Fall art season in Seoul induces fantastical and serene states of being and understanding with triumphant works of art by luminaries and emerging creatives alike. Here, Whitewall shines light on riveting presentations at Art Sonje Center, Peres Projects, Primary Practice, and more.
“Do Ho Suh: Speculations”
Art Sonje Center
August 17 – November 3, 2024
87 Yulgok-ro 3-gil, Jongno District, Seoul, South Korea
Do Ho Suh, “Secret Garden,” 2012, Mixed media, display case with LED lighting, 199 x 180 x 82cm. Photo: Seowon Nam. Courtesy of Art Sonje Center ⓒ 2024. Art Sonje Center all rights reserved.
Art Sonje Center rejoices in the trailblazing creativity of luminary Do Ho Suh with a comprehensive solo presentation, currently on view through November 3. The renowned artist first brought his mystifying explorations to Art Sonje Center in 2003, which marked his debut solo exhibition in Korea. Here, Suh collaborates with the eminent space to offer a cinematic journey into the projects which he has been developing since 2005. Activating every realm of Art Sonje Center, the Speculations series collages a range of media and materials to reckon with the subtleties and and grandeur of human life. Captivating diagrams, texts, models, animations, and hypotheses guide viewers through the internal inspirations, concerns, and fantasies of a principal figure in Korean contemporary art.
“Do Ho Suh’s work always presents something beyond what I imagined,” said Sunjung Kim, Artistic Director at Art Sonje Center. “When he first said he would create a house in Seoul out of fabric, when he mentioned that the small figures supporting the base would move, and when he talked about connecting Seoul, New York, and London through the Bridge Project, I couldn’t believe it was possible. Each time these projects are completed over several years or even a decade, I was amazed. Watching him not just stop at imagining but realizing these works, I am always curious to know what his next project will be.”
What we love: A resplendent artist book will be published on the occasion of the momentous show, brimming with Do Ho Suh’s magnetic sketchbook drawings which are iconic works of reflection and ingenuity in their own right.
Rebecca Ackroyd: “The Party Is A Woman”
Peres Projects
September 4 — November 17, 2024
37 Yulgok-ro 1-gil Jongno-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea
Rebecca Ackroyd,
“Actress,” 2024,
Drawing, Gouache, soft pastel on Somerset satin paper, 34 x 41 cm (13 x 16 in),
Framed Dimensions: 38 x 45 x 4 cm (15 x 18 x 2 in), courtesy of the artist and Peres Projects, Seoul.
Inspired artist Rebecca Ackroyd unveils her tremendous fourth presentation with Peres Projects under the enthralling title “The Party Is A Woman.” Currently on view through November 17, Ackroyd’s pastel-hued drawings and paintings are drawn from the visionary’s most recent presentations of “Period Drama” within Hanover’s Kestner Gesellschaft, as well as “Mirror Stage” which blissfully unfolded at the 60th Venice Biennale. A symphony of beguiling visuals including bruised eyes, plant close-ups, ripped tights, and whirling machinery meditate on luxuriant and ruthless memories, the beauty and suffering of human existence, and more. Like a shattered story, skillful moments of figuration and abstraction collide and stray for a profound study on person, place, and time.
What we love: The artist’s deft infusion of installation, sculpture, and objects into the dreamlike exhibition culinimates in a multi-faceted and singular creative language.
Anton Munar: “Malas Hierbas”
Peres Projects
September 4 – November 17, 2024
37 Yulgok-ro 1-gil Jongno-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea
Anton Munar, “Vivo estoy. Dejadme así/ I am alive. Leave me like this,” 2023-24,
Painting of Oil and distemper on linen,
51 x 95 cm (20 x 37 in), courtesy of the artist and Peres Projects, Seoul.
Peres Projects raises the curtain on artist Anton Munar’s solo presentation “Malas Hierbas” this fall, currently on view through November 17 in Seoul. The visionary’s second solo endeavor with the esteemed gallery, and his inaugural show in Asia, interweaves works on paper, canvas, wooden drawers, and a video project to delve into Malas Hierbas—a Spanish phrase suggesting a random ranking of virtue in nature. Pondering the inclinations and prejudices across our world, Munar focuses on humans’ branding of some things as unwanted or unwelcome out of misinformation or lack of understanding.
