Chelho Park

Park Chelho (b. 1965) went to Pennsylvania, US, in his early 30s, searching for new art, and explored his emotions about his personal existence there. The rough, dark bird shapes in his early works reflect the sense of frustration and the expectation of returned hope that he felt at the time. Park was expressive in technique, making violently sharp lines or filling objects made of lead with wax to build thick matière on the picture plane. But as his work continued, his exploration of subjects gradually moved from the individual to nature. The result of this is his recent work, full of elements of nature such as shimmering waves and their reflections, and the tree branches blowing in the wind. Park’s picture planes, completed with mainly thin blue lines drawn on delicate linen and applying blunt touches that seem to stain the surface with a transparent glaze, are simple and light but filled with the manifestation of presence. The artist’s comment, “Nature is emptying, and is a complete being. Only when I can empty everything can perfection take place in my work,” reflects the traces of agony and experimentation he has had to undergo repeatedly in order to complete such a picture. Park’s mature paintings, which proceed from inside to outside, from filling to emptying, tell us that the essence of being is not in “me” but in “us,” not in “desire” but in “freedom.”