Jehsong Baak

Jehsong BAAK est né en 1967 en corée du sud à Junju.

American, lives and works in Paris

A selection from his forthcoming book, Là et Ailleurs, with images chosen by French photography curator and publisher Robert Delpire, these photographs by Jehsong Baak capture the transcendental visual experiences ingrained in everyday life. A loose record of the artist's wanderings in Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Chicago, New York and elsewhere, as indicated by the title of his book, these pictures taken over the past seven years offer occasional glimpses to points beyond the purely visible and identifiable. While grounded in the here and now, they nonetheless reveal the sleights of hand that open to more mystical realms. Like the films of Federico Fellini - whose perfectly preserved office at Cinecittà in Rome Baak photographed as part of a private pilgrimage - these photographs peer at ordinary incidents, whether absurd or merely prosaic, with an eye for both eccentric detail and universal truth. Infused with simple rituals and an occasionally carnivalesque spirit, they interrogate momentary dislocations and happenstance coincidences. These snapshots by a sensitive and perpetual traveler separated from his birthplace and much of his family at a young age often convey alienation or, conversely, a keen sense of belonging and attachment to place. Peopled by a network of friends, some of whom stand in as surrogate self-portraits of the artist, this gallery constitutes a creative constellation conceived in exile that mourns the loss of, but also transcends national identity.

Baak counts among his most important artistic influences Robert Frank and Joseph Koudelka, and their respective visual explorations of a state of rootlessness. In the tradition of their compelling portraits of adopted homelands, Baak's visual ballad mines the territory originally staked out by their soul-baring, lyrical and often devastating images.

After studying Architecture at the University of Michigan, Baak took up photography in his mid-twenties, consecrating himself entirely to the discipline when he moved to Paris at the age of thirty. He has been featured in one-man shows at Galerie Vu in Paris, and at Stichting Noorderlicht in Groningen, Holland. In 2005, he was commissioned by the Dutch government to photograph the island of Schiermonnikoog, one of the few remaining isolated agricultural communities in the heart of Northern Europe. Baak's images capture the unique character of the island and its haunting landscape. Photographs by him have appeared in Libération, L'Express, The New York Times, l'Humanité and Vogue France, among other publications. His work is represented in several important private collections in the United States and Europe. The release of his book is scheduled for mid-February.




MONOGRAPH

* 2006 Là et Ailleurs Publisher Delpire, Paris

82 photographs, introduction by Alain Jouffroy

PERSONAL EXHIBITIONS

* 2006 Photographies Galerie Nikki Marquardt, Paris
* 2006 Là et Ailleurs Philips de Pury, Paris
* 2006 Là et Ailleurs Duncan Miller Miller Gallery, Los Angeles
* 2002 Photographies Galerie VU, Paris
* 2001 Stations of the Cross Stichting Noorderlicht, Holland



GROUP EXHIBITIONS

* 2006 Photographies Galerie Wanted Paris, Paris
* 2006 Des ailes pour voler chez Guillaume, Paris
* 2005 Schiermonnikoog Schiermonnikoog,Holland
* 2003 Uniques Galerie VU, Paris
* 2003/'02/'01 Galerie VU Carrousel du Louvre, Paris
* 2001 Prix Kodak Galerie Olga Soe, Paris
* 1997 Photographs Rittenhouse Square Gallery

Philadelphia

* 1990 Bridgewater /Lustberg Gallery

New York

PUBLICATIONS

* 2005 Eiland Insel/Island Eilaun Publisher Noorderlicht, Holland
* 2004 Au nom de la loi Publisher Palette, Paris
* 2003 Sensation Publisher Steidl, Germany
* 2002 World Cup 2002 Libération, Paris
* 2001 Stations of the Cross Publisher Noorderlicht

Groningen, Holland

* 2001 Remembering Publisher University of Michigan Press

Raoul Wallenberg

* 2000 Essentiellement le chat Publisher Nathan/Delpire, Paris
* 1998 Portfolio Profession Photographe, Paris

Série ‘Desir' Libération, Paris

PRIZES

* 2000 Prix Kodak de la Critique, Paris
* 1990 ‘Composition Murale, Metropolitan Transportation Authority,

New York

MEDIA

Paris Première (2002), Finnish Public Television, 10 minute

documentary (2002), Europe 1 radio, Paris (2006)

EDUCATION

* 1986-87 University of Michigan/Ann Arbor, Architecture