“Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”

- Samuel Beckett

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We live in the age of selfies, where smartphones and social media platforms dominate as the primary means of visually representing ourselves. These images often serve as narcissistic products for self-satisfaction, offering numerous versions of ourselves but failing to reveal our true selves. GalleryJJ is delighted to present a solo exhibition by Yongsun Suh, who deeply contemplates human life and existence through his art. Suh's paintings encompass historical scenes, myths, self-portraits, and landscapes, focusing on urban figures and reflecting his enduring interest in humanity and society. This exhibition specifically highlights his collection of self-portraits. “A self-portrait is about human… It is the cornerstone of human research”, remarks the artist about his perspective on self-portraiture. His exploration of existential questions emerges from his observations of the world, where the scrutiny of others mirrors introspection into oneself. Throughout his career, Suh has portrayed himself in various ways, establishing a distinct trademark admired by many collectors.

 

Through bold colors and expressive brushstrokes, Suh captures the inherent forms within the absurdities of modern urban life, a challenge faced by historical figures and himself alike. His work often juxtaposes individuals and the situations they encounter. Some pieces depict historical settings and lives, such as 'Tumen River Project' and 'Cheoram Project,' transcending time to establish intimate connections with contemporary life conditions. His solid and unique artistic language, reflecting the spirit of the times, is highly esteemed as a significant achievement in modern Korean painting.

 

This exhibition showcases his most recent works while also featuring a series of self-portraits dating back to the early 2000s, when he began focusing on this genre. More than two decades have passed since his first self-portrait exhibition in New York in 1995, making this a rare opportunity to view his accumulated self-portraits in one place. This collection adds profound meaning to the exhibition, inviting diverse interpretations and discussions about his multi-layered artistic journey and hinting at his future directions. For Suh, a self-portrait embodies a myriad of visual emotions and thoughts about himself. Yet, when a self-portrait takes on a life of its own and engages the public as an image, it can evoke another layer of ego, akin to the magic of Dorian Gray. We look forward to immersing ourselves in the artist's gaze, inviting the audience to reflect on their own sense of self.

 

“‘I have a face, but a face is not what I am. Behind it lies a mind… This face, which you see, but I do not, is a medium I own to express something of what I am.”

- Julian Bell, 『500 Self-Portraits』, p17

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In the exhibition, the images associated with Suh vary in size, perspective, and technique. Some are fragmented or abstracted, while others are expressive or photorealistic. Compositionally, most adhere to the traditional flat format of self-portraits, but others depict bodily actions, such as The Painter. Depicting an artist in the act of painting has long been a popular theme in self-portraiture, serving as a validation of the artist's identity. However, Suh focuses more on capturing the moment of the painting itself. He expands the scope of self-portraiture by intertwining the figure with specific situations and symbolizing emerging ideas or atmospheres that reflect his inner self. These self-portraits exemplify the idea expressed by Van Gogh, who said, "A single person can be the subject for a wide variety of portraits." Each moment of existence is unique, shaped by specific conditions, making it impossible to be identical to any previous instance. For instance, when he portrays faces in a kitchen setting, he explores themes of human consumption or references Confucian culture through plum blossoms. Through his work, Suh demonstrates that self-portraiture is not a constrained genre but rather a gateway to understanding the complexities of human life and its philosophies.

 

/Reflection

Suh appears distinctly different in each self-portrait through representation and abstraction. From the bold and daring brushstrokes, one can somehow sense his character. Similarities across these portraits evoke a wide range of narratives. People often seek resemblances in portraits, although, as Lucian Freud noted, the goal is not exact likeness but rather capturing something deeper -"not portraits like him but portraits about him." Moreover, the representation and documentation of the artist himself inevitably become a battleground where inner and outer selves clash, where the gap between image and reality intertwines. Human beings are complex organisms, embodying countless patterns and emotions, flesh and bones. The artist expresses that capturing organic life is akin to creating abstract works, delineating invisible aspects—those intangible sensations you can perceive.

 

The dictionary defines a self-portrait as 'portraiture of oneself'. The impulse to portray oneself is a timeless aspect of human nature, evident from ancient Egyptian manuscripts to contemporary selfies. Suh opts to use a mirror rather than photographs as his tool for self-representation because observing through a camera lens does not suit his artistic process. Mirrors have historically been pivotal in the creation of self-portraits, predating the advent of photography. During the Renaissance, the production of large, flat mirrors in Venice facilitated the spread of self-portraiture, satisfying an increasing desire to see oneself.

