EAST HAMPTON, NY.- Stroll Garden—the Los Angeles- based gallery known for its focus on contemporary ceramics, sculpture, and design—has opened “Where Land Meets Sea,” a pop-up group exhibition taking place in East Hampton. Curated by Brooklyn-based ceramicist Jane Yang-D'Haene, the exhibition showcases the work of six South Korean contemporary artists – featuring over twenty sculptures by Yoonjee Kwak, Jaiik Lee, Re Jin Lee, Eun-Ha Paek, and Jinsik Yoo, as well as photographs by Peter Ash Lee. “Where Land Meets Sea” is on view from at the former home and studio of the revered American abstract expressionist painter, sculptor, and printmaker, Adolph Gottlieb.

“This group of exceptional artists is bound by their exploration of their Korean heritage through art-making,” shares Yang-D’Haene. “Transferring generational memories and culture through their very fingertips, the artists in the show reframe traditional Korean arts within a contemporary context.”

Jane Yang-D’Haene, born in South Korea, draws upon her cultural heritage to create unexpected ceramic work. After moving to New York City in 1984, D’Haene attended the Cooper Hewitt School of Architecture, after which she went on to work as an interior designer for a major architectural firm. However, D’Haene’s own work has evolved past this realm. Since beginning her work in ceramics in 2016, D’Haene has experimented with form and function, quickly establishing herself as an artist capable of innovating the medium. D’Haene often works within the language of traditional Korean ceramic forms, using parts of this longstanding history as a vehicle for experimentation. She builds upon these forms, integrating contemporary techniques, colors, and textures to create sculptural vessels that toe the line between art and design. Through this manipulation of her medium and reinterpretation of her history, D’Haene creates one-of-a-kind objects that breathe new life into a centuries-old craft.

YOONJEE KWAK makes sculptural vessels to represent human beings as iconic symbols from Korean culture. Yoonjee’s interactive conversation with the clay is vital to her process — she slowly builds up clay coils from the bottom, allowing her hand marks to remain on the surface. Yoonjee earned her MFA in ceramics at the School for American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in 2015 and her BFA in ceramics and glass at Hong-Ik University in Seoul, South Korea. She was a resident artist and taught ceramics classes at RIT from 2014– 2017, and recently completed a two- year long residency at the Archie Bray Foundation for Ceramic Arts in Helena, Montana. In 2016, she was named an Emerging Artist in Ceramics Monthly magazine.

JAIIK LEE creates metal objects, contemporary art, jewelry, furniture, and lighting installations that push the boundaries about the place of conceptual objects in everyday life. Lee graduated from Hongik University with an MFA in 2005, and received a second MFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology in the US in 2011. While he worked in the US, he was selected as a two-time finalist and a winner in the NICHE Awards. In 2019, he received Grand Prize at the Cheongju Craft Biennale, Award for Promising Talent at the Itami International Craft Exhibition and Outstanding Artist Award at the Craft Trend Fair. Recent shows include Gallery Sklo, Seoul; Seoul Museum of Craft Art, Seoul; The Future Perfect, New York; Révélations, Paris and Collect Art Fair, London. Lee was recently selected as a finalist for the 2023 Loewe Craft Prize.

PETER ASH LEE is a New York-based photographer and director. Born in Seoul and raised in Toronto, his work is informed by the pursuit of a contemporary standard of beauty that champions diversity and representation. Peter is also the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Burdock, an arts and culture publication celebrating multi-dimensional Asian American experiences. He has worked with commercial and editorial clients including Vogue, The New York Times, T Magazine, i-D, Tom Ford and Dior.

RE JIN LEE, a native of São Paulo, Brazil, and of South Korean heritage, draws inspiration from the amalgamation of modern Brazilian architecture, such as the works of Oscar Niemeyer and Lina Bo Bardi, Portuguese colonial architecture, and traditional Korean arts. Having earned degrees in Art, Fashion, and Design from FASM (São Paulo), Central Saint Martins, London College of Design (London), and Istituto Europeo di Design (Milan), Re Jin initially ventured into the field of fashion design and styling while residing in the United States, where she eventually discovered her passion for home art and design. Today, Re Jin's ever-changing creative journey has led her to explore the forms of ceramic art sculptures. Subconsciously taking in the influence of the surrounding softness of nature and the unpredictable moods of self, while still maintaining the firm structure of past influences. Re Jin’s work is a unique assembly of individually rolled-out clay slabs and coils created by a 'hand and clay' collaboration inspired by the contemplative process of ceramics and belief in the power of simplicity.

EUN-HA PAEK was born in Seoul, Korea. She received a BFA in Film/Animation/Video from the Rhode Island School of Design. Her animated films have screened in the Guggenheim Museum, Sundance Film Festival, and venues internationally. Grants and awards include the Windgate Scholarship and Rudy Autio Grant from the Archie Bray Foundation, and a Travel and Study Grant from The Jerome Foundation. Her work has received mentions in The New York Times, Entertainment Weekly and G4 Tech TV. Residencies include Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park, Sundaymorning@ekwc, Center for Contemporary Ceramics, and Archie Bray Foundation. She teaches at Parsons School of Design and Greenwich House Pottery.

JINSIK YOO Is a figurative ceramic sculptor and painter from Daejeon, South Korea. He received his BFA in graphic design from Konkuk University in Seoul, South Korea. He then worked as a graphic designer for 3 years before returning to Konkuk University as a special graduate student studying ceramics. Yoo then moved to the United States in 2017 to pursue his MFA at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. He has exhibited and presented nationally and internationally. His studio practice involves translating photographs into paintings, which are then spliced and reassembled into three dimensional forms.

Stroll Garden
“Where Land Meets Sea”
August 12th, 2023 - September 4th, 2023