Korean Eye always brings together a mixture of the familiar and the not so familiar. In 2020, a show which started in St Petersburg and will end in Seoul, we were treated to works from UK-based Korean artists as well as from emerging and established artists based in Korea. This year, we’ve chosen to do … [Read More]
Category: Exhibition reviews and comment (page 2)
Gallery: START Art Fair 2020
A few installation views of the Korean artists and galleries displaying work at START Art Fair in the Saatchi Gallery at the end of October: A show-stopping display of Ceviga’s work by Skipwiths – who also introduced a work by Kim Hayoung; Intricate musical sculptures by Eunhyue Shin – constructed in part from broken musical … [Read More]
A round-up of current and recent exhibitions
Since the lifting of most of lockdown restrictions put in place at the height of the pandemic, Korean art-related events have recently resumed in the UK. The KCCUK programme, once the Rendered Reality exhibition by Joonhong Min and Shinuk Suh closed, moved on to Seoul Unfolded, a display of architectural projects and works featuring the … [Read More]
Gallery: Joonhong Min and Sunyoung Hwang in Urban Reckoning
Urban Reckoning, co-curated by Korean artist Joonhong Min, and also including work by Sunyoung Hwang, is at Koppel Project Hive on Holborn Viaduct, taking advantage of the gradual opening up of lockdown that has been in place since March. Min has been having a busy year, despite the pandemic, with work installed at the Korean … [Read More]
The Korean Villages of Joung Young-ju
I’ve been really impressed by the atmosphere created by Joung Young-ju’s paintings. Villages densely populate hillsides and valleys and fickle lights evoke feelings of intimacy and warmth. Sunrise and sunset define a special time of the day which forms a connection between two separate moments: day and night. And, hence, it feels like an ethereal … [Read More]
Rendered Reality: an interview with Joonhong Min and Shinuk Suh
New contributor Federica Ionta meets the artists behind Rendered Reality, the exhibition currently in suspended animation at the KCCUK. Thinking of Korean art, one might recall, for instance, pottery of exquisite quality, such as the iconic moon jars, or beautiful ink paintings. However, not all Korean artists stick to traditional shapes, materials and techniques. Artists … [Read More]
Gallery: Joonhong Min in Rendered Reality
Here are some images of Joonhong Min’s works installed at the KCCUK as part of the Rendered Reality exhibition. (1) The main installation: The Debris from the Future Past (2019). (2) Urban methodology: the monochrome section! (3) The Past is Not Done with You … all showing a meticulous attention to detail combined with an … [Read More]
Gallery: Shinuk Suh in Rendered Reality
Here are some images of Shinuk Suh’s works installed at the KCCUK as part of the Rendered Reality exhibition. (1) The main installation: Man(u)fractured #2, based on his residency at Unit 1 Gallery | Workshop: (2) The eye-catching window display. By coincidence, while the exhibition was on, the FT ran a feature on Chinese manufacturing … [Read More]
Exhibition visit: Lee Young-hee’s Stuff of Dreams, at the Guimet
With more time being spent at home, LKL has a bit of time to catch up on the writing backlog. Here’s a visit we made to Paris at the beginning of March, a couple of days before the exhibition closed. In fact, looking back, it was the last Korean cultural event we enjoyed prior to … [Read More]
A round-up of the Korean crafts at Collect 2020
Collect this year moved from the Saatchi Gallery to Somerset House. The move had both advantages and disadvantages. At Saatchi there is greater openness of space and there is the added benefit of the lively environs of Sloane Square for coffee and snacks. Somerset House, on the other hand feels like a bit of a … [Read More]
Gallery: Joo Yeon Park’s Library of the Unword
As described in the exhibition notice, Joo Yeon Park’s Library of the Unword and its central piece Twenty Times a Thousand (2019) is inspired by Beckett’s poem Echo’s Bones. According to the artist, Echo in Beckett’s poem Echo’s Bones (1935) refers to the nymph in Ovid’s Metamorphoses who is punished by Juno so that she … [Read More]
Gallery: 송 SONG’s exhibition at Whitehall Historic House
Courtesy of the artist, here are some installation shots of 송 SONG’s current exhibition at Whitehall Historic House in Cheam. Super cute evocations of Tudor style by the Korean artist. The exhibition lasts until 1 March. [Read More]
A round-up of three early January exhibitions
LKL visits three solo shows in the first two weeks of 2020: Suh Shinuk, Song Gin-young and Kang Jungsuck. Hopefully we’ll get to Tate Modern to see the big Nam June Paik exhibition before it closes. Suh Shinuk: Man(u)fractured Suh Shinuk’s Man(u)fractured has been extended for a week, to 18 January. It’s well worth a … [Read More]
A review of the Korean cultural year 2019
A review of some of the highlights and trends in the Korean cultural year, primarily in London but also with half an eye to anything we might have seen elsewhere in the UK. The review is a personal one, inevitably skewed towards the events we managed to get to. Introduction This time last year I … [Read More]
Gallery visit: Shin Meekyoung’s Weather, at Barakat Gallery
Meekyoung Shin’s current show at Barakat Gallery is the first major London exhibition to feature her new ceramic work. In the past, Shin has been known for her soap sculptures, many of which are designed to resemble Chinese or Korean ceramics. Now, having studied ceramics and glass at the RCA she is experimenting with clay, … [Read More]
Exhibition visit: Najeon and Ottchil, at Asia House
The current exhibition at Asia House, featuring exquisite work by contemporary master craftsmen and women, celebrates 70 years of diplomatic relations between the UK and the Republic of Korea. Najeon is the craft of decoration using mother of pearl, usually made from abalone shells, while Ottchil is the craft of creating objects out of lacquer. … [Read More]