 

The process of creating a self-portrait begins with a profound encounter with oneself in a mirror. The concept of 'I' has long been a philosophical inquiry mediated through the reflection in mirrors. As philosopher Lacan posited, "Our self is a product of the fictional identity created through imaginary identification with images, and this self-alienation is already internalized within us." In a self-portrait, there exists a gap between how one presents oneself and how others perceive them. Since we cannot see ourselves directly, understanding how we appear to others remains elusive. Often, we accept only the more favorable aspects of ourselves reflected in the mirror, prioritizing appearance over true essence. Thus, our perception of ourselves in the mirror at any given moment is but a speculative glimpse.

 

Suh describes his approach to self-portraiture as a recurring exploration of vanity—"I cannot see myself, nor can I become someone else to view myself." The eyes that stare directly at the viewer in his self-portraits gaze at his mirrored reflection as he paints. His eyes continuously shift between the mirror and the canvas during the painting process. Through this gaze, he materializes his self-reflection on the canvas. Ultimately, a self-portrait captures an organism—a person constantly in flux—at a specific moment and place, shaped by memory and personal experience.

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“Self-portrait is like a confession of myself. I show myself what I think I am.”

- Yongsun Suh

 

/being there

He regards traveling to unfamiliar places and being in a half-awake state as the primary conditions conducive to creating self-portraits. Self-portraits created in the morning capture bodily responses between consciousness and unconsciousness, limiting deliberate decisions in portrayal to some extent. His focus remains solely on the act of painting, viewing himself in the mirror only briefly to distinguish forms. He emphasizes fidelity to the body's reactions and sensations in real space when he positions himself before a mirror. This moment becomes a confrontation with his unfamiliar self, experiencing the body as an alienated entity. The body is depicted and expressed on canvas in various forms—abstract, monstrous, or figural shapes. For him, it's about the experience of being alive, the immediate sensation of seeing oneself embodied rather than merely portraying the physical form. Thus, his work transcends being a mere 'image of the body' as an object to becoming a representation of 'physical existence'.

 

Often, he situates himself against specific backdrops such as a lattice-tiled bathroom, a workplace, or the interior of a foreign house. Placing himself in these unfamiliar environments or amidst crowds makes the backgrounds more compelling than the portraits themselves. As with his other works, the context in which the subject is placed holds significance in his self-portraits. It signifies his exploration of himself within the broader world as a contextual backdrop. His active exploration of self-portraiture began during his residency in Vermont in 1995. During his early experiences abroad, encountering a large mirror in an empty studio left a lasting impression, making such spaces recurrent settings in his portraits. The emotions and bodily sensations evoked by these alien surroundings are crucial sources for completing his self-portraits.

 

Since the 2000s, Suh has lived in several metropolises such as New York, Berlin, and Melbourne, where he has depicted anonymous lives within each locale. Here, removed from the social pressures of his hometown, he finds more opportunities for introspection. As he states, "To look into yourself is also to inspect the infinite sphere within yourself." In spaces liberated from social constraints, gazing at oneself in the mirror becomes not just about appearance but about revealing one's true inner self. Everyone at some point contemplates who they are, where they come from, and where they are headed—a reflection akin to Heidegger's Seinsfrage, the question of being. Living in a state of flux, within the temporality of time, we are always 'being-toward-death' (Sein-zum-Tode) with existential anxiety (angst), signifying a mode of being rather than physical death. Suh's self-portraits thus represent a journey to uncover the essence of existence and the true appearance of self, the Dasein (being-there), often obscured in everyday life.

 

/sense of self

"Portraying yourself is indeed a task to distinguish own self from others,” Suh utters. As a member of society, we want to constantly verify what and where we are. Many artists during the Renaissance gained confidence as their social status had risen but at the same time, spiritually, they plunged into confusion triggered by the Reformation. It was the time when large flat mirrors had started mass production in Venice. Albrecht Dürer was one of the pioneers in expressing one’s self-consciousness and personality with the use of a mirror. His Self-Portrait (1500) demonstrated a person's self-identity in a method that was never seen before. Although it had a mindful provision to resemble Christ, the intense and solitary self-search became an attractive theme to many subsequent artists, including Van Gogh. For instance, Munch was faithful to the quiddity beyond the visible in the mirror, suggesting death over the immediate flesh, while Lucian Freud observed the physical presence of a man with unequal bodily senses. What they sought is human nature though expressed in different ways.

 

As the problems of loss of humanity and alienation become increasingly common today, routinely taking selfies represents a desire to constantly confirm one’s presence in his uncertain life. Self-reflection is especially worthy of notice to find our presence in life. The self-portraits of Yongsun Suh are about people and his confession to be more frank and nearer to the fundamentals in which they illuminate another being that lies in flux.

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- Ju Yeon Kang, Gallery JJ Director

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