| Mi-Kyung Seo’s newest series of work, "Dream Ego," overcomes the limits of two-dimensional paintings while expanding its domain. The series was exhibited this past April as a one-woman show at the Ex Gallery, a converted duplex turned gallery on the outskirts of Hassidic Williamsburg in Brooklyn. |  |
Dream Ego – Laura Perry
Mi-Kyung Seo’s newest series of work, "Dream Ego," overcomes the limits of two-dimensional paintings while expanding its domain. The series was exhibited this past April as a one-woman show at the Ex Gallery, a converted duplex turned gallery on the outskirts of Hassidic Williamsburg in Brooklyn.
The artist moved to New York from Korea four years ago to attend Pratt Institute of Art in Brooklyn. While at Pratt, Seo found that her interest lies in sculptural elements incorporated into painting, and her goal was to liberate herself from the more traditional painting on canvas. The primary tool used to achieve this aura is wire, which she weaves though the canvas and paints upon. She also uses several canvases, usually with small canvases layered over larger ones. The contorted wire extends itself throughout, going beyond the boundary of the canvas’ edge, producing a sensation of shadow to an illusionary effect adding more dimension and depth.
Cloud is one of Seo’s most dynamic pieces, a diptych that involves four canvases, the two smaller canvases glued to larger ones. In this piece she manipulates the wire to conjure the aura of freedom these skywalkers exude as they ramble over the horizon. The work becomes voluptuous as the negative space that hugs the wire’s curves adds a fullness and form. The canvas is layered in thick white paint, the textures reminiscent of a blanket of clouds that have hidden the sky from our sight, perhaps even warning of a coming storm. Harmony is an elongated abstract web made of wire that supports clear shards of Plexiglas which she paints cerulean blue with a sponge-like technique. To shape the Plexiglas to her liking, she uses her hands to break off the edges piece by piece. This piece is then nailed directly to the wall to create various wave-like shadows.
It is clearly evident that the work is derived from a process of experimentation, failure and repetition. A freeness is enjoyed in the work, not the sort of product achieved by a strict art-making process. Seo starts with a simple seed, an idea to explore; nothing is preconceived, and nothing is blueprinted. The process is organic and the work reflects the inner processes of the artist’s moving mind. Mi- Kyung Seo’s inspiration for many of her artworks in her "Dream Ego" series were derived from random memories. The artist explained that once, while on a plane to Alaska, she looked out the window and the only thing she could see were shapes and patterns over the curved surface of the earth. Seo discovered that everything from above, from a different vantage point, seemed to have the same amount of significance. Thus, many of the natural shapes that she uses in her work are evocative of land, mountain ranges, icebergs and continents.
Mi- Kyung Seo’s work is controlled by certain colors, primarily white or
black. She believes that white is the key to maintaining an interactive relationship between space and object, thus making both identical.
By moving beyond the restraints of the four corners of a canvas, Mi-Kyung Seo has given new layers of meaning to her art. Dimension allows the eye to play, tempts the viewer to adjust the point of view, try out various angles. It also adds to the evolution of a medium, brings painting into a new light, gives it breadth and breath. Seo’s work allows the eye to travel over the surface of her work, as if looking down over the earth, admiring the organic textures and forms.
