PAMM
Leandro Erlich at PAMM PAMM has brought together 16 works for Leandro Erlich’s first-ever solo survey, on view 11am-6pm starting Nov. 29. Presented individually, Erlich’s installations offer a small window into his uncanny vision of everyday life, but together they create a total experience of architectural dream-logic, where staircases lead nowhere and nothing is quite as it seems. When and Where November 29, 2022 – September 4, 2023Perez Art Museum Miami1103 Biscayne Blvd
The Warehouse
Selections from the Elizabeth Margulies Collection at the Warehouse Elizabeth Margulies’ collection that highlights ultra-contemporary stars ranging from Ivy Haldeman to Barry McGee, and Lauren Quin to Emily Mae Smith is having its debut showing at the Warehouse in Wynwood. Curious how she built it? All here, this is the first time that the Warehouse, which houses the storied Martin Margulies Collection has allowed another collection to be shown—that hopes to speak to a new generation. When and Where October 19, 2022 – April 23, 2023The Margulies Collection at the Warehouse591 NW 27th st
THE ICA
Nina Chanel Abney at the ICA Given the references to university greek life, it might come as a surprise that “Big Butch Energy,” Nina Chanel Abney’s second ICA project (following her recent mural at ICA Boston), is autobiographical in nature. In fact, by turning the messy eroticism of frat houses on its head, Abney draws upon her personal experiences as a “Butch” woman to push the boundaries of how viewers perceive gender in her latest paintings, on view 12 pm-6 pm starting Nov. 28. When and Where November 28, 2022 – March 12, 2023The ICA61 NE 41st Street
THE DE LA CRUZ COLLECTION
Together, the Same Time Presented as an extension of their home, each year the de la Cruz collection brings together dozens of artists from Rosa and Carlos’ private collection, this year highlighting groups of works by Felix Gonzales-Torres, Ana Mendieta, and Christina Quarles, on view 10 am-4 pm daily during Miami art week. When and Where Until Fall 2023The de la Cruz Collection23 NE 41 st
MOCA
Didier Wiliam at MoCA North Miami Nou Kite Tout Sa Dèyè (We’ve Left That All Behind) sees one of North Miami’s own in his largest retrospective to date, comprising prints, new paintings, and Didier Wiliams’ first monumental sculpture, a towering wooden figure based on those in Haitian worship rituals, on view 10 am-5 pm daily with extended night hours Wednesday, Nov. 30 and Thursday, Dec. 1. When and Where November 2, 2022 – April 16, 2023MoCA North Miami770 NE 125th st
Samcheong
Tucked in the hills across from the old imperial palace, the Blue-chip Korean galleries populate this picturesque neighborhood, making it rather easy to engage with Korean modern masters as well as the art stars of tomorrow. Think Chelsea, but instead of warehouse spaces, the galleries are starchitect spaces. The Kukje Gallery Founded in 1982, Kukje is an international champion of the Dansaekhwa movement (also known as Korean monochrome), having participated in Art Basel since 1998. Kukje was also the first Korean gallery to show many of the West’s most important artists, including Alexander Calder, Louise Bourgeois, Ugo Rondinone, and Jenny Holzer. Kukje will open a major show across all 3 adjacent galleries on Sept. 1 of Lee Seung Jio’s pioneering paintings of abstract cylindrical forms from his “Nucleus” series that began in the 1960s. Vice president Bo Young Song gave us the rundown on just what makes Kukje stand out, read here! The Tina Kim Gallery Tina Kim Gallery is a fixture of the international scene, but in fact, Kim herself is the daughter of Kukje founder, Mrs. Lee. Kim opened in 2001 with the goal of broadening the audience for both Korea’s Dansaekhwa and emerging Asian artists. Though Kim does not have a gallery in Seoul, her presence looms large: and for this week, she is collaborating with Andrew Kreps and Bortolami on a pop-up exhibition at the Songwon Art Center (see “New to Town” on the main page). Gallery Hyundai Hyundai Fun fact: Hyundai simply means “modern” in Korean. The gallery is in no way affiliated with the car giant, so don’t be fooled! Hyundai celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2020, making it the longest-running commercial Korean gallery focused on contemporary art. Founder Park Myung-Ja’s gallery has made significant contributions to the development of Korean contemporary art, with milestones including their launch of the art magazine “Hwarang” in 1973, and hosting Nam June Paik’s famous “Pas de loup” performance in 1990. The gallery opens Kenny Scharf’s new exhibition, “New! Now! Good!” on Aug. 30. Jason Haam Gallery Founded in 2018, Jason Haam’s gallery offers a model that’s a bit distinct from his peers: offering international representation for Western artists on the ground in Seoul. The gallery debuted with Oliver Arms, followed by the first solo exhibition of Sarah Lucas’s work in Asia. A solo exhibition by Urs Fischer opened on Aug. 25, coinciding with the artist’s Gagosian exhibition of over 500 