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Gwak Yun-jeong Exhibition: Runaway Bride - The Unshakable Cradle (Heundeulliji Anneun Yoramm)

Name: Gwak Yun-jeong Exhibition: Runaway Bride - The Unshakable Cradle (Heundeulliji Anneun Yoramm)
Start: 2026-08-10
End: 2026-08-28
Location: Gallery Soheon & Soheon Contemporary

Free · Jung-gu Gallery Soheon & Soheon Contemporary

Dates: Aug 10 ~ Aug 28
Venue: Gallery Soheon & Soheon Contemporary
Area: Daegu Jung-gu
Price: Free
Enquiries: 053-426-0621,-010-9955-0621

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About this event

Gwak Yun-jeong Exhibition: Runaway Bride - The Unshakable Cradle August 10 – August 28 Running toward one's true self in a pure white dress Runaway Bride, a courageous departure toward a new life Unshakable Cradle, a self-sustaining world protecting beauty and vitality A utopia unfolded with greenery, light, and countless flowers That fully embraces and protects oneself Gallery Soheon & Soheon Contemporary in Daebong-dong will host Gwak Yun-jeong’s 14th solo exhibition, 'Runaway Bride - The Unshakable Cradle,' from August 10 to 28. Gwak Yun-jeong belongs to the first generation of artists who studied in Russia, completing a master’s degree at the Repin Academy of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg. Starting from the realism she learned in Russia, she has gradually expanded her personal style by varying it with her own delicate sense of color and original expression. Currently, her work stands out for its soft colors and sense of light reminiscent of European Impressionism rather than traces of Russian realism, painting moments where humans find healing and restoration in nature through warm imagery. This exhibition focuses on the 'Runaway Bride' series the artist has recently concentrated on, aiming to show a journey of finding one's true self with a new mindset, breaking away from worldly standards through the core motif of the 'Unshakable Cradle.' 'Runaway Bride' generally refers to a bride who leaves the wedding venue or her partner's side due to fear or pressure before marriage. However, Gwak Yun-jeong gives this term a new meaning. The artist's 'Runaway Bride' is not a being fleeing out of fear. She is a being who throws off the standards and stereotypes of the world surrounding her, as well as everything she has been bound to, focusing on herself and moving toward a new life. The bride's running in the frame is not an escape from reality, but an active journey toward her true self. The 'Unshakable Cradle' is the backdrop for that journey and the core spatial narrative of the series. Originally, a cradle is the first nest that stabilizes a baby and leads them to comfortable sleep through soft, regular rocking created by a parent's touch. However, the 'Unshakable Cradle' the artist speaks of is not a passive space moved or protected by external forces. It is a self-sustaining world that balances itself without depending on external power and protects its beauty and vitality without being shaken or contaminated by the outside world. It is a guardian space that protects and heals existence from external threats, and simultaneously acts as a shield protecting an eternally beautiful and abundant utopia. The artist depicts this place as a utopia where one can face their true self away from the eyes of others and worldly standards, and be reborn as a free and happy being. This utopian space unfolds on canvas as a beautiful garden where greenery and countless flowers harmonize. The protagonist in the wedding dress runs freely through the garden, while 'Guardian Dogs' and 'Guardian Cats' who protect the cradle world watch her from afar or patrol the space in groups. Like an artist who has lived with many dogs and cats, the expressions and movements of the animals are delicate and lifelike. Their natural gestures and lovely movements add warm vitality to the screen. In the garden, various flowers and grasses bloom, including hydrangeas, birches, and camellias that have consistently appeared in Gwak Yun-jeong's previous works, as well as corn poppies and lisianthus. Background colors ranging from deep blue-green to blue, green, and mint harmonize with mysterious violets, pinks, and reds blooming on top. Added to this are the artist’s characteristic soft light and hazy shadows, creating a landscape with depth. The mature expression of the artist, who has explored her own colors for a long time, effectively reveals the appearance of the mysterious and beautiful cradle. The protagonist in the works stays within the cradle, spending time in healing and recovery, and gradually discovers her true self. Finally facing her freed self, she at last reaches happiness. The artist hopes that viewers of the exhibition will also stay for a while in this beautiful cradle of greenery and flowers, looking back at their inner selves like the protagonist in the works, finding warm comfort and healing, and becoming happy. Gwak Yun-jeong’s 'Cradle' is planned to expand beyond the boundaries of the canvas to the actual earth. The artist is preparing a long-term land art project to implement the cradle, which has existed as an imaginary space in paintings, onto real land. The process of change itself, such as how the plants that appeared in the works will be positioned in the actual space, is expected to become a narrative. The artist says that the vitality of natural objects rooted in the cradle, changing and growing infinitely according to the flow of time and seasons, will be the focus. The specific scenes of how the cradle will expand within the real landscape will be revealed gradually. This exhibition is the first step in Gwak Yun-jeong's long-term land art 'Cradle' project, a pictorial sketch showing the world that will unfold on actual land through the canvas first. The story of the happy protagonist running toward her true self and the 'Unshakable Cradle' that warmly embraces and protects her can be seen at Gallery Soheon & Soheon Contemporary in Daebong-dong until August 28.

Location

Jung-gu Gallery Soheon & Soheon Contemporary

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Weather

Today(Fri)Rain · 25° ~ 28° · 60% chance of rain

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