Chalkboard paintings, floor art: Realism exhibitions dominate Seoul's summer art scene

Seoul's art scene is currently abuzz with a series of exhibitions by established realism artists, offering a fresh look at contemporary life through diverse and often unconventional approaches. Major galleries in areas like Bukchon are presenting works that move beyond mere representation, delving into symbolism, metaphor, and personal reflection.

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His chalkboard paintings are filled with memories of what he saw and reflected on over 30 years, including events from his childhood and primordial images from before birth, spanning time and space.

At Gallery Hyundai, Kim Myung-hee's solo exhibition, 'Deep Time,' features her recent works, including a piece depicting a woman ironing against a backdrop of a world map and flowing river imagery. Her exhibition also includes video art and earlier drawings, showcasing her unique 'chalkboard paintings' created over three decades. These works blend memories of her life, travels in Central Asia, and even pre-birth imagery, rendered with meticulous detail using oil pastels. The exhibition plays with dual structures, incorporating video elements like rain on a car window or reflections on water, reminiscent of Velázquez's 'Las Meninas,' to explore new possibilities in painting.

Hakgojae Gallery is hosting Lee Jong-gu's exhibition, 'Contemplation,' his first in eight years. Known for his socially critical realism rooted in peasant art, Lee's new works incorporate Buddhist imagery, such as the Pensive Maitreya and the Baekje Gwaneum, juxtaposed with self-portraits reflecting his recent battle with cancer, depictions of female ascetics, and flames. This shift suggests a move towards exploring spiritual and contemplative realms, a direction hinted at in his 2015 works after visiting the Mihwangsa temple.

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This exhibition shows his efforts to broaden his focus to the world of transcendence and contemplation by incorporating a large number of Buddhist symbolic images, a change that was already evident in his series of works after visiting the Mihwangsa temple in 2015.

Other notable exhibitions include Jeong Bok-su's 'Anatomy of Desire' at Youth Quake, which revisits his provocative 'Floor Paintings' from the 1980s, where viewers walked on depictions of fragmented human bodies. Son Ki-hoet's 'Pandora's Box' at Hello Museum explores childhood memories of war through various media, while Park Eun-tae's 'Masters of Components - People' at Kwanhun Gallery presents his figurative works depicting laborers within industrial structures like semiconductor circuits, spanning from his early surrealist pieces to more abstract recent works.

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The 'Floor Painting,' which caused a great controversy at his first exhibition in 1979, was displayed on the wall, revealing its entirety.