Hanji, a distinctive Mulberry-pulp paper used by most Korean book printers until the 1930s, remains at the core of       Kwang-Young Chun's artistic practice, the material expression of his imagination. More than a childhood association, Mulberry paper is part of the Korean ethos and identity; it has been used for centuries for writing, printing, and painting, but also to line walls and floors, as packaging, and for weatherproofing. As the artist says, "For me, hanji represents Korea, my ancestors, the Korean spirit."
 

Sourced from indigenous trees and prized for their       strength and water resistance, Chun carefully selects his paper from older, scholarly manuscripts and philosophical texts that he collects and stores in air-conditioned warehouses. He has accumulated more than 20,000 historical texts, some of which span centuries, that were produced using printing methods that have remained virtually unchanged since the thirteen century.

 

Moreover, the aged paper retains the imprint of those       who have touched them over generations, which adds a spiritual dimension to his practice. "I can't use new paper," he told the New York Times ahead of a 2006 exhibition of his work. "For me, the old paper has a life, a history. It contains the soul of the people who touched it. In a way, I'm wrapping the stories of people's lives."           

Chun has said that his artistic aim was to "tell the story of my culture." By uniting sculpture and painting into   strikingly expressive representations of his personal history, existential   philosophy, cultural identity and Art History, the artist has converged  and reconciled past, present and future into exceptionally beautiful narrative landscapes.
 

  "A great artist, especially in an art world that is increasingly global   in its reach," wrote Ann Landi, curator of the 2009 Kwang Young Chun exhibition at the Mori Arts Museum, "must of necessity transcend the narrowness of the traditions on which it initially draws. The work needs broader appeal if it is to have any sort of staying power, and as   Chun's critics and collectors have recognized, he has indeed found a language   that speaks on many levels and in universal terms."
 

Landau Contemporary is proud to present our online catalogue of works by Kwang-Young Chun entitled Convergence, which includes iconic works from our own private collection at the Dominion Gallery, cast alongside new works of celestial orbs that have been the artist's most recent philosophical focus.