Kyung Youl Yoon was born in Gangjin, Jeollanam-do, South Korea. After moving to Madrid, Spain, in the 1980s, Yoon studied at the National University of Madrid, where he trained in painting, sculpture, and printmaking. In 1995, he relocated to the United States. He has since been featured in various major publications and continues to exhibit globally in institutions across the U.S., Korea, Spain, and China. Most recently, Yoon held solo exhibitions at the Rockefeller State Park Preserve and the New York Hall of Science in 2023 and was selected in 2024 to have a solo show at G&J Gallery of the Jeonnam Museum of Art in South Korea.
| SWPK Gallery is pleased to announce the solo exhibition, A Transcendent Eye, exhibiting works by Korean artist Kyung Youl Yoon (b.1947). The exhibition will be on display at the SWPK Gallery from April 10 to June 7, 2025. An opening reception with the artist will take place at 6:00 PM on Thursday, April 10. The works of Kyung Youl Yoon transcend the traditional divide between painting and sculpture, uniting structure, color, and material into compositions that defy conventional visual language. His panels, composed of small, hand-painted acrylic boxes arranged in geometric patterns, hover between abstraction and architecture. With their shimmering surfaces and aerial perspective, they invite viewers to contemplate the complexity of space, perception, and memory. Yoon’s process is deliberate and meditative. He begins with painted canvases, layering directional lines that suggest force, movement, or depth. Onto these grounds, he affixes acrylic boxes—each one functioning as a sculptural brushstroke—into rhythmic, modular compositions. Once complete, the works are enclosed in transparent cases, emphasizing their objecthood. This format encourages viewers to adopt a distant vantage, inviting reflection on how we interpret the structures around us. Rooted in themes of development and impermanence, Yoon’s work transforms salvaged acrylic materials into ordered, luminous forms. His pieces suggest cityscapes, systems, or maps—fragmented yet harmonious—echoing how modern life is defined by compartmentalization and repetition. The absence of organic imagery is intentional, pointing to what is left behind in a world increasingly shaped by logic and design. Each element plays a part: some pulse with rhythmic energy, others fall gently across the surface. Their interplay creates a quiet visual music that balances restraint and vitality. A Transcendent Eye invites reflection on form, distance, and the evolving landscapes we inhabit—both physical and internal. SWPK Gallery 417 Lafayette Street, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10003 Phone: 212.598.1155 Email: info@waldandkimgallery.org For media inquiries: Odelette Cho ocho@waldandkimgallery.org |
