Son IL

Memories, preservation and the language of communication is the key idea in Son’s works and he thrives to express the importance preservation in his own way through his artworks. In 2002, Son Il visited The Gansong Art Museum (Seoul, South Korea) and saw the original Hunminjeongeum (Hangeul, the Korean alphabet) .

Touched with a myriad of emotions, he was sad about these original Hunminjeongeum woodblocks that were destroyed during the Korean War, and he was determined to bring such precious cultural heritage them back to life. The most obvious feature in Son’s style is his openess towards the use of different materials, techniques and forms, which later brought about a progressive change to producing relief paintings by using briquette ash, along with repeated ‘trial and error’ with the adoption of Hanji (Korean traditional paper) and mulberry paper, terra cotta, ceramics, rice straws and other mixed-media forms.

Through years of experimenting, Son developed diverse de-genre and convergent methodologies by combining figurativeness & abstraction, sculptures & paintings and paintings & ceramics.

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Son IL

Memories, preservation and the language of communication is the key idea in Son’s works and he thrives to express the importance preservation in his own way through his artworks. In 2002, Son Il visited The Gansong Art Museum (Seoul, South Korea) and saw the original Hunminjeongeum (Hangeul, the Korean alphabet) .

Touched with a myriad of emotions, he was sad about these original Hunminjeongeum woodblocks that were destroyed during the Korean War, and he was determined to bring such precious cultural heritage them back to life. The most obvious feature in Son’s style is his openess towards the use of different materials, techniques and forms, which later brought about a progressive change to producing relief paintings by using briquette ash, along with repeated ‘trial and error’ with the adoption of Hanji (Korean traditional paper) and mulberry paper, terra cotta, ceramics, rice straws and other mixed-media forms.

Through years of experimenting, Son developed diverse de-genre and convergent methodologies by combining figurativeness & abstraction, sculptures & paintings and paintings & ceramics.

Explore

Selected Works

Thread Resin On Panel

‘Unsent Letter 1914’

Son IL

Biography

SON IL

Son Il graduated Department of Fine Arts, college of Arts, Dong-A University. School of Art Education Dong-A University Completed doctor course in Fine Arts.

As a painter, Son has reached beyond the point of pursuing the essence of objects of simply copying the externality, playing the roles of a phenomenologist and a philosopher, exploring in-depth not only the concept but also application of art. In the case of mulberry paper, its fibre must be thoroughly studied to identify its specific properties. Since then, he has directed his artistic trajectory towards manifesting the natural colours of mulberry paper fibre as much as he can with a focus on exuding its rich material properties in various angles and using a wide spectrum of colours including pink, green, yellow and blue.

Recently, Son produced a work imbuing a strong impression with its 10cm-high relief protrusive at the bottom of the panel. This hints at his experimental aspect, which is in line with his dramatic experimentation with materials as seen from his briquette ash-based relief work. The use of mulberry paper fibre are confined to delicately revealing its properties: they are entangled on a single field of a canvas by aligning with the formative characteristics of Hangeul’s consonants and vowels.

His achievement of aesthetic perspectives towards mulberry paper thrives in his larger works, and it was then his monochrome mulberry paper relief paintings exerted signs of a full blossom. He focuses on producing these works in mostly monochromes white, grey, blue and red.

Diverse forms of signs and signifiers including Hangeul’s consonants and vowels are apparent on the panes, also with English alphabets and emojis, a contemporary means used online for the communication of the mankind as symbols. The cultural signs adopted in Son’s works hint at the fact that a culture should not be isolated as a topical phenomenon anymore.

This has a huge significance in promoting the Korean culture to the world through formative art of Hangeul as he was taken aback by encountering Hunminjeongeum decades ago. All in all, Son Il is committed to turn Hangeul’s consonants and vowels into art through his unique formative methodologies, thus promoting the excellence of Hangeul to the world.

Exhibition highlights

Solo Exhibitions (selected)

2019 Invitation Exhibition, Gallery Jeeum, Seoul

2017 Invitation Exhibition, Galerie NOEJ Paris, France

2015 Invitation Exhibition, WOW ART SPACE. Beijing

2012 Invitation Exhibition, Tang ArtGallery. Bangkok

2006 Invitation Exhibition, Liu Hi Sou Art Museum. Shanghai

2005 Invitation Exhibition, Asia Art Museum. JAPAN ,Invitation Exhibition, White Gallery. L.A. USA

2003 Invitational Exhibition, Road Gallery. New York. USA

1999 Solo Exhibition, Jeon, Gyeong Sook Gallery. Busan

Art Fair (selected)

2020 

Art Wynwood

2019

Venice Art Biennale

2018

Art Miami

2016

L.A Art Show (U.S.A, L.A)

2015 – 2014

Art Stage Singapore (Singapore, Marina Bay Sands )

2015 – 2012

Art Paris Art Fair (France, Grand Palais)

2014 – 2012

Scope MIAMI (U.S.A, Miami)

2014

Scope Basel (Switzerland, Basel)

2013 – 2009

SOAF Seoul Open Art Fair (Seoul, COEX)

2010

SOGO International Art Fair (China, Beijing)

 

Awards(selected)

2009

‘1st Prize’ and three selections, Korea Art Competition / Korea Art Association

2009

Today’s Artist / Busan Art Association

2000

‘1st Prize’ and four selections, Busan Art Competition / Busan Art Association

1997

‘Best Prize’ Buil Art Competition / Busan Ilbo