Before and After, 130cmx130cm, Acrylic, crystal and Mother of Pearl on Canvas, 2019

 

 

Hyun-sook Jeong is an artist who has continuously expanded the definition of painting through the use of luminous materials such as mother-of-pearl and crystal. These materials transcend mere ornamentation, embracing the perceptual, sensory, spiritual, and structural questions of contemporary art. This exhibition offers a diachronic perspective on her two-decade-long exploration of “painting with light,” “painting as object,” and “painting as perception.”

 

Spanning from her formal experiments of the 2000s to her recent monochromatic minimalism, this exhibition chronologically presents how the traditional material of mother-of-pearl has been used to construct temporal layers. It is not merely a record of one artist’s trajectory, but a rigorous inquiry traversing tradition and modernity, craft and fine art, modernism and the postmodern era.

 

 

About wish 2532, 한재에 채색과 바느질, 130x130cm, 2025

 

 

Over the past several years, Soon-cheol Kim has been exploring the interplay between materiality and emotion in contemporary Korean art through a unique technique she calls Hoesu (繪繡)—a practice that merges painting and embroidery on traditional Korean hanji paper. By positioning painting and needlework side by side, Kim subtly exposes the tensions between tradition and modernity, flatness and dimensionality, intuition and handcraft.

 

In her latest Butterfly series, presented at her solo exhibition at OMAE Gallery, Kim builds upon his earlier Flower series by layering a new symbolic system. She juxtaposes the flower—a static, life-filled form—with the butterfly—a dynamic and elusive presence—on a single canvas, invoking the simultaneous coexistence of temporality and sensuality, presence and absence. The iconography of “flowers and butterflies,” deeply rooted in East Asian aesthetics, has long symbolized life, hope, transience, and cyclical renewal. Kim intertwines this symbolism with her personal theme of “wish,” infusing her work with a more intimate lyricism.

 

The Labyrinth of Origin 24, mixed media on handmade Korean mulberry paper, 130x130cm, 2024

 

 

OMAE Gallery presents The Labyrinth of Origin, a solo exhibition by SEOSY (世悟示), as the first show of its spring season. The exhibition highlights the artist’s acclaimed reinterpretation of gold leaf aesthetics in a contemporary context. SEOSY is the artistic sub-character created in 2024 by Sooyoung Seo, a renowned color painter known for her figurative works rooted in traditional Korean sensibilities and motifs, with over 30 solo exhibitions held both in Korea and internationally.

 

In contrast to Soo-young Seo’s figurative style, SEOSY explores abstraction, using gold leaf as a central medium. As the name “SEOSY” (世悟示) suggests—meaning “one who reveals spiritual awakening to the world”—the artist follows a path of inquiry into questions such as “What is origin, essence, and foundation?” With a doctorate in traditional gold pigment techniques, SEOSY demonstrates exceptional expertise in the contemporary interpretation of traditional forms.

 

This exhibition features over 30 works in both two-dimensional and installation formats, all of which reinterpret traditional gold leaf techniques through SEOSY’s unique artistic language. Meditative, serene, and resonant, SEOSY’s works invite viewers into a quiet space of subtle yet profound contemplation.

 

 

 

 

 

The Most Beautiful Moment in Life – Plum blossom, acrylic on terracotta panel, 165x95x10cm(L), 95x98x7cm(R), 2024

 

 

Artist Ji-sook Lee has consistently worked in terracotta reliefs, gaining popularity with her book-themed series inspired by minhwa (Korean folk painting) motifs. Another well-received body of work includes her “Candy” series. In this exhibition, she presents a new piece titled Plum Blossom. As plum blossoms bloom even in the snow, they symbolize the ability to flourish and bear fruit despite hardship and adversity.

 

Lee continues to work under the overarching theme of Hwayangyeonhwa—“the most beautiful moment in life”—and she sees the plum blossom as a true embodiment of this concept: a flower that turns difficulty into beauty, and memory into poetry. Her decision to depict plum blossoms not under bright sunlight, but within darkness and snow, reflects the belief that true beauty shines even more after enduring pain. We hope viewers will find deep comfort in her new works Night Plum Blossom and Plum in the Snow.

 

Beyond the horizon, hemp, silk thread, machine stitching, lacquer, 150x100x12cm, 2025

 

 

She is widely known as a textile artist who folds and sews hemp or ramie to create infinitely evolving forms.

 

The title of her solo exhibition, Beyond the Boundary, reflects her desire to draw a parallel between the endlessly repeated, folded fabric forms and the new worlds she encounters as she continues to challenge herself beyond her own limits.

 

The sculptural works created by Hana Jo grow clearer in line and softer in light the longer one observes them, evoking a sense of eternity that invites boundless imagination in the viewer.

 

In this, her 13th solo exhibition, she presents larger-scale works rather than small pieces, pouring all her energy into transcending her own artistic boundaries.

