那引人注目的波普超现实主义艺术 | Leegan Koo’s Striking Pop Surrealism Art
Lullaby of the Whales by Leegan Koo
鲸鱼摇篮曲 创作于Leegan Koo
Leegan Koo is a Korean-American artist based in Los Angeles, USA. After a semester at the Academy of Art University, he decided to pursue his dream as a self-taught artist. Growing up, Leegan moved to many cities before settling down in Los Angeles. His interest in jazz, hip hop, and street art coupled with the experiences of his semi-nomadic urban life is the basis of his artistic inspiration. Though his earlier works focused on cityscapes, he began experimenting with surrealism after attending the Morpheus Group Show at Copro Gallery, a show which Leegan considers to be the turning point of his art.
Leegan Koo是美国洛杉矶的韩裔美籍艺术家。 在美国旧金山艺术大学的一个学期后，他决定自学来实现他成为一名艺术家的梦想。随着他的成长，Leegan在定居洛杉矶之前去过了很多城市。 他对爵士，嘻哈和街头艺术的兴趣，加上他在各个城市生活的体验，是他艺术灵感来源的基础。 尽管他早期的作品专注于城市景观，在参加Copro画廊的Morpheus小组展览后他开始尝试超现实主义，该展览被Leegan认为是他艺术生涯的转折点。
Self-portrait by Leegan Koo
自画像 创作于Leegan Koo
Leegan’s works are described in four main ways: Bizarre, Beautiful, Melancholic, and Haunting. Using a mix of contemporary realism and surrealism, he is able to create moody paintings that are visual manifestations of the memories and emotions attached to certain places. These places often feature characters who hide their faces under smiling masks, fish heads, and plastic bags. They roam freely throughout Koo’s work with no final destination, wandering into different realms that they do not belong in. Perhaps, even to a parallel universe.
Leegan的作品以四种主要方式进行描述：奇异，迷人，忧郁和鬼魅。 他结合了当代现实主义和超现实主义，能够创作出富有情绪的画作，而这些画作是他对某些地方记忆和情感的视觉表现。 这些地方通常由那些将自己的脸庞隐藏在微笑的面具，鱼头或者塑料袋下的人物来表达。 他们在Koo的作品中自由漫游，漫无目的得游走于不属于他们的不同领域。也许，甚至进入一个平行宇宙。
A Night Out in K-Town by Leegan Koo
在韩国城外出的一夜 创作于Leegan Koo
Double Trouble by Leegan Koo
双重麻烦 创作于Leegan Koo
California Dreaming by Leegan Koo
加州梦 创作于Leegan Koo
Sushi Park by Leegan Koo
寿司公园 创作于Leegan Koo
Swedish Fish by Leegan Koo
瑞典鱼 创作于Leegan Koo
The Masked Wanderers
蒙面流浪者
Jack in the Blue by Leegan Koo
在蓝色里的Jack 创作于Leegan Koo
The use of blue color is frequent in Koo’s works. Rush Hour (2018) shows a masked schoolgirl on the metro platform posed as if she is waiting. Onlookers from inside the train stare from behind with confused looks, and the word “RIP” is graffitied on the train. The shades of blue bring out the coldness of the underground atmosphere. Blue representing an ominous and lonely feeling. From one perspective, it alludes to the artist’s experience as an Asian-American in a foreign environment. Having to wear a mask to fit in, yet still standing out and alone in both physical and cultural contexts.
