Lee Hongwon painted Dahnjae Shin Chaeho's official portrait and presidential history paintings for Cheongnamdae. *Song of the Forest* and *Tiger Who Loved Flowers* — 40 years.
Lee Hongwon's record has an unusual line.
"Produced a Dahnjae Shin Chaeho portrait / Produced a Cheongnamdae presidential history painting (Roh Tae-woo)"
A painter who has rendered forests and people in warm color and wit. His record also lists public commissions — a Dahnjae Shin Chaeho portrait (2013) and a presidential history painting for Cheongnamdae (the Blue House retreat).
A Path Begun at Dongguk
Lee Hongwon studied painting at Dongguk University College of Arts (1974–1980) and its graduate school (1980–1983).
In 1984, he held his first solo, Life + Human, at Kwanhoon Museum of Art. That year he was selected as a "Critically Recommended Notable Artist of Korea," followed by a 1985 Notable Artist invitational at Seoul Museum of Art. Notable Artist signaled that critics saw the artist as one presenting a significant question for the next generation. Called a new horizon of Korean painting upon debut.
Song of the Forest, and the Tiger
His long-running series split into two axes. Song of the Forest and Tiger Who Loved Flowers.
- 1986 Song of Life I, Arab Art Museum, Seoul
- 1993 Rain · Wind · Cloud, Bongseong Gallery, Daegu
- 1997 Ceramic Paintings, Hakcheon Gallery, Cheongju
- 2002 Song of the Forest, Cheongju Arts Center
- 2011 Song of the Forest, 419 VERONES Gallery, LA / Tiger Who Loved Flowers, Gallery ATTY, Seoul
- 2012 Song of the Forest, Insa Art Center, Seoul
- 2013 Song of the Forest — Tree Stories, Insa Art Center, Seoul
- 2014 Spring Outing, Jeonju Hanji Museum / Lee Hongwon Drawing, Sup Gallery, Cheongju
- 2015 Lee Hongwon Invitational, Morris Gallery, Daejeon
- 2019 Lee Hongwon Solo, Gilgaon Gallery, Cheongju
- 2023 Moon Jar, Insa Art Plaza, Seoul
Plus 29 more solos, 300+ group shows. Evidence of 40 years of constant activity. International shows extend to LA, New York, Sarajevo, Peru, China, Japan.
Public-Collection Names
His works sit in many public spaces.
- MMCA Art Bank
- Cheongju Museum of Art
- North Chungcheong Provincial Office
- North Chungcheong Office of Education
- SK Guesthouse
Plus the Dahnjae Shin Chaeho portrait (2013) and the Cheongnamdae presidential history painting (Roh Tae-woo). He painted the Dongbu Securities calendar in 2013 and the SK calendar in 2014. From official iconography of public institutions to corporate calendars — his painting has worked across layers of Korean society.
Tiger and Rooster
Two SAF 2026 works are both 2024.
- Tiger Who Loved Flowers — hanji and acrylic on canvas, 45.5×37.9 cm
- Rooster — A Grand Outing — same material and size
Both are hanji laid on canvas with acrylic. The physicality of hanji layered onto a Western canvas base. A choice that gathers Eastern and Western materials on one surface. The minhwa magpie-tiger iconography arrives today as Tiger Who Loved Flowers; the rooster as A Grand Outing.
Interpreted through Lee Hongwon's way, traditional minhwa animals become gentle and humorous. Even a fierce animal turns soft under his brush. A senior painter's ease earned across many years.
The Hand That Painted Portrait and History
84.9% of Korean artists are excluded from institutional finance. Sales of works by SAF-exhibiting artists cycle into a mutual-aid fund, returning as low-interest loans to fellow artists.
There is a hand that painted an independence fighter's portrait and a presidential history painting. The same hand entrusted with a nation's historical record; the same hand that joyfully painted tiger and rooster; and now a hand placed at a site of holding up fellow artists' livelihood. An orbit of 29 solos and 300+ group shows expanding beyond personal career into community memory and welfare.
Song of the Forest, Continuing
As Song of the Forest began in Cheongju in 2002 and continued at Insa Art Center in 2012 and 2013, Lee Hongwon's song does not stop.
The 2024 tiger and rooster are the next verses of that song. Two works moving onto SAF's wall become evidence that a lifelong song of the forest reaches the unseen studios of fellow artists.
Works by Lee Hongwon
Related reading
If this piece helped, you may also enjoy these related articles:
- A Roundtable with Five Women Artists — Artists are not born with a gender, but life places gender's weight differently. A roundtable with five women artists who endured the triangle of childcare, livelihood, and creation.
- Studio Visit: A Day in the Life of SAF Artists — The deepest path to understanding an artist's work is the studio. We visit the studios of SAF artists and document how their days unfold.
- Shin Hak-chul: Five Decades of Painting the People — An artist who has never put down his brush from the 1970s through the 2020s. Fifty years of work that weaves the pain and hope of Korea's modern history through bodies, mountains, and rivers.
View all works by Lee Hongwon →
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Collecting Guides
Seed Art Festival
Published April 20, 2026
