CreatripTeam

A two-person exhibition at Pace Gallery in Hannam-dong, Seoul, titled “The Language of Abstraction, the Universe of Emotion,” brings together works by American Abstract Expressionist Adolph Gottlieb and Korean modernist Kim Whanki from 1962–1973. The show (Nov. 31–Jan. 10) traces Kim’s shift from suggestive forms to fully abstract canvases filled with countless dots—evoking constellations and meditative cosmic space—during his New York years after encountering Gottlieb at the 1963 São Paulo Biennale. Gottlieb’s works, including a 1962 “Burst” painting and his “imaginary landscape” series, highlight dramatic contrasts of color and form characteristic of 1950s U.S. abstraction. The exhibition, organized with the Adolph & Esther Gottlieb Foundation and the Whanki Foundation, invites viewers to compare the artists’ different cultural roots (Kim from Jeollanam-do’s sea and sky; Gottlieb from a New York Jewish immigrant background) and to listen for artistic dialogue and mutual influence across their parallel journeys. The show marks Pace Gallery’s 65th anniversary and runs through Jan. 10.