digital sculptures in Los Angeles. For a closer look, read our Q&A with Haam himself. PKM Gallery PKM opened in 2001 and introduced Gabriel Oroco, Carsten Holler, Oldenberg and Van Brueggen, and Olafur Eliasson to the Korean audience, but at the same time, has become instrumental in supporting Korean artists here too. PKM was among the first Korean galleries invited to the Frieze Art fair in 2004, and their newest building is one of the largest in historic Samcheong, with over 4000 sq. ft. of exhibition space. Currently on view is “Mind in Matter,” by Chung Chang-Sup—one of the most prominent Dansaekhwa artists, who combined Taoist beliefs and Western minimalism to explore the possibilities of traditional Korean mulberry paper pulp spread on canvas. Leeahn Gallery Founder Hyeryung Ahn has galleries in both Seoul and Daegu. She opened her Seoul branch in 2013, where “Reborn,” by Kun-Yong Lee opens Aug. 25. The artist is known for his performative “Bodyscape” paintings. While international galleries are flocking to Seoul, Ahn has an expansion of her Daegu gallery slated to debut next summer. Last summer, she showed new works by Elizabeth Peyton inspired by the films of Wong Kar Wai. One and J Gallery Since its opening in 2005, the One and J Gallery has fostered young Korean artists. “First Echo” by Jong Oh, who creates minimalist sculptures that respond to their environment, opens Aug. 29, and will also feature in the gallery’s Frieze booth. One and J. has launched the careers of today’s Korean art stars (including Suki Seoyang Kang). The gallery also has its One and J. +1 project space for emerging artists and curators. An exhibition by tech-experimental collective teamVOID will open on Oct. 7. Hakgojae Since 1988, the gallery has focused on creating intersections of past and present, and also East and West, inspired by the Confucian motto translated as, “to review the old to learn the new.” Hakgojae stands out as one of the only contemporary galleries in Seoul housed in a traditional Korean building. The gallery was one of the first to exhibit work from the politically controversial Minjung social realist movement and has also fostered the careers of many Dansaekhwa painters. Their upcoming exhibition, “At First Sight” by Kang Yo-Bae, known for his large, ethereal landscapes, opens on Aug. 26.
Itaewon/Hannam
These neighborhoods are known as the international areas, where the American military base and global embassies are headquartered. It’s also seen as the city’s more libertine neighborhood. So it’s not a surprise that many Blue-chip international galleries call Itaewon home. Pace Gallery Pace has had a presence here since 2018, and this week inaugurates an expanded complex, further cementing its commitment to the region. Opening Sept. 2 are Adrian Ghenie’s first solo exhibition in Asia and new works by teamLab. The new complex also includes the Osulloc Tea House (that does indeed serve teas and cocktails), offering Korean-language versions of Pace publications alongside editions, prints, and multiples by Kohei Nawa and Lee Kun-Yong. Lehmann Maupin Gallery The gallery inaugurated a major expansion of their Seoul location with a Lari Pittman show this past fall, and was the first to show Korean-born artist Do Ho Suh beginning in 2000. An exhibition by McArthur Binion opens Sept. 1, continuing the connected bodies of work “DNA:Study” and “(Visual:Ear),” of colorful, jazz-influenced grid paintings. Various Small Fires Opened in LA in 2012, the gallery’s name was inspired by Ed Ruscha’s 1964 artist’s book, “Various Small Fires.” Longtime friends Ed Ruscha and Billy Al Bengston inaugurated the Seoul space 3 years ago with a duo exhibition. A Diedrick Brackens show of new wall-based textiles, “together our shadows make a single belly,” opens Sept. 2, the LA-based artist’s first in Asia. Whistle Established in 2017 with an emphasis on sensory experiences of art, Whistle represents emerging and mid-career Korean artists including Jiieh G Hur and Gi Young Kim. Known for his sculpture installations that often incorporate colorful squiggles and television sets, Taeyoon Kim presents “Oblique Afternoons” starting Aug. 19. Gallery Baton Alongside their Hannam gallery, Baton prioritizes support for under-presented artists with two not-for-profit studio and exhibition spaces and their video and new media art venue, Observation Deck. In “Know Yourself,” Song Burnsoo’s first solo exhibition with the gallery, opening Aug. 23, he presents a series of new works based on the motif of the thorn, which has developed over the course of his 50-year career into a religious symbol for the ups and downs of everyday life. P21 Gallery P21’s unique space, made up of two separate adjacent storefronts (P1 and P2), encourages artists to step outside their normal practice to create site-specific installations. Opened in 2017 by Soo Choi, the founder also serves as managing director of König Gallery’s Seoul location (see below). A solo exhibition by queer sculptor and photographer Haneyl Choi opens on Aug. 25.
