Yeondoo Jung,
Portrait of Bacillus #5, 2025, Color inkjet pigment print,
framed, 63 x 51 x 4 cm (framed), Courtesy of the artist and Kukje Gallery ©Kukje
GalleryKukje Gallery will present Yeondoo Jung’s
solo exhibition, 《The Inevitable, Inacceptable》, at its Busan location from April 25 to July 20. Known for his
interdisciplinary practice spanning video, photography, sculpture, and
performance, Jung has long explored the junctures and intersections of
disparate subjects, exposing the gaps of the era and weaving new sensory
narratives.
In this exhibition, the artist interlaces
the rhythm of blues music with the tempo of fermentation, interpreting the
humor and longing that come with navigating an unpredictable reality through
his singular perspective. The gallery space is centered around five musicians,
each performing a distinct part of a blues composition, forming a loosely
coordinated ensemble rich with personal stories. Positioned throughout the
exhibition in zones demarcated by colorful polygonal structures, the performers
interact with the surrounding videos, photographs, and sculptures in a dynamic
and responsive installation.
Yeondoo Jung,
Inevitable Blues – Organ (still image),
2025, 4K digital video, color, sound, signage, framed, 190 x 109 x 6 cm, 4 min.
18 sec. (looped), Courtesy of the artist and Kukje Gallery ©Kukje GalleryAn artist long interested in the
juxtaposition of visual imagery with auditory elements—such as music, voice,
intonation, and noise—Jung, in this exhibition, foregrounds the vitality and
dynamism of life that may not be seen but can be heard and felt. Through music,
particularly the blues, he offers a direct, sensory expression of lived
experience.
Originating in the mid-19th century
American South among African American communities, the blues used distinctive
rhythms and lyrics to articulate the struggles of daily life. Within this
genre, Jung discovers an imaginative, self-deprecating yet uplifting way of
navigating unexplained circumstances and unavoidable predicaments.
Yeondoo Jung,
Inevitable Reasons (still image), 2025, 4K
digital video, color, signage, framed, 42 x 73 x 6 cm, 7 min. 10 sec. (looped),
Courtesy of the artist and Kukje Gallery ©Kukje GalleryAlongside blues music, the exhibition space
unfolds with a rich array of fermentation imagery. Having brewed makgeolli
(Korean rice wine) by hand for several years, Jung views the transformation of
rice by the microorganisms in nuruk (fermentation starter) not as a culinary
process, but as something closer to the realm of the divine—something that can
only be hoped for, not controlled.
He connects the mysterious rhythm of this
natural alchemy to the structure of blues music: the beat of bursting makgeolli
bubbles is echoed in the rhythm of the drums, while the swelling
sourdough—rising as it ferments—flows like a saxophonist’s breath, resonating
with its sound.
In this exhibition, Jung steps beyond
familiar categories to confront the incomprehensible workings of the world. He
juxtaposes the overwhelmingly vast with the minutely intimate, blending humor
and longing to express a deep reverence for life’s mysteries. The rhythm of the
heart—living through the coincidences, destinies, and tragicomedies of an
uncontrollable life—emerges as a polyphonic harmony, played out in the
responsive interplay of sound and image within the stage of the exhibition.
