Seock SON

Seock Son: An Artist Bridging Korean Tradition and Contemporary Innovation

Born in 1955 in South Korea, Seock Son has lived and worked in France since 1995. His artistic journey is marked by a fusion of traditional Korean aesthetics and contemporary, innovative approaches. His works challenge the boundaries between painting and sculpture, offering an immersive and dynamic visual experience.

A Unique Technique
Seock Son has developed a distinctive method by attaching vertical acrylic or resin blades to a canvas. These parallel, equidistant blades are meticulously painted with vivid strokes. Depending on the viewing angle, the forms—vases, animals, faces—emerge, transform, or vanish, creating a constant interplay between the artwork and the observer. This process evokes concepts from quantum physics, where observation alters perception.

Influences and Inspirations
His work is deeply rooted in the Dansaekhwa movement, a minimalist Korean art tradition emphasizing repetitive patterns and near-monochromatic palettes. However, Seock Son expands this legacy with a dynamic and interactive dimension that brings his works to life.

In his studio-library, one finds hundreds of Korean books alongside around 500 Western texts, reflecting his broad intellectual horizons. Among these are works on Christian philosophy (Augustine, Thomas Aquinas), writings by philosophers such as Plato, Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard, and Heidegger, and novels by authors like Balzac, Melville, and Umberto Eco. This eclecticism informs his intellectual and artistic pursuits, lending profound depth to his creations.

Career and Exhibitions
After studying fine arts and aesthetics at Hongik University in Seoul, Seock Son began his career creating monochromatic works inspired by minimalism. His relocation to France in 1995 marked a turning point, as he delved into new techniques and explored the intricate process of materializing mental images.

Since the early 2000s, Seock Son has exhibited internationally, with solo shows at the Parsons School in Paris (2003), the Insa Art Center in Seoul (2007), and the Mazel Gallery in Brussels (2011, 2013). (mazelgalerie.com)

2025 Exhibitions

At the start of 2025, Seock Son is featured in two major exhibitions. At the Artskoco Gallery in Luxembourg, he presents a solo exhibition, while also participating in "Art of Luxury" at the Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA), alongside renowned Korean artists and international icons such as Salvador Dalí, Andy Warhol, and Yayoi Kusama.

His intricate and intriguing works can only be fully understood by seeing them in person. Join the opening receptions on February 6 and 7, 2025, from 6:30 PM, at Artskoco Gallery, 5 Rue Auguste Liesch, L-1937 Luxembourg.