Jang Woo Lee: Art Criticism
Independent Curator Hyun Ju Kim
본문
Who speaks of order? Who talks about the law? Carl Schmitt, a political philosopher, declared nomos, the sovereign paradox, "the law is located outside the law." Order seems to be composed of exceptional conditions and excluded cases, therefore what we consider to be out of law and out of order makes the law effective along with them. Taking my position carefully to deal with Jang Woo Lee’s works, I start my words from this point of view, deep concerning about deviation and exceptional instances. Although the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder labelled Jang Woo Lee may have pathological effects, I decide to think that this labelled rhetoric is literally a rhetoric, so to speak, a function word to ‘artist’ Jang Woo Lee. Therefore, I try not to write about him on the assumption of his life in the way of applying differences between an artist’s life and the various artists’ lives I have encountered, but to write about his works just based on my visual sensitivity and aesthetic discernment. Although it is difficult to be completely free from the labelled rhetorical word towards him, I try to see him without staying in a limited frame. I would like to present the world where he can stand without speaking out his voice in response to people’s attention on his talent or his peculiarity. Even though it is a sincere and respectful voice, it becomes noise by mixing with countless sounds of the world. The voice is temporarily paused in a space of painting that is unfolded by the artist. I would like to treat the painting in a fair way as everyone does.
Double-Disorder
Since his first solo exhibition, Jang Woo Lee has been dealing with the mountains, forests, and the sea in Gangwon-do, the neighborhood where he lives, the area he goes through, and the landscape and daily life encountered while he travels. Until now, he shows his expansions of his works from certain trees, such as birch, pine, and maple, to colonies and habitats like forests and mountains. The work also shows a sense of feeling about the winter season when your fingertips are cold, spring season when the heat rises gently from the ground, the sunset making a long shadow, and high and low clouds appeared in a middle and distance view when the air moving over east and west in Taebaek Mountain. This summer, when I first visited his studio, my eyes were gradually moving upwards and more and more falling inside of the work while watching his painting. The spreading shapes of forsythia that is soaking water, was reaching up the top of the canvas frame even at the bent edge as the room of canvas was not enough for them. The blooming of cherry blossoms were layering and piling outwardly and upwardly as if the flat surface of the painting was not enough for them. Before densely grown, the young light green leaves of trees seem to push out their leaves to the outermost space of the mountain while the mountain hides tree’s branches inside. This kind of observation, which is often considered an artist's technique as the uses of brush, knife, and paints are directly examined, is too narrow to describe Jang Woo Lee’s works. Usually, gaining proficiency is followed up by the series of study on the technique, and the study of technique tends to follow up with the efficiency. Let me think of his work from the point whether or not the economical principles such as proficiency, processing, and efficiency are working on his painting. The question arises, “isn’t he painting all new everytime he paints?” even though there might be some tendencies coming from his habits. Of course, I totally agree that an empty space of canvas always gives an artist a new task. Painting in general, however, provisionally delivers conformity and promise with canvas frames which is made after a confrontation to it, and it constructs a category by accumulations of works. On the other hand, Jang Woo Lee’s painting shows distinctive characteristics rather than common characteristics found in general paintings even though wide category of landscape and a group of recognizable objects he chooses somewhat indicates the common rule of painting.
I focus Jang Woo Lee, not on the artist’s technique, but on his choice and its presentation as an artist, and point out his uniqueness of frames and multi-layered spectrum. Let me put aside multi-layered spectrum for a moment and bring up his uniqueness of frames first. Art critic, Jerry Saltz, compares the mechanical aspect of the camera with the experience and emotion taken by human eye. Above all, the camera lens corrects the distortion, but human eyes can not. His statement is as follows. “If the eye scans, the camera crops.” Putting Saltz's statement on Jang Woo Lee’s work, Jang Woo Lee precisely observes the world, in other words, he carefully scans the world and chooses different ways of arrangement apart from the conventional ways of composition to make them good-looking. This feature stands out more when the scenary between close-range and middle distance view are captured on canvas rather than distant view. He follows his own alternative principles and stances to expose objects completely by closely looking at specific part of a tree rather than the tree itself, or a tree that forms a forest rather than the forest itself as a whole. To regard this as the crop of the camera that Saltz mentioned, Camera’s correction function is hardly applied to Jang Woo Lee. Of course, Jang Woo Lee also takes pictures of the surrounding landscapes and objects with his camera and corrects them skillfully with editing tools as many artists do in their research process. Apart from this process, however, he puts all his attention and interests to the objects that he decides to draw, rather than cares about the selective scene when he takes pictures. This is far from efficiency, and regarding this act inconsiderately as anti-proficiency is just nothing more than the perspectives of the general world out there. Outside of the law in which common judgments and customs of painting are not located, he gains double disorder as it allows him more freedom of movement. The artist, who was placed in a phase of disorder by his diagnosis, once again stands in a place of disorder by his own choice. The freedom of movement he gains from this double disorder is very worthwhile even though the outer apparent situation where exception occurs could be different.
