Blue Stream Gallery, a introduction to the works of Korean artists in the Bay Area
The ‘2023 Art Market’ event was held to give a glimpse of the trend of the art market. The event, held at the Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion in San Francisco, attracted 81 galleries from the United States, Asia and Europe.
Famous artists like Banksy as well as emerging artists were introduced at this year’s event. Galleries PICI, Artplus, and Gallery PADO also introduced works by Korean artists.
One gallery that particularly attracted attention at this year’s art market is the ‘Blue Stream Gallery’. The Blue Stream Gallery is recently opened in downtown San Francisco and is headed by Kiwon Kang(강기원), who is Korean. The works introduced by Blue Stream Gallery are also eye-catching. This is because most of the works presented were painted by Korean artists living in the Bay Area.
Famous artists like Banksy as well as emerging artists were introduced at this year’s event. Galleries PICI, Artplus, and Gallery PADO also introduced works by Korean artists.
One gallery that particularly attracted attention at this year’s art market is the ‘Blue Stream Gallery’. The Blue Stream Gallery is recently opened in downtown San Francisco and is headed by Kiwon Kang(강기원), who is Korean. The works introduced by Blue Stream Gallery are also eye-catching. This is because most of the works presented were painted by Korean artists living in the Bay Area.
The works presented by Blue Stream Gallery to the Art Market this year include Sammy Koh(고상미), who also held a solo exhibition at the Consulate General of Korea in San Francisco, HJ Chae(채현정), who recently returned from a solo exhibition in Korea, Jungeun Lee(이정은), who also works as curator of Blue Stream Gallery, Hana Jeong(정하나), who presented works with unique textures, and Jihyun Kim(김지현), who works in Korea.
Blue Stream Gallery curator Jungeun Lee said, “Many visitors came to our booth to see and showed a lot of interest,” adding, “There were as many people who bought the works as there was great interest.” Curator Jungeun said, “In the case of HJ Chae’s work, officials from the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SF-MOMA) showed great interest.”
As her first solo exhibition held at the Consulate General of Korea in SF in 2021, Sammy Koh, already known to Koreans, attracted attention for her change from realistic landscape paintings to surreal images, and HJ Chae’s ‘Fence’ series and ‘Distance A Far 2022-10’ showed the artist’s imagination changing from real to virtual during the pandemic.
Blue Stream Gallery curator Jungeun Lee said, “Many visitors came to our booth to see and showed a lot of interest,” adding, “There were as many people who bought the works as there was great interest.” Curator Jungeun said, “In the case of HJ Chae’s work, officials from the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SF-MOMA) showed great interest.”
As her first solo exhibition held at the Consulate General of Korea in SF in 2021, Sammy Koh, already known to Koreans, attracted attention for her change from realistic landscape paintings to surreal images, and HJ Chae’s ‘Fence’ series and ‘Distance A Far 2022-10’ showed the artist’s imagination changing from real to virtual during the pandemic.
I was also impressed by Lee Jeong-eun’s work, which clearly showed the expansion of the field of Korean painting, Hana Jeong, who introduced a new technique using crayons, and Jihyun Kim, who blended visible and invisible images.
“You can still enjoy works by Korean artists even after the art market is over,” said Kiwon Kang, owner of Blue Stream Gallery, adding, “From April 15, curator Jungeun Lee’s works will be exhibited as the opening exhibition, and artists Sammy Ko and HJ Chae will hold solo exhibitions April 28, and May 20.”
“You can still enjoy works by Korean artists even after the art market is over,” said Kiwon Kang, owner of Blue Stream Gallery, adding, “From April 15, curator Jungeun Lee’s works will be exhibited as the opening exhibition, and artists Sammy Ko and HJ Chae will hold solo exhibitions April 28, and May 20.”
On the other hand, in addition to the Blue Stream, Art Plus exhibited works by Man Chul Oh(오만철), which was introduced as the 2020 Consulate General of Korea in SF Korea Week, and works from the African Art Museum showcasing African art also attracted attention. Hae Kwang Jung(정해광), director of the Museum of African Art, who introduced African artists such as Tanzania and Ethiopia, said, “Although it is not widely known, African art has a fatal charm,” adding, “The price range of the works is not high, so I recommend them to Koreans who want to buy works of art.”
