Young In Hong – A Fire That Never Dies

The gallery is pleased to present the second solo show with Korean artist Young In Hong. In recent years, Hong has continued to develop a unique body of work by using Korean free-hand machine embroidery inspired by the forms and contexts of English tapestry. Based in London over the past years, her interest in modern Asian craftsmanship and its exploration through a Western context, has become one of her main concerns. A Fire That Never Dies brings together a new body of work that concentrate on lost moments, mostly where social unrest is at stake. Focusing on the recent history of Modern Korea and furthering her quest for capturing the immaterial, transitional nature of collective experience, Hong pinpoints politically and emotionally charged moments of political consciousness and rituals of celebration.

Employing a combination of different media ranging from photography to painting and embroidery, alongside insertions of garment making techniques, Hong's series is charged with pathos and grievance. She forms associations between sewing and painting, not only through combining them in a singular frame, but also through provoking their labour intensive qualities. Each image is formed of threads that exceed the frame.

The exhibition is accompanied by a publication with a text by Fatos Üstek, an independent writer and curator based in London. She is currently Art Fund Curator at fig-2. Üstek was also associate curator for the 10th Gwangju Biennale in South Korea in 2014, curated by Jessica Morgan, director of Dia Art Foundation.

Young In Hong (b 1972) is based in London and Seoul and holds a PhD in Fine Art from Goldsmiths College London. She had her first exhibition at Cecilia Hillström Gallery in the spring of 2013. Hong's work has been shown in international venues such as ICA London (2015), Gwangju Biennale (2014), Plateau Museum, Seoul (2014), Museum of Art and Design, New York (2011), Saatchi Gallery (2010), and a special exhibition at Liverpool Biennale (2008). Furthermore, Hong has been exhibiting extensively in Europe and Asia and is represented in the collections at Nya Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Korean Eye, London, and Gyeonggi MOMA, Korea.