Kitchen 01, 2022, Oil on linen, 100 x 190 cm. (39.4 x 74.8 in.)
Kukje Gallery presents Rocks, Smoke, and Pianos, a solo exhibition by Jina Park, from December 3, 2024, to January 26, 2025, in its Seoul K2 and Hanok spaces. This marks Park’s first solo show at the gallery’s Seoul location since Human Lights in Busan (2021). Featuring approximately 40 new works, the exhibition delves into themes of labor and temporality, capturing moments from spaces such as museum halls, restaurant kitchens, and a piano factory.
Park employs oil and watercolor to reimagine scenes originally photographed at these sites, continuing her practice of using photography as the foundation for her paintings. Since her Lomography series (2004–2007), Park has shifted her focus from narrating events to elevating mundane moments into painterly expressions that transcend the visible. Her latest works epitomize her exploration of the "invisible dimension of space," offering a unique interplay between abstraction and representation.
Unpacking Rocks 03, 2024, 130 x 170 cm. (51.2 x 66.9 in.)
The title Rocks, Smoke, and Pianos reflects the everyday objects and environments Park encountered during her creative process. The "rocks" series depicts scenes from a group exhibition at the Busan Museum of Art, capturing moments of art handlers preparing materials for installation. The "smoke" series illustrates the bustling energy of a restaurant kitchen at Kukje Gallery, while the "pianos" series explores the inner workings of the Steingraeber piano factory in Bayreuth, Germany, where Park documented the meticulous craft of piano manufacturing.
What ties these disparate locations together is their shared identity as "staff-only" spaces, where labor unfolds behind closed doors. However, Park’s lens eschews dramatic narratives in favor of chance-driven compositions. For instance, in her Kitchen series (2022–2024), utensils clutter countertops while smoke drifts upward, taking visual precedence over the figures in action. Similarly, the Red Letters series (2023–2024) highlights vinyl sheets rhythmically scattered across a gallery floor, transforming these elements into an abstract interplay of lines and colors.
Red Letters 03, 2023, Oil on linen, 110 x 168 cm. (43.3 x 66.1 in.)
Park’s works are further distinguished by their embrace of materiality and spontaneity. She deliberately incorporates the physical qualities of her mediums, allowing oil paint to drip and watercolor to stain, creating textures that celebrate imperfection. Her approach challenges traditional hierarchies in painting, achieving a "horizontal" aesthetic where no single element dominates.
The camera is integral to Park’s practice, as it introduces distortions and planar abstractions that inform her compositions. The wide-angle lens, for instance, flattens space and exaggerates proportions, while the flash creates stark contrasts that blur the boundary between abstraction and realism. In works such as Light for Interview (2023) and A Pink Room (2024), these photographic qualities translate into bold color fields and dynamic spatial arrangements, further enhancing the abstract qualities of her paintings.
Piano Factory 07, 2024, Oil on linen, 150 x 180 cm. (59.1 x 70.9 in.)
This exhibition reflects Park’s ongoing inquiry into the "pictoriality of painting." By merging photographic distortions with painterly experimentation, she redefines traditional visual language, bridging figuration and abstraction. The fleeting moments she captures transcend their original contexts, inviting viewers to contemplate the essence of painting as a medium.
Park’s artistic journey spans decades, with notable solo exhibitions including Human Lights (2021) and Snaplife (2010). Her works are held in prominent collections, such as the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, and the Daegu Art Museum. With Rocks, Smoke, and Pianos, Park offers a profound exploration of art’s capacity to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary, reaffirming her status as a leading figure in contemporary Korean art.
Sayart / Maria Kim, sayart2022@gmail.com
Kitchen 01, 2022, Oil on linen, 100 x 190 cm. (39.4 x 74.8 in.)
Kukje Gallery presents Rocks, Smoke, and Pianos, a solo exhibition by Jina Park, from December 3, 2024, to January 26, 2025, in its Seoul K2 and Hanok spaces. This marks Park’s first solo show at the gallery’s Seoul location since Human Lights in Busan (2021). Featuring approximately 40 new works, the exhibition delves into themes of labor and temporality, capturing moments from spaces such as museum halls, restaurant kitchens, and a piano factory.
Park employs oil and watercolor to reimagine scenes originally photographed at these sites, continuing her practice of using photography as the foundation for her paintings. Since her Lomography series (2004–2007), Park has shifted her focus from narrating events to elevating mundane moments into painterly expressions that transcend the visible. Her latest works epitomize her exploration of the "invisible dimension of space," offering a unique interplay between abstraction and representation.
Unpacking Rocks 03, 2024, 130 x 170 cm. (51.2 x 66.9 in.)
The title Rocks, Smoke, and Pianos reflects the everyday objects and environments Park encountered during her creative process. The "rocks" series depicts scenes from a group exhibition at the Busan Museum of Art, capturing moments of art handlers preparing materials for installation. The "smoke" series illustrates the bustling energy of a restaurant kitchen at Kukje Gallery, while the "pianos" series explores the inner workings of the Steingraeber piano factory in Bayreuth, Germany, where Park documented the meticulous craft of piano manufacturing.
What ties these disparate locations together is their shared identity as "staff-only" spaces, where labor unfolds behind closed doors. However, Park’s lens eschews dramatic narratives in favor of chance-driven compositions. For instance, in her Kitchen series (2022–2024), utensils clutter countertops while smoke drifts upward, taking visual precedence over the figures in action. Similarly, the Red Letters series (2023–2024) highlights vinyl sheets rhythmically scattered across a gallery floor, transforming these elements into an abstract interplay of lines and colors.
Red Letters 03, 2023, Oil on linen, 110 x 168 cm. (43.3 x 66.1 in.)
Park’s works are further distinguished by their embrace of materiality and spontaneity. She deliberately incorporates the physical qualities of her mediums, allowing oil paint to drip and watercolor to stain, creating textures that celebrate imperfection. Her approach challenges traditional hierarchies in painting, achieving a "horizontal" aesthetic where no single element dominates.
The camera is integral to Park’s practice, as it introduces distortions and planar abstractions that inform her compositions. The wide-angle lens, for instance, flattens space and exaggerates proportions, while the flash creates stark contrasts that blur the boundary between abstraction and realism. In works such as Light for Interview (2023) and A Pink Room (2024), these photographic qualities translate into bold color fields and dynamic spatial arrangements, further enhancing the abstract qualities of her paintings.
Piano Factory 07, 2024, Oil on linen, 150 x 180 cm. (59.1 x 70.9 in.)
This exhibition reflects Park’s ongoing inquiry into the "pictoriality of painting." By merging photographic distortions with painterly experimentation, she redefines traditional visual language, bridging figuration and abstraction. The fleeting moments she captures transcend their original contexts, inviting viewers to contemplate the essence of painting as a medium.
Park’s artistic journey spans decades, with notable solo exhibitions including Human Lights (2021) and Snaplife (2010). Her works are held in prominent collections, such as the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, and the Daegu Art Museum. With Rocks, Smoke, and Pianos, Park offers a profound exploration of art’s capacity to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary, reaffirming her status as a leading figure in contemporary Korean art.
