Opening Reception, March 8th 6 – 8 PM
Tina Kim Gallery is pleased to present Yeondoo Jung’s Inside Out his third solo exhibition at the
gallery. Jung will present two major bodies of work: Six Points and Southern Rainbow Seoul. Having
established himself as an incisive observer of social demographics and a chronicler of people’s dreams,
the artist continues to use photography as a mirror with which he coaxes and captures individual’s
private fantasies.
Nowhere is Jung’s ability to capture the prosaic differences in everyday people better illustrated than
in his series Southern Rainbow Seoul. In this work the artist has sought access to families who live in
the massive high-rise apartment complexes that define Seoul’s urban landscape. A ubiquitous sign of
upward mobility, the apartment becomes a kind of frame through which the artist is able to explore
the unique identities of Seoul’s middle class — capturing each family proudly standing in their living
rooms. In each portrait specific elements such as wallpaper and family heirlooms stand out against the
singular focus and uniform scale of the mass produced apartments.
The second work featured in Inside Out is a video titled Six Points. Compiled using thousands of
photographs taken in six distinct neighborhoods in New York City, the video reveals a striking view
into the city landscape while exploiting striking format to tell a poignant story.
What is so striking about Jung’s editing technique and cinematography in Six Points is his ability to
merge the detailed information available from still photography and build a powerful narrative that
utilizes the equally powerful element of time. Through this technique the artist is able to layer multiple
pictures in each frame thereby creating a three dimensional space that mimics and surpasses the depth
of standard video.
Each street the artist has chosen as his subject is located in a traditional ethnic neighborhood: Jackson
Heights – the Indian community, Mulberry Street – Little Italy, Mott Street – Chinatown, 32nd Street
– Korea Town, Roosevelt Avenue – the Spanish community, and Brighton Beach – the Russian
community. In the video the streets flow seamlessly from left to right as if one is looking at a scene
within a dream or a theatrical backdrop. Since everything on the street is made of still images, it
appears as if time is frozen and the viewer is the only person awake wandering through the city.
In addition to the video, the artist will be showing very large format panoramic photos that show the
full spectrum of images used to make each neighborhood vignette.
Born in Jinju in 1969, Yeondoo Jung lives and works in Seoul. After obtaining a BFA in sculpture from
Seoul National University in 1994, Jung continued his studies at the London Institute, Central Saint
Martins College of Art in 1995 where he earned a Diploma in Sculpture and later at the University
of London, Goldsmiths College, where he was awarded an MFA in 1997. Jung’s work has been
presented at numerous international group shows including Turn and Widen, Media City Seoul in
2008, Thermocline of Art-New Asian Waves at ZKM in Germany and New Nature at the Govett-
Brewster Art Gallery in New Zealand – both in 2007, and the 2004 Liverpool Biennial in the UK.
Solo exhibitions include Documentary Nostalgia for the 2008 Modern Mondays at MoMA in New
York and Memories of You – Artist of the Year 2007, at the National Museum of Contemporary Art in
Gwacheon, Republic of Korea.
Tina Kim Gallery is open Tuesday – Saturday, 10 am – 6 pm.
For further information, please contact info@tinakimgallery.com or call (212) 716-1100.