Gangnam
Gallery SP Since 1989, this artist’s print workshop has produced over 20,000 prints with Korean and Western artists, including Michael Craig-Martin, Julian Opie, and John Baldessari. SP grew into a gallery starting in 1998, representing both mid-career and emerging artists. The team also has a consulting business advising local companies, international hotels, and hospitals. Their most recent exhibition featured Lee Jae Heon’s ethereal, blurred-out portraits. Gladstone Gallery Barbara Gladstone opened her Seoul location this past April with Phillipe Parreno, followed by Anicka Yi. For the gallery’s third exhibition in Seoul, international Thai artist Rirkrit Tiravanija’s “Submit to the Black Compost” opens on Aug. 31, his debut with the gallery. Perrotin One of the first international galleries to establish a location in Seoul, Perrotin has been in Samcheong since 2016, and is currently showing Barry McGee’s bright, kaleidoscopic grid paintings through Sept. 8. However, the big news is: Perrotin has opened a second space in Dosan Park, a larger outfit, with their first show of British-American landscape painter Emma Webster. König Galerie The leading Berlin gallery currently represents over 40 international emerging and established artists, mostly belonging to younger generations, and opened their Seoul Branch in April 2021, led by P21 gallery founder Soo Choi. To coincide with the upcoming fairs, the gallery will present 12 new paintings by classically-trained realist Matthias Weischer. Depicting interior scenes that play with the rectangular confines of the canvas, “Mirrors and Things” opens on Sept. 1. UM Gallery One of the smaller established galleries on our list, Um Gallery represents nearly 20 artists, largely from Korea, with recent solo exhibitions including figurative painter Hwang Young Ja and minimalist drawings by Hong Myung-seop. The gallery is one to watch, we’re told.
New to Town
Esther Schipper The Berlin gallery has arrived in Seoul, as its first location in Asia. is the most recent to open in Seoul; their upcoming inaugural exhibition is a group show of gallery artists. Representing a continuation of the longstanding commitment to the Korean art community, Esther Schipper Seoul open this week in central Seoul, headed by chief executive director Sunil Kim. The gallery sees this as their hub to grow alongside the Korean art scene, as well as expand operations in Asia. ESS opens with a group show of their roster artists. Thaddaeus Ropac Seoul The Austrian dealer expanded to Seoul last fall, taking over the ground floor of the glassy, futuristic Fort Hill building, which overlooks the sunken gardens of the same name. Anselm Kiefer’s “Wer jetzt kein Haus hat” (Who now has no house) runs Sept. 1-Oct 22. Bortolami/Kreps team up with Tina Kim Tina Kim is teaming up with Stefania Bortolami and Andrew Kreps for a group exhibition at the Songwon Art Center, a multi-purpose hub for art, crafts, and architecture established in 2017 as part of the Dongkuk Steel Group’s scholarship program. Facilitated by Kim and billed primarily as a collaboration between the two European dealers, “The Cumulative Effect” group exhibition will take over the two basement exhibition floors starting Aug. 30, featuring Oliver Lee Jackson, Clare Rojas, Cheyney Thompson, He Xiangyu, Minouk Lim, Pacita Abad, Ghada Amer, Mary Obering, Rebecca Morris, and Daniel Buren. On the first floor is Ghada Amer’s solo exhibition “Paravent Girls.” Peres Projects Peres Projects opened in Seoul in April, and on Aug. 30, will open English painter Rebecca Ackroyd’s first solo show in Asia, “Fertile Ground”. Made up of new works on paper and two sculptures, Ackroyd draws inspiration from a building site in London. Matrices of subterranean pipes form an investigation of the infrastructure of memory and the subconscious. Peres Projects reveals more in our Q&A.
