Artist Statement/ Biography

Jean Oh's work explores personal memories, emotions, and relationships, emphasizing the inherent imperfections and absurdities in our lives. She rearranges the perspective of personal objects, such as couches, scars, and old family photos, creating multiple layers of ambiguous forms that prompt contemplation. Oh's layered, warm, and washed colors, along with her repetitive process of wiping, washing, sanding, drawing, pouring, scraping, and repainting, amplify the disorienting effect, blurring the line between representation and abstraction. By irregularly sewing the canvas, she adds to the ambiguous feeling. Oh's work aims to express the paradoxical nature of humans and challenge the idea that humans are rational beings. Her work invites viewers to look beyond the surface of seemingly ordinary experiences and consider the multiple layers of meaning within them.

--

Jean Oh (b. 1993) is a New York-based artist who explores personal stories and experiences, examining emotions, memories, relationships, and subtle imperfections inherent in our lives. She earned her BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art and MFA from Pratt Institute, receiving the Silver Prize for the AHL-T&W Foundation Contemporary Visual Art Awards. Oh has exhibited her work in solo shows at Nars Foundation and Iron Velvet Gallery, as well as group shows at Space 776 Gallery and AHL Foundation Gallery in New York. Her paintings rearrange personal objects such as couches and old family photos using warm, washed colors to create abstract-like forms, sparking unexpected perspectives and inviting viewers to look beyond the surface of seemingly ordinary experiences.

< BACK