Sungsic Moon, 〈Flower. Bird. Butterfly.〉, 2017. Mixed media on panel, 14.8x35cm. ⓒthe artist and Kukje Gallery. Photoⓒ Kwon Oyeol

Kukje Gallery presents 《Beautiful. Strange. Dirty.》, an exhibition of Sungsic Moon’s work on view from November 28 through December 31, 2019. Displayed both on the first floor of K2 and in the K3 gallery, 《Beautiful. Strange. Dirty.》 will consist of new drawings and paintings in three groups that altogether encompass a series of more than seven distinctive bodies of works. Each highlights the artist’s delicate balance of line and color, as well as his signature use of traditional Korean painting genres, especially landscapes and still life. Celebrated for his unique style and the way he incorporates Eastern and Western drawing traditions, the new works explore Moon’s interest in the subject of “attraction” and how it defines the relationship between autonomous subjects. Moon’s work explores how these traditional techniques of oriental painting can evolve and become modernized. Responding to the dominant discourse of art history written by Western art historians, Moon questions how Asian painting idioms and philosophy have been ruptured by colonial history, and how the unique methods that connect these thoughts can be reanimated in today’s Korea. For the artist, contemporary Korea embodies a unique place of cultural hybridity and Moon’s approach to drawing powerfully illustrates this aesthetic, balancing different modes and historical traditions, while challenging the strict classification of drawing versus painting. In this way, the artist has created an innovative style characterized by compositions that capture both the immediacy of the artistic gesture with the depth and emotional resonance of traditional painting, heralding his effort to create a new kind of pictorial narrative.

Further information:
https://www.kukjegallery.com/