Roh Kyung-min’s "There Is No Salvation" and Choi Yang-hee’s "The Temperature of Grass" to Open October 13 at the Chungbuk Gallery Cheongju OSCO Center

The Chungbuk Gallery Cheongju OSCO Center, operated by the Chungbuk Culture Foundation (CEO Kim Kyung-shik), is hosting dual solo exhibitions by artists Roh Kyung-min and Choi Yang-hee from October 13 to 25.

The two exhibitions present scenes and subjects encountered in everyday life, captured through each artist's unique perspective and translated into painting. Korean ink wash painter Roh Kyung-min captures fleeting moments found in daily life, such as light and shadow, flowers, and the night sky. Meanwhile, oil painter Choi Yang-hee expresses the colors and sensory experiences felt while observing grass encountered along her walking paths.

Roh Kyung-min’s "There Is No Salvation": Capturing Fading Light and Moments of Daily Life

There Is No Salvation is an exhibition that captures life continuing even after faith in salvation has vanished, along with the beautiful moments discovered within it. Artist Roh Kyung-min transfers scenes encountered while navigating everyday life with scars and deficiencies onto the canvas. Ordinary moments accidentally discovered in daily life become the subjects of her work, including figures cradling a child, light descending onto a floor through a window, a bouquet of flowers on a dark floor, the night sky between complex power lines and old buildings, and magnolias blooming under a streetlamp.

The light in her works is less a salvation that changes reality than a fleeting moment that appears and disappears. While the light lingers, subjects are tenderly revealed, but once the light fades, the darkness sharpens again. Through these moments, the artist expresses the desire to hold onto beauty even while knowing it will disappear.

By repeating the process of letting ink and color soak into traditional mulberry paper (jangji), drying it, and layering it again, the red hues that once filled the canvas remain as a faint, lingering orange warmth between the ink-black and blue tones. Through this technique, the artist slowly captures moments that slipped past in reality onto the canvas.

Choi Yang-hee’s "The Temperature of Grass": Colors and Sensations Discovered in Long-Observed Grass

The Temperature of Grass is an exhibition expressing the color changes and sensations discovered by closely observing grass encountered along walking paths in oil paintings. Artist Choi Yang-hee observes the colors of grass that shift according to light, shadow, season, and time, utilizing a process of building up and wiping away layers of paint to render the greens on the canvas in diverse color palettes.

The "temperature" in the exhibition title does not refer to the actual physical temperature of the grass, but rather to the sensations and memories evoked by color and light. It embodies the artist's perspective of sharing the beauty discovered by looking at small blades of grass within familiar landscapes with the audience.

Notably, through works depicting grass woven like gift packaging, she expresses the desire to hand over the beauty discovered in daily life to others. The green originating from real grass passes through the artist's memories and emotions, manifesting on the canvas with new colors and temperatures.

Kim Kyung-shik, CEO of the Chungbuk Culture Foundation, stated, "This exhibition offers a fresh perspective on the light, landscapes, and small blades of grass that we easily pass by in our daily lives. We hope visitors will take time to discover their own senses and beauty within the familiar everyday through the works of these two artists."

Meanwhile, gallery hours are from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Tuesday through Saturday, and from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Sundays. The gallery is closed on Mondays.

[ⓒ Global Economic Times. 무단전재-재배포 금지]