Within Spectrum
Jang Woo Lee’s sea painting gives a clue to the multi-layered spectrum that shows a peculiarity of his choice on objects and its presentation. When watching a painting, I care about the appropriate distance set by the artist. In general, a social distance, ranging from 1.2 meters to 3.6 meters, is preferred and used to see the work closer or further back as needed. The artists also looks their works in a distance from time to time while they paint, and the distance they actually take is a proper distance for the audiences as well. As I faced the works of Anmok Beach and Gyeongpo Lake, I wondered the distance that he sets up. You might realize that the details of the building observed in a close distance from canvas is not distorted even in a perspectives of further distance when you see it one meter back, another three to four meters back. He is not easily compromising. He does not accept the rule of efficiency nor effectiveness for his simple treatment of works. The sea is the sea; the artifacts of human history located at the seaside are as much as the artificial existence only; the sky is the sky; each object of the landscape has its power separately without yielding their room to each other. Concession is a virtue, but the thing that is more natural than this virtue may be to leave it as it is. Despite this fact, art with hierarchy intervened by a filter of power is very human. It is great because it is human. It is also arbitrary because it is human. Looking at Jang Woo Lee's work again, it is more natural to leave things in a place as it is than to extract from the place. For him, Pyeongchang-dong is not a rich village but just a place where he visits, and the Lotte World Tower is not the tallest building in Korea but just a building in front of him as he look up to it. Since his painting does not have a strategy for visual spectacle, touching and beauty of Jang Woo Lee's work is closer to those who believe that art is everywhere than those who believe that art is far away.
The reason that Jang Woo Lee’s work looks very natural is that it includes the problem between eyes and objects along with a vertical composition of the scenary and the hierarchical order among the landscapes and the objects. We often want the spectrum to be broad and diverse. We also want a depth from a single point. The vocabulary derived from ‘spect’ is generally related to 'the act of looking'. Therefore, the word spectrum is associated with diverse and flexible point of view and perspectives. However, specter, which means a ghost, is also derived from ‘spect’, and it makes us realize that the things we believe to see or the act of seeing can be an illusion. This act of seeing unlooses our firm belief and you can also find that we rely on the very weak ground of belief. Maurice Godlier, an anthropologist who wants to restore the power of imagination against a view that symbols are dominating, states that the leading anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss in the 20th century tried to find the relationship ‘between’ the elements involved, but he insists that the relationship exists ‘within’ elements not just ‘between.’ When the spectrum is standardized by the coefficient between reflection and absorption of light, the problem which is located ‘within’ is hardly described. It can be illustrated in the field of imagination. Jang Woo Lee does not paint like a shooter holding a gun towards the target. Without need for brushes, knives, and tools, the paints that he directly applies to the canvas serve for the passion and joy of painting rather than for the purpose of painting itself. Although spectrum means a measurement range for symptom of disease, Jang Woo Lee contemplates ‘within’ the world without the consequence. The air that we breathe, the atmosphere that fills the world, the visual effects of the atmosphere with clouds and wind are very natural but not easy for Jang Woo Lee due to its natural appearance. Every single object, which is natural and never to be neglected in his painting, is a problem and problematic within the relationship between himself and his painting. In short, it is democratic. But it is more in attitude than in the appearance of democratic being commonly said.
