Songs of a Tortoise (Guga)

This painting belongs to the artist Yoong Bae's second group of works, titled Songs of a Tortoise (Guga). Bae considered himself to be slow but steady; perhaps he may have identified himself with the tortoise referred to this series.

Painted in the so-called boneless style with no firm outlines, two groups of hemispherical forms of irregular sizes rise from the empty space, resembling tomb mounds in the Korean countryside. Six forms placed at the right corner are balanced by two small mounds placed at the upper left. Each form has been painted three times to create an effect that ranges progressively from watery to darker ink tones. The largest mound at bottom right has been touched by light blue and red, while a smaller mound next to it shows a faint red. The blurred outlines of the mounds, subtle tonal gradations, and the empty space balancing the two groups of mounds imbue this work with evocative and meditative qualities.

Yoong Bae was born in Korea and came to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1974. He continued to work as an artist until his death in 1992. In 1994, his widow donated twenty of his works to the Asian Art Museum.