Haejin Yoon's (b. 1975, S.Korea) second solo exhibition in New York, and first solo exhibition at the gallery, will feature new paintings and sculpture that use amorphous figures and forms to suggest various metaphors for the creative process. Working with a combination of both abstraction and fi... Read more
Haejin Yoon’s (b. 1975, S.Korea) second solo exhibition in New York, and first solo exhibition at the gallery, will feature new paintings and sculpture that use amorphous figures and forms to suggest various metaphors for the creative process. Working with a combination of both abstraction and figuration, Yoon creates a mysterious recurring cast of characters that are intentionally ambiguous and read as neither human nor animal. The strange duality of the figures find a parallel in tenants of Psychophysics and Taoism and suggest an endless set of metaphorical divisions between the body and soul, dead and alive, male and female, happy and sad, young and old.
In some works a pair of eyes or hint of limb ominously or playfully suggests the figure. In others the form is fully realized and enacts a comical or horrific snippet of narrative. The sometimes pained, ecstatic icons that reoccur in these works can at times appear architectural, monolithic or amorphous. Fabric is sometimes incorporated into the compositions and in concert with the artist’s expressionist use of paint suggests varying states of metamorphosis, growth and decay.
Yoon works quickly and intuitively, relying on a spontaneous relationship to the subject and medium. Her technique is automatic, and immediate and she uses her dripping, peeling, pasting, cutting and spraying to unite these works into a cohesive body. Her colorful paintings are both tactile and energetic and remind us that creation is born of many different kinds of emotional engagement with our own physicality.
Currently living and working in New York, Yoon received both her BFA and MFA from Parsons School of Design. She has had previous solo exhibitions at A.I.R Gallery, Brooklyn and Insa Gallery, Seoul, Korea. Her exhibitions have been reviewed previously in the New York Times.
