Hong InSook Workshop Tour

On March 15 at 15:00 p.m., visit to the studio of artist Hong InSook.

Thanks to the presence of Mael Bellec, curator at the Cernuschi museum, the friends were able to visit the studio of this Korean painter living in France since 1997.

Hong InSook received us in a charming way and answered questions about his way of working.

Graduated from the École des Beaux-Arts of Versailles in 2005, her creation was turned towards photography. Her work on the texture or stains of the walls of the abbey of Auberive as well as abstract pictorial experiments led her to look for other modes of creation.

Having completely given up the brush, she deposits a very thin gouache and Indian ink on a wet sheet of paper, then placed face down. Then she will rub and press the back of the support to create her composition. It can restart the process as long as the paper is still wet, once dry, it becomes brittle.

View of the workshop and its work surface

Hong InSook and Mael Bellec

His works, although abstract, are reminiscent of the landscapes of his native Korea and a large work refers to a famous painting: Dream trip to the land of peach blossoms of An Gyeon (active middle of 15^rd s.). If his approach is rooted in his oriental past (use of paper and ink) his technique, totally innovative, is part of Western modernity. His method of work supposes a part of unforeseen and accidents that must be controlled and, as Mael Bellec points out, this brings it closer to the currents of painting of Buddhism. his (chan Chinese or zen Japanese).

The Cernuschi Museum has some works by Hong InSook and exhibited them at the Paris-Seoul-Paris event in 2015.