Choi Myoung-Young is a leading figure in the Dansaekhwa movement and contemporary Korean art. In 1962, he graduated from the Hongik University and co-founded the artist collective “Origin” with Suh Seung Won and Lee Seung Jio. Whilst each artist had a distinctive style, they were united in expanding the boundaries of Korean abstract art.

Choi’s focus was the tactile experience of placing pigment onto the plane while letting go of all other intentions. With form, content and individual expression put aside, the artist was absorbed by subtle characteristics of his own actions. He puts monochrome colors such as black, white, blue, and yellow on flat canvases, and then he approaches conditions of each plane using his fingers, a roller, or a brush on the canvas, or an awl on Korean paper. He seeks for the nature of non-painting in paintings and reveals his life on the plane while exploring the essence of painting. His meditative way of painting creates calm and deep planes, and his emotions and moments are compressed in his works like a diary.

Choi has exhibited extensively in Asia, with numerous solo shows in Japan and Korea. Choi is in museum collections such as the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Total Art Museum (Seoul) and Korean National Museum of Contemporary Art. In 2016 Park Seo-Bo curated Origin, an exhibition presenting Choi Myoung-Young, Suh Seung Won and Lee Seung Jio. Presented at Galerie Perrotin in Paris, the exhibition focused on the founding members’ artistic collective and their relation to the history of Dansaekhwa, solidifying Choi’s standing as one of the most influential artists in Korean contemporary art history.