 

 

 

Peony motif lacquered double openwork, 65(h) x 25cm, reduction firing at 1270°C, 2010s

 

 

A commemorative exhibition marking the 10th anniversary of the passing of ceramic master Seunggeun Jeon of Muto, renowned for his double openwork technique and praised for having made a “remarkable contribution to Korean ceramics after the era of Goryeo celadon,” will be held at OMAE Gallery for one month until February 28, 2025.

 

His precise openwork pieces are particularly noteworthy as they were created at a time when the quality of clay was inferior to today’s standards and had extremely high shrinkage rates. His non-orthogonal forms evoke deep admiration, especially considering the technical difficulty of maintaining their shape through the drying and firing processes.

 

We hope that Korea’s proud ceramic tradition will continue to remember his legacy and, through him, be passed down and flourish even further.

 

 

 

Blue Dragon, mixed media, 91x73cm, 2008

 

 

Born in 1951 in Gyeongju, Sun-lee Kim has never ceased painting since she first picked up a brush in 1955. At a time when societal expectations confined women to household labor and denied them the freedom to pursue artistic careers, she forged her own path—quietly but persistently—without ever pausing her artistic journey.

 

Deeply influenced by traditional Korean minhwa (folk painting), and shaped by over a decade of study in both folk art and ceramics, Kim has developed a distinct body of work in low-relief ceramic sculpture. Her unique mixed-media creations range across various themes, notably her celebrated “Tiger and Rooster” series and her powerful ceramic series.

 

This exhibition focuses on her large-scale earthenware works—pieces that evoke echoes of ancient forms, yet feel strikingly contemporary. Though sculpted from earth, her works transcend their material, conveying a sense of vitality that is both timeless and bold. The emotional depth and formal clarity of her art emerge from thousands of drawings and years of working on monumental canvases, resulting in a visual language that is truly her own.

 

 

 

FFanG’s World – The Garden of Imagination, ceramic, acrylic on wood panel, 65.1x53x8.5cm, 2024   

 

 

OMAE Gallery invites you to explore FFanG’s World, a realm where reality and imagination seamlessly intertwine. In this vividly personal universe, FFanG—the central character and storyteller—navigates between two- and three-dimensional forms, reflecting the artist’s evolving thoughts and experiences over time. Rather than a fleeting daydream or complete fantasy, FFanG’s World is a “shallow imagined world,” one tethered to reality yet shaped by personal perception. It is a space where past, present, and future coexist, serving as both the conceptual origin of the artist’s practice and the driving force behind her creative life.

 

Among the sunlit spaces of this imaginary garden, the blooming of flowers becomes a powerful metaphor for human life. From childhood, likened to a seed taking root, to full blossom symbolizing self-discovery and influence, each stage of growth is rendered in ceramic works that endure heat and fragility—just like life itself. The tangle of leaves and stems reveals inner conflict and personal growth, while the unfading flowers represent the strength to embrace both beauty and impermanence. In FFanG’s World, blooming is not only a celebration of life’s peak moments, but also a reflection on their inevitable fading—revealing the duality of joy and mortality that shapes us all.

Sound of fireworks, acrylic on canvas, 222x260cm, 2023

 

OMAE Gallery is pleased to invite you to an exhibition that explores the quiet yet powerful presence of wild nature within everyday urban life. The artist draws inspiration from the humble plants that grow between cracks in the pavement—dandelions, foxtail grass, celosia—and from the personal connection built over years with houseplants like a resilient monstera. These observations become poetic images, capturing the rhythms of nature that mirror our own stories of growth, resilience, and transformation.

 

This exhibition presents a collection of works shaped by lived experience and emotional dialogue with plants. Through soft distortions, vibrant colors, and tactile forms, the artist reveals a world where flowers, roots, and memories intertwine. Each piece becomes a gentle reminder of our deep connection to the natural world, offering viewers a moment of reflection, healing, and freedom beyond the constraints of daily life.

 

OMAE Gallery warmly invites you to an exhibition that celebrates the quiet elegance and profound symbolism of the Korean moon jar, reimagined through the traditional lacquer technique of geonchil.

 

Geonchil is a sculptural lacquer craft that builds form not on a wooden frame, but by layering hemp or ramie over a base and shaping it through repeated applications of lacquer. In this exhibition, the moon jar—a timeless icon of Korean identity—is reborn. Its organic, asymmetrical form holds the warmth and generosity of the Korean spirit, while its rounded shape radiates harmony, balance, and understated beauty.

 

Through the hands of master artisan Daehyun Son, the moon jar is reinterpreted with a unique sculptural sensitivity. His refined aesthetic vision adds depth, transparency, and grace to the traditional form, maintaining its full-bodied curves while illuminating it with a contemporary perspective. This is a rare opportunity to witness the union of ancient material, spiritual form, and modern craftsmanship.