An exhibition of new paintings by
Su Kwak in which the Korean-born artist continues her provocative
explorations of light and color on carefully sliced canvases will open at
the June Kelly Gallery on Thursday, 11 June.
The works will remain on view through July 7.
Su Kwak believes, says art
historian Sandy Kita in the exhibition catalogue, that “painting must
manifest concepts, feelings and other nonmaterial things in a tangible
physical form,” and not simply “report on, record or respond to what the eye
sees.”
Kwak seeks to “capture light,
which is immaterial, in the material form of her paintings,” Kita writes.
For Kwak, light has spiritual meaning, but the spirit, says Kita, “being so
much more a thing of God, ultimately has to be left in the realm of the
mysterious.”
Water, the sky, rainbows, the sun
are among Kwak’s other material subjects that “have the power to manifest
immaterial light. … What Kwak chooses to
paint always pushes past the literal,” Kita notes.
For many years, Kwak has been
cutting and folding her canvases. The folds and cuts were once small, Kita
comments, but they have now grown to the points where the slit in one recent
work reaches more than half way across the large canvas.
“Cutting, peeling and suturing the
canvas is central to her new work,” Kita writes.
“Kwak says that she makes the cut and then lets it naturally open
over time. The result is that the areas between the slits take on a
beautiful rounded form that gives the painting a three-dimensional element.
“The work of Su Kwak is beautiful
and well-crafted,” Kita concludes. … “Skill and
beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but even if we cannot define them
absolutely, we can recognize them. For that
reason, I believe the art of Su Kwak will have a rich future.”
Kwak lives and works in
Washington, DC. She received a bachelor's
degree in art from The University of St. Thomas, Houston, Texas, and a
master’s degree from The University of Chicago.
Kwak has participated in many
one-person and group exhibitions throughout the United States and Korea.
She is represented in numerous public and
private collections, including The National Museum of Contemporary Art,
Seoul, South Korea; The Busan Metropolitan Museum of Art, South Korea; Kwang
Ju City Museum, South Korea; Seoul Museum of Art, South Korea;
Asian-American Arts Center, New York; Korean Embassy, Washington, DC, and
Hale and Dorr, Washington, DC.