“‘Malas Hierbas’ will be the first time I show my drawings and one of my video works,” said Munar. “The drawings are in many ways the heart of my making, as it’s how we all have our first experiences touching paper. Before writing and reading we create symbols at a small age: a drawn tree is all the trees in one. This last year I’ve been painting a lot outside in my parents garden, a place left to its own devices and after it has rained all the snails come out and keep me company.”
What we love: Deeply enfolding the sentiment of otherness in his practice, dramatic works such as Vivo estoy. Dejadme así/ I am alive. Leave me like this (2023-24), and Valió la pena/ It was worth the sorrow (2022) will immerse audiences as living and breathing analyses.
KIM Inbai: “Seeing What Is Not There”
Primary Practice
August 23 — October 13, 2024
7, Changuimun-ro 11-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea (03022)
Exhibition view of KIM Inbai’s solo exhibition “Seeing What Is Not There,” at Primary Practice, Seoul, 2024, Photo by CJY ART STUDIO.
“Seeing What Is Not There” unfolds as an experiential solo show by artist KIM Inbai at Primary Practice in Seoul. With dynamic space construction by Mujindongsa, and graphic design by GANG Moonsick, the dexterous creative offers a sensory voyage through the rise and fall of dimensions. A parade of sculptures play intelligently with their existence in space, and invite viewers to bask in a realm of potential states. The hidden, the imperceptible, and the covert are placed at the heart of the exhibition. Drawing Made from Too Far A Distance 1 & 2 (2024) stands at the end of the gallery challenging perceptions and the human gaze for revelatory impact, while the Mold of Absence series (2024) cleverly questions the limits of space and time.
What we love: “Seeing What Is Not There” spotlights the artist’s continued, fearless experimentation in technique, following in the footsteps of unforgettable past solo presentations including “Do You Remember Love” at Perigree Gallery, Seoul in 2020, and “Child” at Arario Gallery, Shanghai in 2019.
Jason Boyd Kinsella: “Ghost in the Machine”
Perrotin Seoul
August 30 — October 19, 2024
10 Dosan-daero 45-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Korea
Jason Boyd Kinsella,
“Norma,” 2024,
Oil on linen,
185 x 155 cm; Courtesy of the artist and Perrotin.
Canadian, Oslo-based visionary Jason Boyd Kinsella debuts a visceral solo show at Perrotin Seoul, currently running through October 19. On a euphoric exhibition through the human mind and kaleidoscopic realms of psychology, Kinsella surveys individualism and elements of the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) by way of opulent, geometric paintings. The presentation’s ethereal title draws from an expression of British philosopher Gilbert Ryle, speaking to the dualities of the human body and mind. The prolific artist introduces modern day portraits which summon the flawlessness of classical art, while imbuing tones, textures, and gestures of the digital age. Sculptures and oil paintings on display expose the artist’s architectural prowess and unbounded imagination.
“Today, there are so many ways people can escape from their true selves,” said Kinsella. “It becomes more and more confusing and difficult to ascertain a true likeness of somebody.”
What we love: Included in the must-see presentation is a single video work titled Self-Portrait (2024), which invites audiences into the artist’s private studio, observing his day to day work and play while keenly concealing his face with a multicolored palette of expressive shapes.
“Inner Spaces”
König Galerie Seoul
September 3 — October 12, 2024
30-34 Sowol-ro, 38-gil Yongsan-gu, 04342, Seoul, South Korea
Installation view of “Inner Spaces” at Koenig Seoul, photo by Chul Lim Choi.
“Inner Spaces” unfurls like an intimate, profound poem at König Seoul, currently on view through October 12. Celebrating the gallery’s vivacious new space in Itaewon, the labyrinthine group presentation illuminates the vibrant artistry of 25 creatives, and offers more than 50 absorbing works. David Zink Yi’s glazed stoneware, Monira Al Qadiri’s blown glass pieces, and Zsófia Keresztes’s moasics are placed in thrilling conversation with Stephan Balkenhol and Johanna Dumet’s watercolors, oil paints on wood, acrylics and gouaches. The innermost soul of things is majestically unveiled, with Jeppe Hein’s masterful use of powder coated aluminum, and Ayako Rokkaku’s raw bronze sculptures inducing otherworldly and serene states of being and understanding.
What we love: Artist Andy Denzler brings a cinematic perspective to the sweeping exhibition with FACE LIT FROM THE MOVIE SCREEN (2023), reminding us that things are not always what they seem.
