ID :
54155
Tue, 04/07/2009 - 07:48
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/54155
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Artists from S. Korea, Japan bring passion to joint exhibition
SEOUL, April 6 (Yonhap) -- Striking viewers first with intense color, Namhong's paintings slowly seize attention through subtle details: small pieces of burnt paper depict birds and butterflies, lending her work a sentimental yet pensive air.
A Korean painter who spent 28 years of her career in France, Namhong, 53, will
hold her sixth exhibition in Korea jointly with acclaimed Japanese artist Yayoi
Kusama beginning Tuesday.
A day ahead of the opening, Namhong, whose full name is Lee Nam-hong, spoke with
reporters while wearing a long white summer dress that had the texture of her
signature medium -- traditional Korean paper, or "hanji".
"My grandmother used to burn hanji on every full moon. She said it was for my
brothers' and sisters' well-being," the artist said. "When she died in 1985, I
thought it was my turn to pray for her."
Displayed across from her paintings at the Jean Art Center in Seoul are a series
of Kusama's "Infinity nets," and paintings of three pumpkins in green, yellow,
and red.
A self-proclaimed "obsessive artist," Kusama is known for detailed repetition of
dots and geometric patterns. Her work may seem more conceptual than Namhong's,
but their paintings both exude a degree of passion and intensity.
"I was reminded of Kusama when I first saw Namhong's work 10 years ago," said Yoo
Wijin, director of the gallery, which is bringing the two artists together for
the first time. "Their self-reflective processes, their personalities, and their
artistic passion are alike," she said.
Having left Korea with her husband in 1982, Namhong said she turned her intimate
yet strained relations with her family into a source of creativity while studying
art in Paris.
While her trademark paintings featuring glued pieces of burnt Korean paper were
well-received in France, she said she always felt nostalgic for home. The artist
described transferring an acute sense of loneliness into her painting,
attributing the feeling as the main reason she prefers working on a large canvas.
"I dreaded meeting people, so I was by myself most of the time," she said. "It
was difficult to pour all of my emotion out onto a small canvas."
Namhong recently began to incorporate recycled materials into her work, gluing
pieces of discarded soda cans and plastic bottles to signify rebirth.
Her work "La vie en rose, La vie en recyclage" was sold for US$50,000 last month
at Sotheby's in New York.
The joint exhibition runs until April 30.
ylee@yna.co.kr
(END)
A Korean painter who spent 28 years of her career in France, Namhong, 53, will
hold her sixth exhibition in Korea jointly with acclaimed Japanese artist Yayoi
Kusama beginning Tuesday.
A day ahead of the opening, Namhong, whose full name is Lee Nam-hong, spoke with
reporters while wearing a long white summer dress that had the texture of her
signature medium -- traditional Korean paper, or "hanji".
"My grandmother used to burn hanji on every full moon. She said it was for my
brothers' and sisters' well-being," the artist said. "When she died in 1985, I
thought it was my turn to pray for her."
Displayed across from her paintings at the Jean Art Center in Seoul are a series
of Kusama's "Infinity nets," and paintings of three pumpkins in green, yellow,
and red.
A self-proclaimed "obsessive artist," Kusama is known for detailed repetition of
dots and geometric patterns. Her work may seem more conceptual than Namhong's,
but their paintings both exude a degree of passion and intensity.
"I was reminded of Kusama when I first saw Namhong's work 10 years ago," said Yoo
Wijin, director of the gallery, which is bringing the two artists together for
the first time. "Their self-reflective processes, their personalities, and their
artistic passion are alike," she said.
Having left Korea with her husband in 1982, Namhong said she turned her intimate
yet strained relations with her family into a source of creativity while studying
art in Paris.
While her trademark paintings featuring glued pieces of burnt Korean paper were
well-received in France, she said she always felt nostalgic for home. The artist
described transferring an acute sense of loneliness into her painting,
attributing the feeling as the main reason she prefers working on a large canvas.
"I dreaded meeting people, so I was by myself most of the time," she said. "It
was difficult to pour all of my emotion out onto a small canvas."
Namhong recently began to incorporate recycled materials into her work, gluing
pieces of discarded soda cans and plastic bottles to signify rebirth.
Her work "La vie en rose, La vie en recyclage" was sold for US$50,000 last month
at Sotheby's in New York.
The joint exhibition runs until April 30.
ylee@yna.co.kr
(END)
