With "Finetuning Bodily Sensations", artist Hunida Kim & c-lab 7.0 Project explore the possibility for technology to finetune bodily sensations, to merge with natural bodies in order to further modify our physical sensations and performance. This idea extends to encompass the human brain and AI. The artists want to draw the attention of the viewers to the body and its central significance for the human experience. The physical vessel of our soul is not just as an afterthought but a medium through which we soul experiences reality.
Artist Jung Eun-byeol's exhibition "Moments of Continuous Misfire" at Seongnam Cube Art Museum Bandal Gallery explores the impact of social standards and norms on individual lives. The 30 paintings, collages, and installations featured in the show represent her thoughts and experiences and reflect her complex emotions of anxiety and uncertainty - the very same emotions that individuals feel when they realise they have to live by and are measured against these standards. The moment of hesitation when you wonder what the accepted standard for behaviour in this or that situation is. The core of the message is the need to acknowledge the phycological wounds that people living in hiding in small pockets of the social fabric. Rather than advising resistance or revolution, the artist aims to offer consolation and soothing through her work.
The Korea Ceramic Foundation's exhibition titled "New Yangjegi: Pottery Connecting Heaven and Earth" explores the evolution of the ceramics tradition from the Goryeo period to the Joseon period. The exhibition presents 89 relics, including ceramics, metal artifacts, traditional paintings, and modern works. In particular, the main hall hosts a display of the royal white porcelain of the early Goryeo Dynasty recently excavated from the 'Yongin Surrey Goryeo White Porcelain Site (Historic Site No. 329)' and the Yuan Dynasty celadon from the 'Shinan Ship', also known as the "treasure ship of the sea", donated by the late Chairman Lee Kun-hee of the Samsung family.
"Lands&Museum" at Leekangha Museum is a group exhibition by four artist who explore the metaphysical meaning of land as the place we come from (nature) and the place we return to at the end of our journey. It invites us to rediscover the deeper meaning of environment as a mean of communication with nature and nature as a reflection of the deeper philosophy embedded in our world.
"Different-ness" is an exhibiton by Chae Jung-wan that asks if everything that is different from the norm is wrong (a play on the Korean word 틀리다 which means both wrong and different/inconsistent/abnormal). The core of the subject is life outside the mainstream. Is being different from the norm/expected equal to being mistaken/wrong.
Junho Park's "Perfume" sees life as a series of days, each with its own specific scent. What happens when the deep inner world in which all thoughts, memories, perceptions, and emotions are mixed feels more real than the real-life, solid objects in front of us? What happens when time doesn't flow in the same way but compressese and relaxes depending on the state of our emotions? Is transcending reality and the steady flow of time a way to connect to the divine. "I atteck the canvas and accept the consequences", says the artist. The result is a harmonious collaboration of chaos, control and opportunity.
Sebin Park's exhibition "Silent Regards" conveys calm emotions with an intense focus on "quietness" and "lightness". Each moment is heavy because it's all we have - the present moment. Contemplating the series of moments (the essence and sum total of life), the artist wants to provoke the emotional imagination and searches for the emotional ques within small moments. The psychological waves caused by our silent inner explosions.
Min Woo-ki's exhibition "Graceful Routine" treats a similar topic. In those moments of leisure and hedonism, are we happy or anxious? Is not modern life with its abundance and fetish for relaxation and enjoyment somewhat like the calm before the storm? The poster depicts a high-rise building or a bedroom overlooking the sea, a fantastic view and a stylishly designed swimming pool. But the canvas is circular. And that is somewhat uncomfortable. Are spying, are we engaging in voyerism? The paint is applied dot by dot as if this whole world will dissipate in a second. The calm before the storm? Anxiety is an inseperable part of modern life but maybe, if we realise it, we can reduce it?
Artist Lee Heuk is leading us into a world of uplifting dreams and fearful nightmares - a combination which in a strange way resembles the real world. A child full of excitement is playing in the sky and in the midst of puffy white clouds but suddenly, they clouds turn to sharky waves and the sky is a battlefield for survival. Much like in real life, you are never really sure where things will go. The artist wants us to reconcile with the strange, unpredictable and rough world for even in it, there is hope for a better day.
Byeong Hyeon-Jeong's "Ambiguous Inclination" features paintings with an interesting and unusual execution. The "canvas" consists of five sheets of hanji paper (traditional Korean paper which is quite thick), each of which has been sprayed with pigment. Once the "painting" is set, the artist proceeds to rip pieces of it off with a tattoo needle. Hanji paper is known for its sturdiness and resembles a kind of shield which the tattoo needle pierces to reveal the colours i.e the true identity. The painting technique in and of itself is a conversation between the shel and the core, identity and assumed roles.
Artist Choi Myeong-Jin utilizes contrast to convey his message. At a first glance, the heavy figures in monochrome colors made of thick straight lines may seem cold, but there is an unmistakable call for human-ness, warmth and affection written all over the artwork. Human-to-human hugs are seens as the best mean for comfort and relaxation. While the characters may seem cold, it is their cold life that has made them acutely aware of teh value of a warm hug. The harshness of their facial features are contrasted with their confessed longing for someone, for a connection, for proximity. Longing for emotional intimacy.
Choi Myung-Ae's "My Garden" is a mixture of explosive colours (a la Matisse) and slow, Eastern meditatiative paint application technique (very typical of the Dansekhwa movement). The message of this fusion is that beauty will save the world sooner than reflections and contemplations on each specific social, economic or environmental problem. The circles are reminiscent of basic life forms such as amoeba which are still very much dissolved in their surroundings. This suggests that we humans are also part of the larger environment which engulfs us and by virtue of us being connected to it, if we can read its signs, it can warns us about what is to come. Thus, "My Garden" is about a place but this place is a rather metaphysical philosophical space where nature and humanity meet.
Arario Museum hosts Jeong Kang-ja's solo exhibition "Dear Dream, Fantasy, and Challenge". It examines her life and artistic journey as one of the leading figures of Korea's avant-garde movement. The show features paintings and batik works from the 1970s and 1980s - the years after the 1960s and 1970s period when she was one of the main avant-garde female artists in the country. In her works, she tries to find the soulful art and glamour of everyday life and bridge the gap between the ordinary existence and the idea that lie has to be something special.
"Planet Theater" is an exhibition by Hyewon Kwon which questions the nature of time and space. Is the reality we live in a fixed situation? What about the several worlds we live in at the same time - the physical experience and the psychological perception? Is time really linear? The artworks focus on fragments that reconstruct the artist's past and its relationship to the present and ask: if we look sufficiently far back into the past, will we be able to see the future?
Daejeon Museum of Art will host an exhibition of artworks from the collection of the Samsung Family titled "Lee Kun-hee Collection and Legendary Painters" which will re-highlight the works of "mythical" Korean modern and contemporary artists.