Beyond Autism
The short story, “Colorless Age,” written by Italo Calvino describes the world around the time when the atmosphere was just formed. It was hard to explain the differences between me and you in a plain and cozy world where there are not many concepts of being. However, the atmosphere begins to form in the world beyond the gray world. Crimson poppies, blooming pea-colored green plains, seas, hills, and fields were formed and differences between me and you start to be explained separately. This brilliant world with many names and categories can be incredible for someone, but for others, the world of disharmony where the neutral balance is broken, is uncomfortable and refuses to come to this world. In this short story, there are only two main characters. I wonder who survives at the end. Hidden one or left one? Then I came to the conclusion that a person who longs for something would be better. I try to guess what kind of world autism is. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine. I dare not say that Jang Woo Lee is caught in that inclosed autism world. The world he guides is right in front of you, and here is the path he has made. He has a wish and that is why he paints. Therefore, he is an artist to me, and the label attached to him seems to be very light and meaningless.
Double-Disorder
Since his first solo exhibition, Jang Woo Lee has been dealing with the mountains, forests, and the sea in Gangwon-do, the neighborhood where he lives, the area he goes through, and the landscape and daily life encountered while he travels. Until now, he shows his expansions of his works from certain trees, such as birch, pine, and maple, to colonies and habitats like forests and mountains. The work also shows a sense of feeling about the winter season when your fingertips are cold, spring season when the heat rises gently from the ground, the sunset making a long shadow, and high and low clouds appeared in a middle and distance view when the air moving over east and west in Taebaek Mountain. This summer, when I first visited his studio, my eyes were gradually moving upwards and more and more falling inside of the work while watching his painting. The spreading shapes of forsythia that is soaking water, was reaching up the top of the canvas frame even at the bent edge as the room of canvas was not enough for them. The blooming of cherry blossoms were layering and piling outwardly and upwardly as if the flat surface of the painting was not enough for them. Before densely grown, the young light green leaves of trees seem to push out their leaves to the outermost space of the mountain while the mountain hides tree’s branches inside. This kind of observation, which is often considered an artist's technique as the uses of brush, knife, and paints are directly examined, is too narrow to describe Jang Woo Lee’s works. Usually, gaining proficiency is followed up by the series of study on the technique, and the study of technique tends to follow up with the efficiency. Let me think of his work from the point whether or not the economical principles such as proficiency, processing, and efficiency are working on his painting. The question arises, “isn’t he painting all new everytime he paints?” even though there might be some tendencies coming from his habits. Of course, I totally agree that an empty space of canvas always gives an artist a new task. Painting in general, however, provisionally delivers conformity and promise with canvas frames which is made after a confrontation to it, and it constructs a category by accumulations of works. On the other hand, Jang Woo Lee’s painting shows distinctive characteristics rather than common characteristics found in general paintings even though wide category of landscape and a group of recognizable objects he chooses somewhat indicates the common rule of painting.
I focus Jang Woo Lee, not on the artist’s technique, but on his choice and its presentation as an artist, and point out his uniqueness of frames and multi-layered spectrum. Let me put aside multi-layered spectrum for a moment and bring up his uniqueness of frames first. Art critic, Jerry Saltz, compares the mechanical aspect of the camera with the experience and emotion taken by human eye. Above all, the camera lens corrects the distortion, but human eyes can not. His statement is as follows. “If the eye scans, the camera crops.” Putting Saltz's statement on Jang Woo Lee’s work, Jang Woo Lee precisely observes the world, in other words, he carefully scans the world and chooses different ways of arrangement apart from the conventional ways of composition to make them good-looking. This feature stands out more when the scenary between close-range and middle distance view are captured on canvas rather than distant view. He follows his own alternative principles and stances to expose objects completely by closely looking at specific part of a tree rather than the tree itself, or a tree that forms a forest rather than the forest itself as a whole. To regard this as the crop of the camera that Saltz mentioned, Camera’s correction function is hardly applied to Jang Woo Lee. Of course, Jang Woo Lee also takes pictures of the surrounding landscapes and objects with his camera and corrects them skillfully with editing tools as many artists do in their research process. Apart from this process, however, he puts all his attention and interests to the objects that he decides to draw, rather than cares about the selective scene when he takes pictures. This is far from efficiency, and regarding this act inconsiderately as anti-proficiency is just nothing more than the perspectives of the general world out there. Outside of the law in which common judgments and customs of painting are not located, he gains double disorder as it allows him more freedom of movement. The artist, who was placed in a phase of disorder by his diagnosis, once again stands in a place of disorder by his own choice. The freedom of movement he gains from this double disorder is very worthwhile even though the outer apparent situation where exception occurs could be different.
