Bio & CV

Bio

Lee Eun Young (Pusan, South Korea, 1954) is a very special artist. She works steady on an ever increasing oeuvre of great depth and impressive diversity. Her artistic position is actually quite hard to describe as Eun Young’s attitude and oeuvre does not fit within any pigeonhole. She is a cross-over artist in the most sincere sense. In this respect her personal multicultural background and artistic identity might reflect this as well. Grown up in Korea, educated in Paris and working for quite some time now in The Netherlands, Eun Young produces original and non conformist, un-fashionable, lively and even humorous works with a most serious undertone. Sometimes she takes position as a true autonomous artist, and then she feels quite well as an applied artist, fashion designer, poet and even performer. Creating and re-creating, based on a permanent search for identity, connections between now and then, here and there.

In her work Lee Eun Young goes back to her Korean, Confusianistic roots in which history, and especially family-history plays such an important role. In her assembly pieces she adds new layers to existing objects. That may be photographs from her personal past, ordinary everyday utensils of clothes. She revitalises these by various interventions. Elements in old photographs  are accentuated by adding contours or shades by pencil of with ink on transparent paper attached to the original picture.

Common appliances or objects (such as typewriters, bottles, toys, shoes or clothes, piggybanks) are covered up with leaf silver, foil, adhesive tape, needles and at one time even with margarine.

As an artist settled in The Netherlands, Eun Young shapes her personal history, past and present in an emotionally rich and most associative way. And not to forget, the enormous energy and pushing power she puts in her projects.

One of her last extraordinary and highly original projects is a series of installations, or rather inventions, in particular locations: the offices of Mayors of various Dutch cities. Offices that symbolize local history tradition and universal standards such as power and democracy: those offices are metaphors of public spaces that are usually kept closed and inaccessible for most inhabitants of those cities. With her objects, photo works, pieces of fashion or extravagant shoe-related designs intermingling with the usual rather formal office inventory Eun Young transforms these offices to subtle temporary installations: deranging, commenting, provocative, causing confusion and gaining praise.

Eun Young’s strength is her persistence and strict discipline, Together with her original mind and authentic talent to shape and reshape, forms this rich source with seems to produce a never-ending stream of personal, colourful, subtle and multilayered messages for the world. That makes her a very special and talented artist that deservers our interest and support.

— Max Meijer
Former Director Museum of Modern Art Arnhem
Director of TiMe Amsterdam, art and heritage consultants

CV

Birthdate
15 Feb 1954 in Busan, South of Korea

Education
Hongik University dept. Education of Art
Sorbonne University, Paris 4, Paris 8 dept. Arts Plastiques

Exhibitions

1981
“Synergism” Gallery St. Pétri, Lund, Sweden

1982
Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam

1984
Installation, Museum of Modern Art Arnhem

1987
GBK, Museum Commandri St. Jan, Nijmegen

1989
“Pasolini” Museum of Modern Art Arnhem

1993
Royal Tropical Institute, Amsterdam

1997
“Old & New” and “ A world of difference”, Museum of Modern Art Arnhem

1998
“In and Out” , Gatefoundation, Amsterdam

2000
“Photography” Museum of Modern Art Arnhem

2002
“Alhambra” Het Valkhof Museum, Nijmegen

2004-05
“Made in Arnhem” Historical Museum and Museum of Modern Art Arnhem

2005
“Human, Nature and Arts, Yushun Museum, China, “Environment and Art” Seoul

2006
“Sounding different”, Van Abbe Museum, Eindhoven,“Design Week” Istanbul

2008-2009
Installations, Project, “ The Mayors’ Chamber” 13 Mayors’s rooms in 13 Cityhalls in NL

2010
“The Sovereign European Art Prize”, Barbican Art Center, London and Hodgson Loom, Gallery, Isle of Man, United Kingdom

2011-12
“Who is Afraid of Oriental Girls?” Espace Enny & Delta Lloyed, Amsterdam, Performance,”Free the freedom” Show Room, Arnhem

