British artist with styles of van Gogh unveils kinetic paintings in Seoul

Billy Childish, a painter who hails from the UK, opened his first solo exhibition in Seoul at Lehman Maupin in Jongno, central Seoul.

The works of Childish remind that of Expressionism painters in the early 20th century, chracterized with strong brush strokes and vivid colors,

Titled “Wolves, Sunsets and the Self,” the exhibition runs until June 27, featuring seven new paintings by the artist. His paintings, which look as if they are alive, come from the artist’s unique method of painting; he works on paintings intuitively and quickly, creating them in a single session without any revision. 
 

“I simply follow what interests me at the time I am painting. Nature supplies all the answers,” Childish told the organizers at Lehman Maupin ahead of the exhibition.

“My wish for the audience in Seoul (is for them) to feel that they have been addressed politely and invited to interpret the paintings for themselves and not feel that I’m prescribing, or requiring any particular response; that they see these works as a window into their own relationship with nature,” he added.

Born in 1959 in the United Kingdom, Childish is also a musician and writer who produced hundreds of albums and dozens of literature works such as fiction and poetry. Although he has hosted five art exhibitions in New York and Hong Kong, it is his first time to have solo exhibition in Seoul.

“His paintings are often said to remind of that of Vincent van Gogh,” Lee Ji-seon, gallery associate of Lehman Maupin told The Korea Herald. “(We expect that) his kinetic paintings will be loved by many Korean audiences.”

Lehman Maupin Seoul is situated in Jongno, central Seoul. The gallery opened in January 2018 following the branches in New York and Hong Kong. The gallery operates from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday. These days, it closes an hour earlier than the regular hours due to the COVID-19 virus pandemic.

By Park Yuna (yunapark@heraldcorp.com)