitions and the Kao/Williams Contemporary Art Exhibitions Fund. 

Video: Produced by Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. Studio footage courtesy of ArtDrunk.