I’m currently exhibiting YELLOW TREE, WINTER in the 5th Seoul Art Fair in South Korea. This work was made with gouache and watercolour on paper and is 15 1/4 x 11 3/8″.
Art & Criticism has provided a special booth for Canadian artists at this event. Art & Criticism is the only art magazine in South Korea totally dedicated to the promotion of visual culture and has a huge circulation.
The 5th Seoul Art Fair is taking place at SETEC, Seoul Convention Centre and runs from April 27 – May 1 , 2012.
I’ve been invited to participate in a group exhibition sponsored by ART AND CRITICISM, the most prominent art magazine in South Korea. About 40 Canadian and Korean artists will participate in the exhibition, which will be held from June 14 – 20, 2011 at the Dosan Gallery in Toronto.
I’ve chosen to exhibit WALLACE AVENUE. I’ve exhibited this painting once this year at the Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts. It’s part of the same series as LOW TIDE, which I showed at the G20 World Artists Festival in Seoul, South Korea last November.
The Opening Reception will take place at 5:00 pm on June 14th, 2011. Dosan Gallery is located in the Korean Times building at 287 Bridgeland Ave ( east of Dufferin & south of Hwy# 401) in Toronto, Ontario.
ROCK DOVES
I’ve had a wonderful connection with the South Korean art community for almost two decades. My drawing, ROCK DOVES, will be exhibited in an International Drawing Exhibition from March 3 – 11, 2011. The show is taking place at the Hangaram Art Gallery in Seoul. Last year, I sent WINTER LANEWAY to this exhibition.
ROCK DOVES is a small (approx. 7 x 9″) pen and ink drawing. It was inspired by the strong light and shadow pattern I noticed on the birds while I waited for the bus at Dundas West subway station.
I was contacted by Jim Saunders of Arirang Radio after returning from South Korea. Jim hosts the Island Wanderer segment of a show called All About Jeju. The Island Wanderer showcases people who’ve visited Jeju Island. He interviewed me over the phone and it ran a few weeks ago. Jim sent me an MP3 file of the interview. He edited out everything except the conservation between us. If you’d like to hear it, click on the audio file below.
Thanks go to Max Stern at e-griculture for helping install the audio file.
I’m back in one piece, thoroughly jet-lagged and with wonderful memories of a fantastic experience. Last Friday was a big day. This was our sketching site (above) and I couldn’t wait to start painting. I decided to work in a more traditional manner. I’m actually faster with this approach than I am with my ‘Cubist’ style and I wanted to do at least two pieces in the time available. I clambered down to the rocky beach to find my first subject. This is a fairly small watercolour, about 8 x 10″.
A huge bunker-like modern building overlooked the coastline and it housed a very fine restaurant. Much to our surprise, lunch was a gourmet five-course Nouvelle Cuisine affair. Very yummy and artistically presented. Check out the view in the photo below. The artists seen here are from Korea, Australia, France, Argentina and Russia.
A life drawing session at the Mutant Gallery (I think it means something different in Korean) was scheduled for the afternoon but several of us opted to stay and paint the landscape. Our rational: we can do life drawing at home. I did another watercolour and, also, a quick pen and watercolour sketch of Soheila at work. Soheila lives in London and represented the UK.
After sketching, we rejoined our comrades at the Mutant Gallery where our work from the week had been installed with record-breaking speed. My new Chinese friend, He Xi, is posing next to his lovely brush drawings. The reception was followed by a pig roast/buffet and a spirited party with excellent live music. Much good cheer and dancing was involved.
We returned to Seoul on Saturday and stayed the night in a Buddhist Temple and participated in a tea ceremony and meditation sessions. The group went shopping on Sunday but Kerry and I were invited to the country home of Professor Koo and enjoyed a wonderful lunch prepared by his wife. They are both artists and their house has two fabulous studios. Unfortunately, I had to get home so I missed the final dinner with my new friends.
I’ll wrap up with a group shot taken at the Jeju Folk Museum. You can’t hear it but we are all yelling ‘One More!’ This was our running joke of the week (Kamal from Saudi Arabia started it) at our constant photo-ops. I think it’s safe to say that we would all like to experience this ‘One More!’ time. We’ll never forget the generosity of our Korean hosts, the fun we had and the new friendships we made.
I’ve been in Korea for about twenty seven hours and have already attended the Opening Reception of the G20 World Art Festival. That’s my friend, Kerry Kim, with me and my painting. It’s a mixed media work on paper and the decision to frame it unglazed and without a mat was not mine. No complaints, though! I’ve never experienced such hospitality and there’s much more to come.
The Opening Reception was jammed with guests (they’re all behind me) and many dignitaries and sponsors gave speeches. We also enjoyed a traditional dance performance. The exhibition features the work of about sixteen ‘foreign’ artists and at least two dozen Korean artists.
I met my fellow foreign artists yesterday and it’s a diverse and interesting group from many countries. In most cases, we were able to find a common language. Today, we have a tour of Seoul before being whisked off to the airport for a short flight to Jeju Island. I hope to post more soon about our Sketching Program and other events on Jeju.
I’m very pleased to announce my participation in the G20 Summit
World Art Festival in Seoul, South Korea. The Festival runs from November 8 – 14, 2010. The Opening Reception takes place on November 8 at the Exhibition Hall of the Korea Press Centre.
Even better, I’ve been invited to visit Korea to attend the Opening Reception and to participate, with Korean and international artists, in a field sketching project on Jeju Island. I’ll try to keep you up-to-date with posts from the trip.
I’ll be traveling and exhibiting with my good friend, Kerry Inho Kim. Kerry and I go back to art school days. He’s a talented artist and a very popular instructor as well as the director of the Mississauga Valley School of Art.
I’ll be exhibiting LOW TIDE. This work on paper was created with watercolour, acrylic ink and acrylic paint and is 20 x 28”.
The catalogue from the exhibition in South Korea arrived recently. The exhibition took place earlier this year. Although described as a drawing show, there seem to be as many paintings as drawings. I’ve been fortunate over the years and have participated in about a dozen shows in Asia, mostly in South Korea. I’m always amazed at the generosity of the organizers. I send unframed work and biographical material. Aside from being included in the show, I receive a beautiful catalogue with my own page. Forgive the bad scan of my page.
Kerry Inho Kim and Doug Stratford, art school buddies from way back, were also in the show.
I am currently exhibiting WINTER LANEWAY, a mixed media work on paper in the International Drawing and Painting Exhibition in Seoul, South Korea. The exhibition is being held in the Seoul Art Centre and runs from March 11-20, 2010.
The piece is approximately 14 x 20″ and incorporates watercolour, acrylic, ink and collage.
I’ve been invited to show in South Korea, China and Taiwan about a dozen times over the years. Each show has provided a catalogue with individual pages for the contributing artists. I’m grateful for these experiences and, someday, hope to accompany my artwork on the trip.
Barry Coombs Art Workshops 