Born in Incheon, South Korea in 1979, Oh Sukkuhn graduated from Nottingham Trent University School of Art & Design with Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in photography. The series of works are derived from the boy named “Chulsoo” and the girl named “Younghee” who first made their appearance in the Korean textbook during the era of Park Chung Hee administration and kept their presence through the mid-1990'.

The above mentioned two Korean characters can be described as “Taro” and “Hanako” in Japan. Majority of Korean people have been familiar with “Chulsoo” and “Younghee” not only as the iconized figures of common images but as the easily recognized characters in the textbook which somewhat plays the role of the bible for children. “ The Text Book (Chulsoo and Younghee)” is the new approach by Oh Sukkuhn, who in fact reused the form of the textbook and the iconized figures in his works. Each work settles on the subject matter taken from the specific scene that is still present to the mind in the memories of his acquaintances. Although each scene is based on the individual recollection of others, it summons up our memories of the past. In addition, it can run on the memories that cover the entire nation in some instances. Furthermore, his works seem to ironically reveal the obscuration and falsehood of one-time textbooks as shades of bible.

It is likely that such icons in the textbook seem to have played hosts of functions in Korea who have faced various issues such as colonial rule, Korean War, North-South issue and despotic regime. By making “Chulsoo” and “Younghee” visible once again in his works, Oh Sukkuhn might be questioning us what the individual memory actually is or whether the memory not only stays in each of us but also prevail beyond in the nation perhaps. Works of insightful question and skepsis from the viewpoint of present-day Korean artist give us the moment to think over the derivation of our memories.

Well received at the exhibition “OTONARISAN -The Stranger Next Door” organized by AQA project Kyushu University students held from late 2010 through the beginning of 2011 in Fukuoka, this is the first solo exhibition of Oh Sukkuhn in Tokyo.

Oh Sukkuhn
1979 Born in Incheon, South Korea
2003-05 Nottingham Trent University School of Art & Design, BA (Hons) Photography
Lives and works in Incheon

Selected Solo Exhibitions
2005 Bare Exposure (Noster Nostri), Wallner Gallery, Lakeside Art Centre, Nottingham
2007 Bare Exposure (Noster Nostri), Gallery ON, Seoul
2008 The Text Book (Chulsoo & Younghee), Art Space Hue, Seoul
2010 The Text Book (Chulsoo & Younghee), Blue Sky Gallery, Portland
The Text Book (Chulsoo & Younghee), Centro Cultural Recoleta
16th Encuentros Abiertos : Festival De La Luz, Buenos Aires
2011 The Text Book (Chulsoo & Younghee), Base Gallery, Tokyo

Selected Group Exhibitions
2005 Identify, 1851 Gallery, Nottingham
2007 Stationary and Flowing, Gallery on, Seoul
Stationary and Flowing, Remin University of China, Xu Beihong School of Fine Arts, Beijing
Seeing and Imagining Exhibition, Donggang Photography Festival, Youngwall Photography Museum, 　　　Youngwall
Kinora Experimental Film Opera, Post Theater, Seoul
2008 NG Art Fair(New Generation Art Fair), Art Space Hue, Seoul
Korean Young Artists 2008:I am an Artist, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Gwacheon
The Battle of Taste, Gallery Sangsangmadang, Seoul
Discoveries Exhibition of Fotofest, Fotofest Biennial, Houston
2009 Chaotic Harmony, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Houston
Showcase Reboot Vol.6, Platoon Kunsthalle, Seoul
Cinema Exhibition, Samsung Theater, Busan
City-Ray, Space Beam, Incheon
The Photograph as Contemporary Art, Doosan Art Center, Seoul
Ilmin Visual Culture 4 : Image of Youth, Ilmin Museum, Seoul
Urban & Culture, Jeonju-Photofestival, Jeollabuk-do Art Center, Jeonju
Identity, Costume, Cliche: Korean Photography Today, PCNW, Seattle
Young Portfolio 2008, Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Art, Kiyosato
Mexico Photo Biennial, Centro De la Imagen, Mexico City
Photo LA Fair, Santa Monica
2010 ATU(Alternative, Translate, Universe), Cinema Sangsangmadang, Seoul
Otonarisan:The Stranger Next Door, Gallery Artlier & Kyushu Univ. Museum Annex No.1, Fukuoka
Bibliotheque, Sangsangmadang Gallery, Seoul
Chaotic Harmony, Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara
Ilmin Visual Culture 5 : Ideal Beauty and Images, Ilmin Museum, Seoul
A4 Demo : Art For Democracy, 14 Spaces of 13 Cities, Korea
Double Interview : Other Things Being Equal, Art Space Hue & I-MYU Projects, Seoul & London
Mind Games, Australian Centre for Photography, Sydney
Waseda Photojournalism Festival, 125 Memorial Gallery of Waseda Univ.&Visual Arts Gallery, Tokyo
2011 Sea of Peace, Incheon Art Platform, Incheon
Lab Dot line TV Preview, Lab Dot line TV, Seoul
Time Without Borders, Art Space Hue, Paju
Incheon Landing Operation, Incheon Art Platform, Incheon

Collection
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara
Portland Museum of Art, Portland
Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Art, Kiyosato
Ilmin Museum, Seoul

Honor
Discoveries of Fotofest 2006, Nominated by Anne Tucker
Young Portfolio 2008 of Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Art
Supported by The Korean Culture and Arts Foundation 2006
Supported by Seoul Foundation and Arts and Culture 2010

Residency
Incheon Art Platform 2011

* The text provided by BASE GALLERY.

Period: Wednesday, September 21 - Saturday, October 22, 2011
Venue: BASE GALLERY
Opening reception: Wednesday, September 21, 2011, 18:00 -