2012
“I CAN DO THAT”, Variable space, Chicago, USA, “Pearls” The Stedelijk Museum, 
De Lakenhal, Leiden, “In Conversation” Elburg Museum

2013
“Bronbeek Project” Bronbeek Museum, Arnhem, ‘wij in 2113’ Espace Enny,“The Plain” The Cultural Museum, Beit Ha’ir, Tel Aviv and the Museums in Israel

2014
“Comestibles” Sheremetev Palace/Museum in St. Petersburg in Russia “Ten Oorlog” “To the War” Abdijhoeve in Koksijde, Belgium, International Art Fair in Beurs van Berlage, Amsterdam

2015
Installation in Trans, Arnhem, “Soundscape” in Espace Enny, Laag-Keppel, “Dancing Souls” in Dreamrose Gallery, Monroe, New York, “Show your colours” Stedelijk Museum, Assen

2016
IFAA Project, ‘Ou va le mond’ Cité des Arts, Paris, France. ‘geSicht’ gallery plan d, Dusseldorf, Germany

2017
“Salon der Kunstlerin” Kleve Museum, Kleef , Germany. Haslla Museum, Gangneung, The South of Korea, ’Last dance’ in VM23, Arnhem

2018
‘Vol-Ledig’ ARTRA gallery, Amsterdam. Artoll-Labor, Residency, Bedburg Hau, Germany, ‘Memory for one star’ B53, Arnhem, Spurensicherung, Circa…Dit, Arnhem, ‘Verwondering’, Ecologische tuin, Arnhem, ‘voice of God’ Lima, Peru, Osten Biennial of Drawing, North Macedonia

2019
“Contested Space I”; “Contested Space II’, B53 Arnhem; Artist’s in residence Haslla Museum S Korea; “Art Collectors” Sonsbeek Villa, Arnhem; “Le pli project”, Young-Wol museum, South-Korea; “Ik ben de wond, ik ben het mes”, galerie defame, Amersfoort; Kunst op de koffie, art in private houses, Arnhem

2020

“La Condition Humaine”, Circa Dit, Arnhem; B53, Apeldoorn; “Verlaten huizen”, Young Wol museum, Zuid-Korea;

2021

“Dichter op het water”, “Cocons d’arbre”, museum Schokland and Sculpture garden; ”La poésie des herbes”, residency, workshop & exhibition, Espace d’Arts Contemporains, Bourbonne les Bains, France; “Niemand is een eiland”, KunstenFestival in Damme, Belgium; The 28th International Art Festival, Seoul.

2022

“The Living threads & Philosopher’s stone” Duo Expo in Arttra gallery, Amsterdam; “Aluminium for Alu”, Baptist, Arnhem; “Synergia”, Circa…Dit, Arnhem; DuoExpo, “De Ingreep en het Offer”, Lokaal N8, Jubbega, Friesland, ;“The Mirror of tree” in Eco Garden, Arnhem

2023

‘Constructs of Dwelling’  R.S.O.L (Room for study of loneliness) in Deventer. ‘Hoe = Het Nu’ in Art-centre ACEC in Apeldoorn.  ‘Watou Kunstenfestival’, Patchwork, Research & Exhibition in Watou, Belgium for participation in 2024 i.c.w. with Carel Lanters.  ‘Soundscape’ in the Ecological garden in Arnhem.

2024

“Landscape f Imagination”, Watou Kunstenfestival, i.c.w. Carel Lanters: “Anathemata”

ACEC, Apeldoorn, “Hoe is het nu 2024”

“Les Illuminations”, Art Space NUN, Arnhem i.c.w. Carel Lanters

Collections

Museum of Modern Art, Arnhem
Het Valkhof Museum, Nijmegen
Van Abbe Museum, Eindhoven
Department of Education, EduArt in Gelderland in NL
Particulieren

Nominations

Buhrman Ubbens Paper Prize
Made in Arnhem, MIA, Museum of Modern Art, Arnhem
Short listed in Sovereign European Art Prize, London