National Museum of Korea Holds Special Exhibition Congo River

○ Title: Congo River – Art of Central Africa
○ Date: Oct. 22 (Tue), 2013 – Jan. 19 (Sun), 2014
○ Venue: Special Exhibition Gallery, National Museum of Korea
○ Admission Fees: Free
○ Organizers: National Museum of Korea, Museé du quai Branly

The National Museum of Korea (Director Kim Youngna) presents the special exhibition, Congo River, from October 22, 2013 to January 19, 2014 in the Special Exhibition Gallery of National Museum of Korea.

 The continent of Africa is dominated by two immense rivers, the Nile and the Congo. Winding for 4,700 kilometres through central Africa, the Congo River passes through many different landscapes, from lush forests along the Equator to broad grassy savannahs. For thousands of years, the Congo has also connected people and as the river has carried goods and trade, it also linked culture and art. The majority of the people living around the Congo River and the nearby Ogooué River speak the Bantu family of languages. This exhibition explores the rich and varied art of the Congo peoples.

Congo civilisations share many artistic and cultural traditions. These include body modification (like filed teeth, scarifications, and body painting) and social institutions (initiation and agrarian rites, healing, and mortuary rituals). The art of the Congo often represented nature spirits and authority figures.

The common artistic heritage of the Bantu-speaking peoples will be examined here in three forms of sculpture:
1. face masks shaped generally like hearts
2. statues of ancestors (which often contains bones and relics)
3. representations of females

The Exhibition jointly organized with the musée du quai Branly in Paris and offers through 71 masterpieces from the collection of the musée du quai Branly, the discovery of the artistic traditions of central Africa.

Attached: Images
Please contact the curator Yang Song-hyok (Tel. 82-2-2077-9271) from the Exhibition Department for details or news gatherings.