< Solid but Fluid > Exhibition Review
February 17, 2022
A Team
Artist Hong Sungchul held an exhibition at UARTSPACE from November 21 to December 22, 2018. This exhibition is the first solo exhibition held in Korea in 7 years after solo exhibitions in London and Paris.
The artist, who is working under the theme of ‘Hand,’ presented works expressing the meaning of communication in this exhibition. It also unveiled new works recently produced using cloth or beads as a material, including works related to ‘The Hand.’ A total of six works were exhibited, with four hand-themed works, one cloth, and one bead ring.
The position of their hands varies for each work. The commonality between the object of ‘hand’ in the work and the main material, ‘line,’ is that it is a symbolic medium that connects each other. When looking at String_hands_0718 and String_hands_5481, holding hands behind each other’s backs looks like holding hands tightly because they don’t want to miss something, or forcing them to hold them.
Strings_0473 shows a slightly more complicated aspect of the relationship in the work that uses beads. The beads are tightly threaded on the string, so it doesn’t look like they will break, but the unorganized and tangled appearance is rather uncomfortable and does not give a sense of stability.
Works consisting of several string layers represent the numerous human relationships we have in our lives. Just as the lines are combined within a limited iron frame to complete a single work, it also means an independent self that lives in relationships with others.
In the contemporary era, due to the development of the Internet and communication, it is necessary to continue the desired and unwanted relationship. In this process, we sometimes hide our true selves and live as false ‘Ego’. Hong Sungchul wants to look into what the true ‘My self’ is through his work and even look inside us.
