Collecting Small Wonders

“Viewers often describe my work as ‘peaceful,’ although I don’t intentionally aim for a specific emotional effect. I appreciate any kind of emotions or thoughts they get from my images. I want my paintings to act as a trigger to bring out the viewersʼ own stories, which I believe is fine to remain as their unspoken secrets.”

Song Lee, a young artist from South Korea, graduated last year with a Master’s degree in Painting from the Royal College of Art in the UK. However, her artistic journey began long before, as she actively participated in exhibitions, including the group exhibition titled, The Hoarders, at THE SHOPHOUSE last year. This exhibition centered on the theme of hoarding and explored the intricate connection between collectors and their cherished collections. As a creator and collector, Song finds inspiration in the objects she gathers and breathes new life into them on canvas through her unique perspective. “The three pieces I selected for the exhibition are common in that they are still objects from everyday life. I chose the objects to show the positions and relations made in between – how they connect and disconnect, or do both at the same time.”

Ever since she was young, Song has had a deep passion for collecting various objects and printed materials. She enjoys arranging these items in a deliberate manner, whether it’s placing them on walls, storing them in notebooks, or displaying them in small glass cabinets. She refers to this practice as her “curatorial training for random creations by unknown artists.”

“In my creative process, it is a big part to select, to arrange and to create settings and see how they relate to and from each other. I enjoy playing with the relations as if I were writing a sentence with the chosen words. It also led me to the path of becoming an artist.”

The exhibition took place in a beautiful, old building where Song’s small-scale pieces were carefully displayed on bright white walls. To fully immerse themselves in the artwork, viewers must come up close, allowing them to appreciate the intricate brushwork, delve into the content, and absorb the unique atmosphere each artwork emanates. “I have been making small works, simply because I feel no need to make them bigger. My focus is more on the potential meanings the painting could bring into the viewerʼs mind, rather than theatrical effects, to say as an example. I keep them small also to bring the viewers closer to my work. I hope the viewers take their time and have a closer look right in front of the paintings.”

Getting closer to Song’s artworks, viewers can see that black is not merely a flat, solid color, but a complex entity with depth. Shades of gray intertwine within the darkness, while delicate hints of white emerge from the gray, as if diffused light permeates the profound darkness Song’s watercolor paintings evoke a sense of serenity, stemming from the interplay between pigments, water, and the passage of time; layer upon layer, these elements intertwine. “I regard the painting as a collection of layers, which can also be said as a collection of time. I prefer to leave the traces of the process uncovered so the viewers can feel the time the painting had gone through. This has led me to use materials that are transparent, or even use opaque materials transparently.”

Song, with her love for photography, translates her distinctive photographic language onto the canvas. Her work captures the moments frozen in time and an atmosphere of solitude through a gentle perspective. Yet, do our eyes truly grasp the essence of what they perceive? On the canvas, Song embarks on a journey of exploration alongside the viewers.