The Albemarle Shows: at Art Moorhouse

About

The works of Park Jieun are born from a combined fascination with travel and traditional Korean methods of painting. Revealing hidden cityscapes through windows of broad, expressive brushstrokes, Park Jieun evokes the subconscious emotions that are inspired by interactions with places. In these spaces, one can experience solitude or joy, can be drawn in by obsessions and linger as a guest in other cultures. The artist explores these urban landscapes, exposing them as fleeting glimpses seen through the potent lens of the brushstroke.

At first, Jeong Woojae's paintings appear as charming and playful expressions of the harmonious relationship between humans and animals. The artist uses the symbol of the dog, playfully enlarged, to provide comfort and support in a world that is rife with societal pressure. In these photo-real paintings, the sizes of the girl and dog are reversed, emphasising the human need for nurture and protection. 

South Korean artist JIHI creates mixed media images on panel which, at first glance, seem to be simple, graffiti-like characters. These humble forms combine to create an allegory full of highly implicit symbols. Complex concepts of personal interaction are reduced to patterns, a dialogue of colour and form. The worlds portrayed in these spaces echo with contemporary communication; shapes relay and repeat one another as if in conversation. They are functional and impersonal. Narrative is inferred and imagination aroused through short segments of text amongst the repeated symbols. Amorphous patterns of block colour cluster and disperse, as though reacting to each other as a person to a text message.