Exhibitions
《From Eggs to Apples》, 2023.07.19 – 2023.08.30, Shinhan Gallery
July 19, 2023
Shinhan Gallery

Installation
view of 《From Eggs to Apples》 © Shinhan
Gallery
From July 19 to August 30, 2023, Shinhan Gallery presents an
exhibition 《From Eggs to
Apples》, featuring the works of the ‘2023 Shinhan Young
Artist Festa’ group competition, Gwen Seol, Hyunmo Yang, Hyundoo Jung, and
Iljun Choi. The paintings of the four artists borrow implications from the
concept of abstract paintings. Can we say paintings that emphasize distinct
shapes are necessarily realized based only on the aspirations of the
conception?
Conversely, can we say that there is no exploration of form, be it
an object or a landscape, behind an abstracted representation? In fact, it may
be that abstract paintings are the result of a debate over the boundaries of a
particular concept, or that they originate from an abstract imagination that
changes infinitely in the process of painting, rather than being confirmed by
the resulting surfaces. This exhibition examines the ways in which painting is
defined as abstract by focusing on the implications inherent in the term
‘abstract painting’, namely, the differentiation of the processes that painters
mobilize in between when they share ‘painting’, as the beginning, and
‘abstraction’, as the end.

Installation
view of 《From Eggs to Apples》 © Shinhan
Gallery
Rather than starting their work with a clearly defined concept of
abstract painting, the four artists use their abstract imaginations throughout
the production process for a single outcome. They use their own methods ― arm
movements (Hyundoo Jung), workings of perception (Hyunmo Yang), digital tools
(Gwen Seol), and effects of chemicals (Iljun Choi) ― to lead their imaginations
into paintings.
Jung starts with an image in his mind, referencing various
places such as his painting experience, art historical knowledge, and everyday
life, and explores how it is transferred to the screen and transformed into a
trace or another shape through his body.
By focusing on the detailed workings
of vision and perception, Yang experiments with the state of an image that oscillates
between opposing senses of blurriness and clarity.
Seol senses the homogeneity
between experiences on the internet and experiences in real life, and utilizes
digital tools to create new images as a crystallization of sensations.
Choi is
preoccupied with the phenomenon of distortion and illusion surrounding reality,
questioning the order of boundaries between binary concepts.

Installation
view of 《From Eggs to Apples》 © Shinhan
Gallery
“From eggs to apples” is a phrase that captures a custom that was
once common in the dining culture of European cities including Rome. At
banquets of the time, it was customary to have eggs for appetizers and apples
for dessert. This phrase, which combines the simple names of the ingredients
with a preposition, establishes the universal role of eggs and apples as first
and last, regardless of region. At the same time, what is erased in-between the
names of the two ingredients suggests the place of many foods served in
different cities.
Like this phrase, in which the names of various foods are
erased and only eggs and apples remain, 《From Eggs to Apples》 assumes that the
paintings of Gwen Seol, Hyunmo Yang, Hyundoo Jung, and Iljun Choi share the
same beginning and the end: painting and abstraction. As an exhibition, it
suggests looking at the processes that must have occurred in the interim to
move their paintings toward abstraction.