British painters Rose Wylie, Michael Craig-Martin show works at Seongnam Cube Art Museum

British contemporary artists Rose Wylie and Michael Craig-Martin have been brought together for the first time at Seongnam Cube Art Museum, presenting different artistic worlds of their own, but sharing one thing in common: wit.

The joint exhibition “Two Seasons” shows some 50 artworks by the two artists who had solo shows in past years in Seoul. Their works were put together at Seongnam Cube Art Museum in Gyeonggi Province for visitors who wish to see the paintings by the two prominent artists at one place to get fresh inspiration.

Born in 1941, Craig-Martin is known as a conceptual artist whose works are inspired by objects that people may easily encounter in everyday life. The objects appear with strong primary colors in his paintings at different scales, allowing people to look at art from a new angle and in a less serious manner.

“I realized that it was possible to make an incredible transformation of how people responded to the image by the inclusion of color,” he said in a video interview provided at the exhibition.

Craig-Martin is also well known as an influential teacher at Goldsmiths College, London and was a Tate Trustee from 1989 to 1999. In 2006, he was knighted for his services to art.

Wylie on the other hand gained global fame relatively recently; the 89-year-old artist had given up on art to raise a family after marrying in her early 20s. She resumed her studies at the age of 45, entering the Royal College of Art in London.

Her bold and expressive brushstrokes have stimulated creativity in many people and been a source of encouragement for those who start art careers in later years. Seemingly playful and naive paintings have become the painter’s signature. Wylie has also been recognized with the English honor of an OBE.

“The painting is not about something. I think lots of people do not understand that. They think it is the message, which it isn’t. The message is the painting. The painting is the painting,” Wylie said.

The joint exhibition of the two artists runs through March 19.

By Park Yuna (yunapark@heraldcorp.com)