This double sided catalogue is published in conjunction with the exhibitions held in Paris from April 22nd to June 1st, and London from June 1st to September 23rd, 2017.
'In 1972, Ha Chong-Hyun made a small sculpture, which appears on its own as if anticipating his subsequent work as a painter. It consists of a hemp rope stretched across a wooden box so tightly that a few unraveling strands threaten to break the entire cordage. Extremely effective, the composition is as simple as its material is banal. An image of great tension and resistance, it epitomises the artist’s practice and further announces his Conjunctions, a lifelong series of paintings, which was initiated in 1974 and is still ongoing to this day.'
– Alfred Pacquement, The Serenity of Ha Chon-Hyun’s Gestural Abstraction
Ha Chong-Hyun came to prominence with his Conjunction series in the early 1970s. These early experiments have led him to build his signature style, pushing the paint from the back to the front of hemp cloth. As a leading member of the movement known as Dansaekhwa, or 'monochrome painting,' he has consistently used material experimentation and innovative studio processes to redefine the role of painting, playing a significant role bridging the avant-garde traditions between East and West. Committed to redefining modern art and rejecting mainstream academic trends, Ha developed a process that converted physically demanding studio processes into abstract compositions. In his most recent work, Ha has expanded upon his practice of transforming three-dimensionality into a two dimensional surface by experimenting with new ways to add materiality and a sense of volume to colour.
Essay by Alfred Pacquement.
116 pages
27 x 28 cm, 10 5/8 x 11 inches
French / English
Edition of 1000
Almine Rech Gallery Editions