Within Spectrum
Jang Woo Lee’s sea painting gives a clue to the multi-layered spectrum that shows a peculiarity of his choice on objects and its presentation. When watching a painting, I care about the appropriate distance set by the artist. In general, a social distance, ranging from 1.2 meters to 3.6 meters, is preferred and used to see the work closer or further back as needed. The artists also looks their works in a distance from time to time while they paint, and the distance they actually take is a proper distance for the audiences as well. As I faced the works of Anmok Beach and Gyeongpo Lake, I wondered the distance that he sets up. You might realize that the details of the building observed in a close distance from canvas is not distorted even in a perspectives of further distance when you see it one meter back, another three to four meters back. He is not easily compromising. He does not accept the rule of efficiency nor effectiveness for his simple treatment of works. The sea is the sea; the artifacts of human history located at the seaside are as much as the artificial existence only; the sky is the sky; each object of the landscape has its power separately without yielding their room to each other. Concession is a virtue, but the thing that is more natural than this virtue may be to leave it as it is. Despite this fact, art with hierarchy intervened by a filter of power is very human. It is great because it is human. It is also arbitrary because it is human. Looking at Jang Woo Lee's work again, it is more natural to leave things in a place as it is than to extract from the place. For him, Pyeongchang-dong is not a rich village but just a place where he visits, and the Lotte World Tower is not the tallest building in Korea but just a building in front of him as he look up to it. Since his painting does not have a strategy for visual spectacle, touching and beauty of Jang Woo Lee's work is closer to those who believe that art is everywhere than those who believe that art is far away.
The reason that Jang Woo Lee’s work looks very natural is that it includes the problem between eyes and objects along with a vertical composition of the scenary and the hierarchical order among the landscapes and the objects. We often want the spectrum to be broad and diverse. We also want a depth from a single point. The vocabulary derived from ‘spect’ is generally related to 'the act of looking'. Therefore, the word spectrum is associated with diverse and flexible point of view and perspectives. However, specter, which means a ghost, is also derived from ‘spect’, and it makes us realize that the things we believe to see or the act of seeing can be an illusion. This act of seeing unlooses our firm belief and you can also find that we rely on the very weak ground of belief. Maurice Godlier, an anthropologist who wants to restore the power of imagination against a view that symbols are dominating, states that the leading anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss in the 20th century tried to find the relationship ‘between’ the elements involved, but he insists that the relationship exists ‘within’ elements not just ‘between.’ When the spectrum is standardized by the coefficient between reflection and absorption of light, the problem which is located ‘within’ is hardly described. It can be illustrated in the field of imagination. Jang Woo Lee does not paint like a shooter holding a gun towards the target. Without need for brushes, knives, and tools, the paints that he directly applies to the canvas serve for the passion and joy of painting rather than for the purpose of painting itself. Although spectrum means a measurement range for symptom of disease, Jang Woo Lee contemplates ‘within’ the world without the consequence. The air that we breathe, the atmosphere that fills the world, the visual effects of the atmosphere with clouds and wind are very natural but not easy for Jang Woo Lee due to its natural appearance. Every single object, which is natural and never to be neglected in his painting, is a problem and problematic within the relationship between himself and his painting. In short, it is democratic. But it is more in attitude than in the appearance of democratic being commonly said.
Beyond Autism
The short story, “Colorless Age,” written by Italo Calvino describes the world around the time when the atmosphere was just formed. It was hard to explain the differences between me and you in a plain and cozy world where there are not many concepts of being. However, the atmosphere begins to form in the world beyond the gray world. Crimson poppies, blooming pea-colored green plains, seas, hills, and fields were formed and differences between me and you start to be explained separately. This brilliant world with many names and categories can be incredible for someone, but for others, the world of disharmony where the neutral balance is broken, is uncomfortable and refuses to come to this world. In this short story, there are only two main characters. I wonder who survives at the end. Hidden one or left one? Then I came to the conclusion that a person who longs for something would be better. I try to guess what kind of world autism is. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine. I dare not say that Jang Woo Lee is caught in that inclosed autism world. The world he guides is right in front of you, and here is the path he has made. He has a wish and that is why he paints. Therefore, he is an artist to me, and the label attached to him seems to be very light and meaningless.