Artists You Will Know
Sungsil Ryu Sungsil Ryu (b. 1993) Having spent most of her life in Seoul, Ryu’s work across performative video works and sculpture installations offer an exaggerated mirror of contemporary Korea’s culture of trend-chasing and entrepreneurship. Last year, she became the youngest artist ever to receive the Hèrmes Foundation Missulsang, a prize awarded to a young Korean artist every two years with an accompanying solo exhibition at the Atelier Hèrmes in Gangnam. Now on view through Oct. 2, “The Burning Love Story” steps inside the bizarre fictional world of a self-aggrandizing businessman’s funeral home for dogs, featuring a large sculpture of a crematorium and three different characters played by Ryu on video screens. She is represented by P21 gallery (see our Itaewon/Hannam Neighborhood Guide). Hejum Bä Hejum Bä (b. 1987) Bä’s paintings often hint at representations of origami, sliced fruit, fields of grass, or other landscapes, abstracting the subject through unexpected color interactions. She had three solo exhibitions in Seoul in 2021: “Combo” at Whistle Gallery, “Following Fyka Foretold…” at SeMA Storage, and “PLOTLESS” at the Kumho Museum. She was also included in the exhibition “Young Korean Artists 2021,” at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Gwacheon. Mire Lee Mire Lee (b. 1988) Often resembling strange systems of digestive organs, Lee’s assemblages of silicone and hoses challenge familiar notions of beauty and cleanliness. As seen in the international pavilion at this year’s Venice Biennale, many of her works seem to come to life by continuously dripping water from multiple connected hoses. Lee’s major solo exhibitions include “War is Won by Sentiment Not by Soldiers,” at Insa Art Space, in 2014, and “Carriers,” at Art Sonje Center in 2020. She was also included in a group exhibition at the Seoul Art Museum in 2016 and was shortlisted for the 2021 Future Generation Art Prize. As the 2022 recipient of the Pontopreis MMK prize, her work is currently on view through Sept. 4 at the Frankfurt MMK museum. She is represented by Tina Kim. Cindy Ji Hye Kim Cindy Ji Hye Kim (b. 1990) Kim’s drawings and paintings depict a black-and-white cartoon world with subtle hints of horror. Invoking dreams or the eerie half-darkness of laying in bed late at night, they feature the recurring motifs of bedrooms, bones, and silhouetted figures of men with large top hats and women with voluminous hair. Recent solo exhibitions at her galleries include “Soliloquy for two,” at François Ghebaly in 2021 and “In despite of light” at Casey Kaplan in 2022. Though she shows primarily in the U.S., she was included in Various Small Fires’ Seoul group exhibition “Next of Kin” in 2020. Cindy Ji Hye Kim, In Despite of Light, 2022, at Casey Kaplan U-Ram Choe U-Ram Choe (b. 1970) Based in Seoul, Choe creates intricate kinetic sculptures that are inspired by natural forms and movements, resulting from extensive anatomical research. From 2016-17, his solo exhibition, “’Choe U-Ram:[Stil laif],” traveled from the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts in Taichung to Korea’s Daegu Art Museum. He is represented by Gallery Hyundai and was included in the gallery’s 50th-anniversary exhibition in 2020. This year, he was selected as the Seoul National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s Hyundai Motor Series artist, and his newly commissioned installation, “Paper Boat,” will be on view Sept.-Feb. 2023 as part of the associated exhibition. Ayoung Kim Ayoung Kim (b. 1973) Kim’s practice focuses on speculative storytelling, weaving a diversity of narrative mediums together to blur the line between fiction and real-life issues including Korean history and geopolitics, migration, and the future of the human experience. She staged at least one major performance piece each year from 2013-2017, represented Korea in the 2015 Venice Biennale, had solo exhibitions at the Palais de Tokyo, and won the 2019 Korean Art Prize. Her new solo exhibition, “Syntax and Sorcery,” is on view at Gallery Hyundai through Sept. 13.