SANGYOON YOON

His oil paintings, executed with his right hand, are a psychological investigation into the structure of the mind, containing elements that represent or allude to the id, the ego and the superego. The watery lower level of Yoon’s paintings plays the role of the id. Below the placid, shimmering surface lies the depths of the unconscious mind, mirroring and yet separated from the conscious world above it. Next, a crowd, rooted in the water but focused on a higher authority that hovers above them; like the ego they mediate between two separated entities. Finally, the critical, moralising super ego, which takes the form of a deer, a swan, or a person clearly differentiated from the rest, reigns over the somewhat chaotic scene below.

In contrast, Yoon’s drawings, sketched with his left hand, are created impulsively without correction, and can be considered short-hand records of the unconscious. These two different streams of Yoon’s practice flow together, analytically and intimately deconstructing the human mind.

Yoon’s recent solo exhibitions include Elysion, Yoonarte, Shanghai (2015), Mobius, Pyo Gallery, Seoul (2014) and Right & Left, Gallery Chosen, Seoul (2013).

He is currently completing a residency at Hue Network Art Studio in Paju, South Korea.

​Christine Park Gallery will present Yoon’s solo exhibition in its New York gallery in 2017.