Minyoung Choi

Space K Seoul is pleased to present Dreams for Hire, a solo exhibition by London-based artist Minyoung Choi (b.1989), on view from December 12 to February 23, 2025. The artist gathers fragments of memories from her childhood and experiences of migration to create dreamlike scenes situated between reality and fantasy. Elements that cannot coexist in reality appear in the same scene, stimulating the viewer’s imagination. Comprising over 30 works, the exhibition features paintings and drawings, including 16 new pieces.

Minyoung Choi’s works naturally feature unfamiliar beings that do not fit into everyday spaces or landscapes. In the Han River series, which recalls memories of Korea, dolphins appear in front of a group of people enjoying an outing on the Han River. The dolphin, inspired by the Amazon river dolphin, swims freely in the Han River rather than in its natural habitat, the Amazon, in the landscapes of Bridges (2024), Citylife (2024), and Han River Bathers (2024). In Night Swimming (2024), the river dolphin finally goes out at sea and floats under the moonlight with a body larger than a whale. The surrounding figures appear as spectators gathered in small groups, enjoying their daily lives and watching the surreal size of the animals as if they were accustomed to it.

밤 수영_Night Swimming_2024_Oil on linen_220 x 680 cm

Minyoung Choi uses light and color to add depth to her composition consisting of heterogeneous elements. The artist incorporates specific times of day and climates into her works, thereby intensifying the mood of each painting. In Sun Moon Tea (2024) for instance, she depicts day and night simultaneously, using bright sunlight and calm moonlight to create contrast. The two figures drinking tea are facing each other, one in the sun, the other in the night shade, creating the visual illusion of being in different worlds. In Bedroom (2023), the contrast between the light and the shadow created by the blinds is striking. The striped light cast across the room integrates the elements in the painting and together with the fluorescent light coming from the fish tank, create a mysterious, dreamlike atmosphere.

해 달 차_Sun Moon Tea_2024_Oil on linen_150 x 200 cm

Choi seamlessly connects interior and exterior spaces, blurring the boundaries between reality and imagination. In Accidental Dream (2024), a figure and a dog wander through the snow in the middle of the night and take a close look at the house in front of them. The interior of the house is clearly visible like a stage. The cross-section of the house that appears out of nowhere could be from the figure’s imagination or from a real landscape in a parallel universe. In Unknown (2024), the cliff of a snowy mountain, a wild space, is connected to an interior where a figure is sleeping face down on a desk, hence it feels like it is either a landscape just outside the window or the inside of the figure’s dream. In this way, spaces and places transcending interior and exterior, expand the range of perception and imagination.

우연한 꿈_Accidental Dream_2024_Oil on linen_150 x 200 cm

Animals appear in her work as symbolic elements that combine the subconscious and the imaginary. The lion mask from Saja Noreum appears in Moonbow (2024) and again in Visitors (2024). It has been embedded in the artist’s subconscious from her childhood experience and was used as a motif for the paintings. Our ancestors, who had never seen a real lion before, created these imaginary ‘lions’ and they have been brought to life in the paintings through the artist’s own imagination. Furthermore, animals such as lynxes, eels, and octopuses which are not easily seen by humans also appear in her paintings. These animals can witness what humans do not see and they either invade or share territories with them. In this way, animals function as an important medium between the real and the surreal.

방문_Visitors_2024_Oil on linen_150 x 200 cm

The exhibition is organized into three spaces based on the passage of time. In the last space, paintings with a full moon on the background standout, which speak to the artist’s interest in human beliefs and practices, such as myths, folklore, and legends. Moon Ritual (2024) was inspired by the moon rabbit from folk tales and Confucian rituals. As a child, the artist was intrigued by the way small animals ate the food left for the ancestors after the rituals. The work captures moments like these that are not always solemn. A child’s play of rolling a snowball has turned into a serious ritual, while digital characters that seem to have appeared from another dimension change the mood and pique our curiosity.

달 의식_Moon Ritual_2024_Oil on linen_162 x 227 cm

Choi’s landscapes range from urban and personal spaces to natural environments, including rivers, oceans, and mountains. She depicts artificial and natural elements together, conjuring up various real-life situations. Subconscious images from the artist’s experiences are combined with imagination to break down the boundaries of reality. Memories and imagination are intertwined with a sense of anxiety and chaos, leading to an ephemeral inner landscape, where space and location, human and animal, city and nature merge to form a new world. Dreams for Hire invites us to revisit the familiar yet multi-layered reality from a fantastical point of view.

Minyoung Choi earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in painting from Seoul National University and a master’s degree from Slade School of Fine Art. Currently, she lives and works in London, UK. Choi held solo exhibitions at the Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China (2023); Art in the Bar, Chapter Arts Centre, Wales, UK (2017); and Olvera Contemporary Art Centre, Olvera, Spain (2017), and participated in selected group exhibitions at Sixi Museum, Nanjing, China (2023); Daejeon Creative Center, Daejeon Museum of Art, Daejeon, South Korea (2023); and G Museum of Art, Nanjing, China (2022). Her work is held in several collections including the HSBC Art Collection, London, UK and X Museum, Beijing, China.

‘Space K’ is Kolon’s shared space for arts and culture that was launched in Gwacheon in 2011. Expanded and newly opened in Magok-dong, Gangseo-gu, in September 2020, ‘Space K Seoul’ has been providing exhibition opportunities for emerging Korean artists and mid-career artists who deserve to be reappraised as part of Kolon’s unique social contribution program utilizing art. ‘Space K Seoul’ strives to expand the base of contemporary art by holding exhibitions for international artists who are lesser-known in Korea and continuously supporting artists, allowing them to focus on their creative practice.

SpaceK Seoul
32, Magokjungang 8-ro, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, Korea
+82 02 3665 8918

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