YATOO Exhibition

Megnyitó // Opening
2016.11.15. 18:00

Helyszín // Venue
Korean Cultural Center
1124 Budapest, Csörsz u. 49-51.

Megnyitja // Opening speech by
Dr. Beatrix Mecsi

Kurátor // Curated by
István Erőss

Szervezők // Hosts
Korean Cultural Center
Yatoo
Eszterházy Károly Egyetem

About the Exhibition

Yatoo’s Budapest exhibition presents the work of a Korean artist group that has been continually active since its inception 35 years ago. The relevancy of the exhibition derives not only from the group’s unique contemporary art career already spanning three and a half decades, but also from the international influence of their artistic work. Few people know that, in the early 1990s, Yatoo played a key role in connecting Western artistic movements that focused on nature as their central artistic object – such as land art and arte povera – with their Asian counterparts. Not only do we have Yatoo to thank for Nature Art – a concept also prominent in present-day Hungary –, but also for their advocacy of a novel artistic approach, both in regards to its choice of context and its technical implementation.

The exhibition presents documentary work of Yatoo’s activity from the 1980s – barely known in Europe to date – mainly as performed at their Four Seasons workshops, which were a true novelty of this period. The black-and-white photographs presented here serve as documentats of the honest and intimate cooperation that emerges among artists as they venture into nature together, without equipment or material. The photos reflect the artists’ joy of creating art together, coupled with the peace and calm they achieve through working in a natural environment. From the multitude of creative methods employed by Yatoo, the second half of the exhibition features their works relying on ephemeral substances – such as branches, leaves, seeds and mud – this time far removed from their natural habitat.

The display aims to introduce Hungarian audiences to a completely new approach to art that transcends the boundaries of Western art history. In contrast to the omniscience of the artist’s ego, and the myth of artistic eternity typical of the Western tradition, the works presented here offer a glimpse into an approach deeply rooted in Eastern philosophy and religion. In doing so, they showcase a surprising, and, to the Western observer, at times perhaps discomforting humility in their work with nature.

http://www.koreaikultura.hu/