News Review
Art at Council July 12, 2016 - Cheonhak Kwon & Cheongcho Lee | Love is the Pain of Feverish Flowers
Posted Date: July 13, 2016
The artists travelled great distances to be a part of the exhibition. Cheonhak, who immigrated to Canada from Seoul, South Korea in 2008, came from her new home in Toronto, and Cheongcho journeyed from Bonghwa, South Korea. The Korean Cultural Heritage Society, organizer of the August 6, 2016 Korean Festival, brought the show to Port Moody. The artists first met about twenty years ago at a literary arts meeting. Over the years many of Cheonhak’s poems have been inspiration for Cheongcho’s painting, and he was happy to participate when she invited him to create artwork for her new book. They hope that, through this exhibition, they will be able to communicate with more people and share the cultural and artistic emotion of the poetry and painting. Cheonhak Kwon debuted through the literary journal Hyundae Munhak, and served as a member of Jindan Si, a poetry society in South Korea. She was awarded the Kyung Hee University Overseas Korean Literary Award in 2010 for the short story "Stuffed Cucumber Kimchi." Kwon was also awarded the Distinguished Poet Award in 2015 by Writers International Network Canada. Ms. Kwon is an active member of PEN International, the Society of Korean Poets, and the World Sijo Poet Forum. She has written fifteen poetry collections as well as a dictionary of Korean Proverbs and Quotations. Her books 2H2+O2=2H2O and Love is the Pain of Feverish Flowers, include English translations by Hana Kim. Cheongcho Lee, is a South Korean painter known for his unique style of purity using simplified lines and colours, that illustrate his understanding of poetry. In this exhibition, he expanded the book project by creating additional paintings that add new dimensions to viewer’s experiences. Mr. Lee received his artistic training from Moksan Rajigang and has had several solo exhibitions that traveled throughout South Korea, and Turkey. Currently his exhibition “Contemplate Istanbul” is touring in Seoul and other cities in his home country. Ms. Janny Kim, a grade 10 student and Port Moody Arts Centre volunteer was the translator for the evening. |
