Suh Se Ok (b. 1929, Daegu, South Korea; d. 2020, Seoul, South Korea) received a BFA from the Oriental Painting department of Seoul National University in 1950. Solo exhibitions of his work have been organized at Lehmann Maupin, Seoul, South Korea (2021) and New York, NY (2018); Gallery Hyundai, Seoul, South Korea (2016); National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Seoul, South Korea (2015); Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX (2008); Maison Hermes, Tokyo, Japan (2007); Daejeon Museum of Art, South Korea (2007); and Uijae Museum of Korean Art, Gwangju, South Korea (2003), among others. Selected group exhibitions and international biennials featuring his work include Korean Modern and Contemporary Art: The Echoes of the Times, Ulsan Art Museum, South Korea (2024); Strolling through Nature: The Dongsan Park Joohwan, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Gwacheon, South Korea (2023); Three Generations: Remembering Suh Se Ok (1929-2020), Lehmann Maupin, Seoul, South Korea (2022); The new beginning of donation, Gwangju Museum of Art, South Korea (2022); Fear or Love, Seoul Museum, South Korea (2022); A Season of Meditation, Daegu Art Museum, South Korea (2022); Modern Life, Daegu Art Museum, South Korea (2021); MMCA Collection Highlight 2020+, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Seoul, South Korea (2020); be/longing, Lehmann Maupin, Hong Kong (2020), Beyond Line: The Art of Korean Writing, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA (2019); Another History of Korean Modern Art, Seoul National University Museum of Art, South Korea (2016); Shin Okjin Collection, Seoul National University Museum of Art, South Korea (2015); Beyond and Between, Leeum Museum of Art, Seoul, South Korea (2014); Then and Now, National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Deoksugung, Seoul, South Korea (2014); Closer to Contemporary Art II - Abstract Art is Real, Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art, Ansan, South Korea (2013); Art is Alive, Busan Biennial, South Korea (2008); and the 7th São Paulo Biennial, Brazil (1963), among others.
Suh received the Order of Cultural Merit—Gold Crown in 2021, and Silver Crown in 2012—from the South Korean government and was awarded the Seokjae Cultural Prize in 2022; 52nd National Academy of Arts Award of the Republic of Korea in 2007; First Prize of 13th Arts and Culture Awards from the Federation of Artistic and Cultural Organization of Korea in 1999; Ilmin Art Award in 1994; an honorary doctor of fine arts degree from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1988; and Prime Minister Prize at the 1st National Art Exhibition in 1949. His work is in numerous international public and private collections, including the British Museum, London, United Kingdom; Fukuoka Art Museum, Japan; Hoam Museum, Yongin, South Korea; Ministry of Culture, Paris, France; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX; National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, South Korea; Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence, RI; Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada; Seoul Museum of Art, South Korea; Seoul National University Museum of Art, South Korea; Wooyang Art Museum, Gyeongju, South Korea; USC Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena, CA; Wonkwang University Museum, Iksan, South Korea; and the Yonsei University Museum, Seoul, South Korea.