Kukje Gallery is pleased to announce its participation in the 5th edition of West Bund Art & Design at the West Bund Art Center in Shanghai, China, from November 8 through November 11, 2018. This will be the the first time that Kukje Gallery is exhibiting in this vital fair in one of China’s most vibrant cities. Tracing the western shoreline of the Huángpǔ River for 11km, the area of West Bund has positioned itself as Shanghai’s art hub, developing its factory district into a vibrant art complex centered on its museums and cultural venues. Launched in 2014, the 5th anniversary of West Bund Art & Design will include more than 110 leading international galleries from 43 cities across Asia, Europe, and North and South America, with 39 galleries including Kukje Gallery participating for the first time.
West Bund Art & Design will be organized in sections including ‘Galleries,’ a section which will show galleries from all over the world; ‘ArtReview Asia Xiàn Chǎng,’ a section which is comprised of solo presentations by artists inside and outside the West Bund Art Center; along a new section titled ‘DREAM Video 100’ launched this year, which will feature a premier program of over 100 film and video works presented on the outdoor LED projection wall of the Dream Center on the West Bund Plaza.
Kukje Gallery will highlight works by Dansaekhwa artists including Kwon Young-Woo, Park Seo-Bo, Ha Chong-Hyun, and Lee Ufan all of whom are also participating in a major Dansaekhwa exhibition at the Powerlong Museum in Shanghai opening on November 8. In addition, the booth will showcase Untitled (1991), a dot painting by Kim Yong-Ik who is celebrated for his politically independent stance and conceptual practice that uses drawing and painting; Canine Construction – small (2013) by Gimhongsok, who is currently the subject of a solo exhibition titled Dwarf, Dust, Doubt at Tina Kim Gallery in New York through November 30; and What you see is the unseen / Chandeliers for Five Cities SR01-01 (2015-2016) by Kyungah Ham, an artist internationally recognized for her meticulously hand-embroidered paintings created in collaboration with North Korean artisans.
Haegue Yang, who was recently named the recipient of the Republic of Korea Culture and Arts Award (Presidential Citation), will showcase her new works Sonic Clotheshorse – Dressage #1 and Sonic Clotheshorse – Dressage #2 for the first time. Representing a new direction for the artist, Sonic Clotheshorses consist of a sculpture which has handles on all sides, thereby leaving open the possibility of performance between a performer and the object. This performativity can be seen in context of works such as Sonic Sculptures (ongoing since 2013), a series of sculptures made of brass and nickel plated bells that can be activated by the viewer thereby creating a tremendous crescendo of sound, and Non-Indépliables (ongoing since 2006), which are modified drying racks that possess uncanny presence and personality.
The booth will also exhibit works by a celebrated roster of leading international contemporary artists including Igreja de Sao Francisco de Assis Salvador de Bahia II 2005 by the German photographer Candida Höfer; Chris (2012) by American video artist Bill Viola; Mirror (Brandy Wine to Laser Red mix2 to Brandy Wine (2018) by Anish Kapoor; Walking in Hackney. 2. (2016) by Julian Opie, whose works capture the most primal human actions of walking and running; and the French artist Jean-Michel Othoniel’s glass bead sculpture Collier Or (2017).
Based in Seoul, Kukje Gallery is internationally known for its rigorous program of critically acclaimed artists. The upcoming exhibition schedule includes the debut solo exhibition in Korea of the London-based Colombian artist Oscar Murillo, opening November 29, which will include new paintings, drawings, and installations.
