Art & Fashion, Events
Feb 11, 2022

Corey Helford Gallery Presents: ‘Fab Five’

Downtown Los Angeles’ Corey Helford Gallery (CHG) is proud to announce Fab Five. The show is a five-artist exhibition featuring new works from Jesús Aguado, Kari Tirrell, Leegan Koo, Sun-Mi, and Yasuhito Kawasaki.

L-R: snippets of new works by Jesús Aguado, Kari Tirrell, Leegan Koo, Sun-Mi, and Yasuhito Kawasaki

This new show is opening Saturday, February 19th in Gallery 2. Fab Five is opening alongside a solo show from Eric Joyner, entitled Someday World, in the Main Gallery and a solo show from Ryan Heshka, entitled Vile-O-Vision, in Gallery 3.

About The Artists:

About Jesús Aguado’s new series Foreign Body: Jesús Aguado is a Spanish illustrator who creates works that encompass parallel and surreal universes and are full of unexpected juxtapositions without written rules. Regarding his new series Foreign Body, Aguado’s shares: “Pearls are formed when a foreign body is introduced inside the mollusk. The mollusk reacts by slowly covering the irritant, which creates a pearl over time. With this metaphor, I speak of those strange elements that always contaminate the epic of the scenes that are represented. Each painting has a narrative that goes in two directions: one magical and grandiloquent and the other one, mundane and absurd. This is how I see life, in a constant change of frequency according to subjective observation. It’s the way I have to filter the world around me. Expressing this duality, by disturbing the fantasy world, is funny and tragic at the same time.”

About Kari Tirrell’s new series Toy Stories: Kari Tirrell is an American Master Pastelist and self-taught contemporary still-life artist, who now chooses acrylic as her preferred medium. Tirrell’s work melds meticulously rendered realism and time-consuming craftsmanship with humor. Regarding her new series Toy Stories, Tirrell shares: “I try to tell a story with every painting and I particularly love using old tin toys as subject matter. They are so full of character, which sparks my creativity. If the toys were sentient beings with human intelligence, what would they be doing? I mostly consider their expressions, although sometimes their clothing (or lack thereof) comes into play to create whimsical tableaus that engage the viewer’s imagination. Occasionally, it’s obvious what the toy is doing, and the story is simply told through the toy and the title of the painting. Sometimes, a toy will spark an idea, and I’ll build a scene to support my original concept, using a title that may be a play on words, an idiom, or just something that supports my original idea. It is fairly common for me to think of a title first, then select the toys to create a painting around it. Either way, the title of the painting is always part of the narrative. Of course, the viewer is free to create their own interpretation.”

About Leegan Koo’s new series Alter EgoLeegan Koo is a U.S.-based, Seoul-born contemporary artist who creates works inspired by the experience of dynamic urban life with a focus on cityscapes—a visual manifestation of memories and emotions attached to certain places. Regarding his new series, Koo shares: “I created five paintings that mainly deal with the concept of alter egos, or different selves, that exist within us. I especially wanted to express a different self that we unconsciously create when we are under the gaze of others and how being aware of others’ gaze affects our perception of ourselves. The viewers may imagine the situation from the “gazer” or the “gazed” perspective and interpret the narrative accordingly. To make it more relatable, I painted the characters in everyday life situations, like taking a train or eating in the school cafeteria. I added humorous elements hoping that viewers would enjoy the viewing experience and have fun while interpreting the paintings in their own ways.”

About Sun-Mi’s new series I Wear My Heart on My Sleeve: Sun-Mi (a.k.a. Pamplemouze) is a contemporary artist in the Faux Naif movement, best known for her erratically naive girls who find themselves in never-ending conflict. Utilizing mono-painting as her main source of medium, her work is a way of documenting her life and is depicted by her constant struggle to express her sheltered emotions. The stylization in her work is a homage to her childhood born out of admiration for cartoons and can be best described as a controlled mess. Regarding her new series, Sun-Mi shares: “I always regret not being able to listen to myself. I am so busy paying attention to everyone else that my opinions are becoming quieter. This show is all about showing a small glimpse of my life by bringing out my inner child and emphasizing the importance of self-expression.”

About Yasuhito Kawasaki’s new series Mascot Costume Series: Yasuhito Kawasaki is a Japan-born sculptor who has honed his casting technique over countless years and is well known for his trademark sculptures of innocent looking children. Kawasaki’s characters are self-portraits that are often direct caricature renditions of himself and sometimes animals. In his works, the inner character and emotions are as important, if not more important, than the external form. The expressions of the characters, colors, textures, and the settings that he creates narrate their thoughts and emotions.