CAFA ART MUSUEM x waterfall
July 7th through August 25th, 2024
Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing, China
No.8 Huajidi South Street, Chaoyang District, Beijing
<Rituals of Repetition: Portals to Eternity> invites you to embark on a journey of contemplation and discovery of four distinguished Korean artists whose artistic discipline becomes not an end in itself but a conduit towards undiscovered dimensions that reveal new vistas of possibilities beyond the horizons of life and death.
Co-curated by Waterfall Arts Foundation Founder, Kate Shin, and Deputy Director/Chief Curator at CAFA Museum, Chunchen Wang, this exhibition highlights Lee Seung Hee, a Korean artist based in Jingdezhen, China, Lee Jin Woo, a Korean artist based in Paris, France, Jinwon Chang, a Korean artist based in New York, USA, and Shin Youngho, a Korean artist based in South Korea– each illuminating their heritage through traditional mediums and practices, transforming them into contemporary and devotional expression. Each featured artist works with extremely labor-intensive processes that embrace the Korean roots of both their art forms and themselves. Through their rigorous acts of repetition, the artists are led to a regenerative state of what they hope for, what they protest, and what they praise. In this journey, the works offer a reflective path to approach notions of transcendence(超越性) and eternity (永遠性).
Lee Seung Hee's earlier works showcased a mastery of sophisticated materials, catalyzing the evolution of contemporary ceramic art and installations from the classical roots of porcelain craftsmanship. Lee’s interactive bamboo installation features thousands of ceramic “bamboo joints” to form an oasis of red bamboo trees that evoke the essence of a traditional ink and wash (Shuimo, in Chinese) painting. His new series Like Paper explores the extent of space within paper-thin clay surfaces by bending and scratching to reveal the potential of ceramics beyond what meets the eye once it solidifies. This body of work embarks on a voyage to prompt viewers to reflect on the purposeful connections within it and how they contribute to a deeper appreciation of life.
Lee Jin Woo draws inspiration from physical and mental exhaustion, crafting profound layers of charcoal on acrylic-covered linen and Hanji paper through strenuous grinding that transforms the object into abstraction. Lee Jin Woo’s Long River, a monumental painting spanning 5 meters, makes its first public appearance alongside a collection of ink drawings that capture the beauty of China from 2008. Lee features 16 major works created to embrace hope for the land of China with a theme centered around Water.
Through a process of stillness and meticulous layering, Chang Jinwon’s meditative approach, involving up to 40 layers of paint, fosters a deep connection with the regenerative essence of consciousness. His paintings explore a vibrant range of visual tonality, embodying his journey towards eternal light and transcendent perception, resulting in 19 major paintings emanating from this luminous essence. Chang’s work beckons viewers to venture beyond mere visual and physical realms, exploring the depths of darkness, shadows, and light.
Shin Youngho approaches ink painting with the expertise of a scholar fluent in traditional Eastern techniques and calligraphy. He delves into the foundational aspects of painting alongside contemporary interpretations of tradition, reinventing calligraphic art and 'ink and wash' (Shuimo, in Chinese) techniques. Shin accentuates brushstrokes that echo the rhythmic flow of breath, symbolizing the restoration of life, making each stroke a meditation, much like air itself. Featured is his acclaimed Nomad Series offering a contemplation of modern existence through the confined viewpoint of ants. Showcasing 18 works, Shin reimagines the conventions and customs of Shuimo while prompting viewers to reflect on the nature of life and the passage of time.
Exhibition Flyer Graphic Design by Sung Hwan Park
LEE SEUNG HEE
Lee Seung Hee was born in 1958 in Cheongju, the capital of North Chungcheong province, South Korea where he studied ceramics, fiber craft, dyeing, and tapestry prior to relocating to Jingdezhen, China in 2008. For the past 35 years of his artistic career, Lee has been at the revolutionary frontier in the contemporary ceramic art world. Lee has been consistently challenging the overall perspective on ceramic art, employing refined materials and leading to the innovation of contemporary ceramic paintings and installations from the traditional origins of porcelain art. Lee emphasizes motifs, materials, and colors that enable viewers to make a direct connection between his undeniably contemporary works and the rich heritage of Asian Ceramics. Lee's works accentuate the significance of soil and ground, featuring ceramics as his central motif and exploring themes of regeneration.
LEE JIN WOO
Lee Jin Woo is a Korean artist based in Paris, France since 1986 where he attended the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts. Lee is recognized as one of the leading artists of the next generation of Korean artists influenced by the Dansaekhwa movement that came after Park Seo-Bo and Lee Ufan.
Lee Jin Woo’s meticulous layering process, involving transparent layers of charcoal and hanji paper, forged a profound bond with repetition and transformation through laborious efforts and mental exhaustion. The carbon in the paintings is compacted in transparent layers of Hanji paper and dragged with force by a metallic brush through a strenuous and repetitive movement. On the surface, it creates rough and steep reliefs referring to a possible interior landscape. It is this process of subtraction of charcoal and its spirit of alchemy that leads Lee Jin Woo’s work into a state of silence.
JINWON CHANG
Jinwon Chang is a Korean artist who studied Korean traditional painting in South Korea and moved to New York in 2004. Currently based in New York, Jinwon Chang focuses on life and God in his pieces and uses art to grasp the concepts of invisibility and the spiritual world. He uses art as a tool to overcome his confusion on things he cannot see, and as a starting point for understanding and telling the stories of his personal struggles and triumphs in regards to his faith. Jinwon Chang continues his pursuit of ultimate truth, he creates all of his pieces with the underlying idea that his works are not his own, but rather pieces of truth that are translated through his being. In this way, he views himself more as a vessel than the creator and believes that art is one of the most effective methods of sharing eternal truth with others. For Chang, art is just as much a matter of listening and suppressing as it is a matter of speaking and self-expressing.
SHIN YOUNGHO
Shin Youngho is a scholar and a Korean artist specializing in ink painting. He received his bachelor's and Master's degrees in Oriental Painting, complemented by his doctoral studies in the Comparative Study of Calligraphy and Painting at CAFA University in Beijing, China.
Since 2011, he has persistently explored the core principles of Eastern traditional techniques, known as 'Ink and Wash' (Shuimo, in Chinese) in today's context. He questions the foundations of painting and contemporary interpretations of traditions and delves into calligraphic art, accentuating brushstrokes that echo the rhythm of breathing, symbolizing the restoration of life, making each stroke a meditation, much like air itself.