FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 14, 2013

 Opening Reception: Monday, March 4, 2013, 6-8 pm

HIJO NAM. Cycles

  Monday, March 4, 2013 from 6 to 8 pm followed by Tango Music by Argentine composer Piazzolla at 8 pm

The Gabarron Foundation – Carriage House Center for the Arts - 149 East 38th St, New York, NY

HIJO NAM. Cycles solo exhibition, curated by Thalia Vrachopoulos and Elga Wimmer and co-curator Suechung Koh. The exhibition will be on view from February 26 to April 12, 2013 at the Gabarron Foundation in New York City. The opening reception with the artist and curators will be on March 4, 2013.

Hijo Nam’s works are inspired by spiritual motifs and monumental landscapes such as the Jiri Mountain in S. Korea, Grand Canyon, and Bryce Canyon that invoke in her the sounds of the soul. Nam has included vast and mysterious landscapes and cities such as the Greek Meteora and Ancient Delphi, which have offered her a sense of spiritual awakening experienced through her journeys. Consequently, Nam has taken these inspirations from nature, and found special qualities in scrap metals to create a universal message of soundless yet soulful sound. The sound of nature evokes a universal chord that does not relate to religion, gender, or nationalism, but rather, is for everyone. Nam wanted to communicate spirituality to her view errather than use heavy substances that may have conveyed negativity. Nam collects and reuses scraps of metal, wood, paper, wrappers, wine screens, string, and other so called detritus giving it new life by incorporating it into a work of fine art. These repurposed materials contain the imprint of time but also the resulting actions that humanity has impressed upon them.

Nam’s Cycle of Nature is a construction made of a circular metal form whose inner parameter contains a bent wooden semi-circular element held at intervals with metal clips. In its center there is another tondo that can be read as the earth, sun, moon or other natural entity that has to do with astronomy. Cycle of Trace, 2012 is comprised of neutral coloristic tones in rusts and camels juxtaposing multiple warm and cold shades. The support medium is distressed metal containing holes, dents, patches, nails on a surface that itself has been wrinkled like fabric. Freedom from Avarice is a work that speaks to the Buddhist promised release from the illusion of life after having lived a righteous life. This circular work also uses the void as a sculptural element in the sense that it incorporates it encapsulating it with vertical and horizontal colored wires that form a globe. This sculpture can also be read in terms of neo-Dadaist combines that while mixing media also incorporate accident as seen in Nam’s imperfectly tied wires at the top, or her passages of dented wires formulating the globe.

Nam earned her BFA and MFA at Pratt Institute and has exhibited nationally and internationally at prestigious venues in solo and group shows.

Thalia Vrachopoulos holds a doctorate in the Philosophy of Art History from the City University of New York Graduate School. She has curated over one hundred national and international exhibitions, biennials, accompanied by scholarly catalogues. Dr. Vrachopoulos is an Associate Professor of visual arts at John Jay College of Criminal Justice of the City University of New York.

Elga Wimmer studied art history at the Ecole du Louvre, Paris, and completed her education at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Her activity as a gallery owner since 1992 branched out into curatorial practice with a first assignment by the John Weber Gallery, Chelsea, New York from 2008 to 2010. Apart from press for all the curated shows, Ms.Wimmer's activity as curator was reviewed in many international magazines and news papers as ArtIt, Japan, Harper's Bazaar, Germany, Art press, France, Art News, and Art In America, USA.

The Gabarron Foundation – Carriage House Center for the Arts is a non-profit organization and an exclusive international center specializing in art exhibitions and other cultural activities. Its main objective is the promotion of Culture, making this multicultural space a reference in the City of New York. Since 2002 the Carriage House has aspired to be an excellent platform for the propagation of Hispanic culture in the United States. This organization promotes exchange and understanding between cultures, providing a space for interaction and enhanced appreciation of emerging and established cultural figures from a diverse palette of countries.

Press Department of The Gabarron Foundation