Photographer Even Issued "Official Apology" 8 Years Ago... Ministry Claims It "Just Found Out" as Reporting Began

These are photographs on display at the South Korean Embassy in Tokyo, Japan, and the South Korean Permanent Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, respectively.

They are works by photographer Bae Bien-u, widely known for his "pine tree photos," and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs holds a total of nine works by Bae, including these pieces.

In 2018, amid the peak of the #MeToo movement, Bae issued an official apology, stating that he "thoroughly reflects on" his misconduct after multiple allegations of sexual harassment and molestation were raised by former students from his time as a professor at the Seoul Institute of the Arts.

At the time, the city of Suncheon in South Jeolla Province shut down a creative studio named after Bae and removed his exhibited works.

The Gyeongju National Museum and the Jeju Museum of Art also took down Bae's works from display.

However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was found to have never reviewed the appropriateness of displaying Bae's works while hanging them at overseas diplomatic missions.

While the South Korean Embassy in Japan and the Permanent Mission in Geneva continue their exhibitions, the South Korean Embassy in India took down his works after a lawmaker recently requested submission of materials regarding Bae's exhibition.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintains that it "only learned of the controversy surrounding Bae for the first time now."

[Kim Jun-hwan / Member of the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee (Democratic Party of Korea): South Korean embassies (stationed abroad) serve as outposts for promoting Korea. Leaving (Bae's works) neglected for eight years and having no awareness of the problem constitutes a dereliction of duty by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the embassies...]

This is not the first time the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has faced public controversy over works by artists involved in social scandal.

Works by painters Kim Ki-chang and Kim Eunho, who were designated as "pro-Japanese painters" by the Presidential Committee for the Inspection of Collaborations for Japanese Imperialism, were removed following criticism from the National Assembly. Works by artist Lim Ok-sang, who was convicted of indecent act by compulsion, were also taken down and placed in separate storage after the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism ordered them closed to public view.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs told SBS that it plans to convene an art review committee to discuss whether to continue displaying Bae's works.

[Exclusive] Works by Artist with History of Sexual Harassment Displayed in Plain Sight... "Considering Removal" (SBS 8 News, Oct. 5, 2026)

Reported by Kim Hye-young | Written by Bae JUNHWI | Video by Cho Chun-dong, Bae Moon-san, and Kim Tae-hoon | Video Editing by Wi Won-yang | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.