Koo的作品中经常使用蓝色。 Rush Hour (2018)展示了一名戴着面具的女学生站在地铁站台上，就好像她在等待一样。 火车内部的围观者们从后面凝视着她带着困惑的表情，列车上涂鸦着“ RIP”的字样。 蓝色的阴影笼罩出地下的冷漠氛围。 蓝色表达了一种不祥和孤独的感觉。 从一个角度来看，它暗示了艺术家在异国环境中作为亚裔美国人的经历。 必须戴者面具以适应环境，但无论在生理还是文化环境中依旧显得格格不入和孤单。
Rush Hour (2018) by Leegan Koo
高峰时刻(2018) 创作于Leegan Koo
Searching (2018) by Leegan Koo
寻找(2018) 创作于Leegan Koo
Jackie on the Blue Train (2018) by Leegan Koo
蓝色列车里的Jackie(2018) 创作于Leegan Koo
Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame by Leegan Koo
在水中燃烧，在火中淹没 创作于Leegan Koo
The masked figure reappears in Searching (2018) and Jackie on the Blue Train (2018) among other works in seemingly mundane tasks that are strangely captivating. Following the recurring subjects with each painting builds a narrative around the viewer’s feelings and interpretations, making an emotional map that further immerses viewers into the realm of Koo’s depictions.
蒙面的图像再次出现在Searching (2018)和Jackie on the Blue Train (2018) 等其他看似平凡的作品中，都显得十分令人着迷。在每幅油画中跟随着反复出现的主题，围绕观众的感受与诠释构建一个故事，制作一张情感地图使观众进一步沉浸在Koo描绘的境界中。
Butchers (2018) by Leegan Koo
屠夫(2018) 创作于Leegan Koo
Burning (2020) by Leegan Koo
燃烧着(2020) 创作于Leegan Koo
Burning II (2020) by Leegan Koo
燃烧着II(2020) 创作于Leegan Koo
Other works such as Butchers (2018), Burning (2020), and Burning II (2020) carry a visual energy that makes the viewer wonder about the missing pieces of the narrative as well as the relationship between each character and their motives. These works cover the artist’s exploration of the state of dreaming and the concept of Deja Vu and Jamais Vu, which the artist explains:
在Butchers (2018), Burning (2020)和Burning II (2020) 等其他作品中带有视觉能量，使观看者对叙述的缺失部分以及每个角色及其动机之间的关系产生疑惑。 这些作品涵盖了艺术家对梦境的探索以及Deja Vu和Jamais Vu的概念，并对此进行了解释：
“ Have you ever realized inside a dream that you were dreaming?
Or do you sometimes feel like you are dreaming in reality?
Despite seeing it for the first time, have you ever felt familiar or suddenly disassociated with that familiar thing?
The boundary between dreams and reality, and the mystery of our lives that seemed like a dream is what I’ve tried to depict.”
- Leegan Koo
“ 您是否曾经在梦中意识到自己正身处梦境？
或者您有时是否会觉得自己在现实中做梦？
尽管是第一次看到它，但您是否曾经感到熟悉或突然与那熟悉的事物分离？
梦想与现实之间的边界感以及我们生活中的神秘事物，似乎就像一场梦，而我试图描绘这场梦。”
- Leegan Koo
The Sponge Bob Series
海绵宝宝系列
Aurora Borealis (2020) by Leegan Koo
北极光(2020) 创作于Leegan Koo
Leegan states that the Sponge Bob series highlights the solitude and ambiguous dreamlike state felt in modern society. The series is divided into two smaller series. The first, explores the love of music and nature, and the stories that manifest through them like in his work Aurora Borealis (2020). This series takes on a much more humorous tone with a strong sense of self-discovery while encapsulating the viewers with majestic landscapes and an unsettling smile despite the gloomy stance of the character.
Leegan指出《海绵宝宝》系列凸显了现代社会中孤独和梦幻搬的模糊状态。 该系列分为两个较小的系列。 首先，探索对音乐和自然的热爱，故事通过人物所表示出来，如他的作品Aurora Borealis (2020)。 该系列用具有强烈的自我发现感表现出更加幽默的音调，尽管人物的姿态看着令人沮丧，但观众仍可以欣赏到雄伟的风景和令人不安的微笑。
Love is a Song by Leegan Koo
爱是首歌 创作于Leegan Koo
Lunch Period by Leegan Koo
午餐期间 创作于Leegan Koo
The second series titled “The Time Traveler Series” details the past and future of one’s self and how they interact with each other. It depicts a much more violent and menacing version of the masked figure. The story of this series, in theory, could be a link with other works such as Salmon Lover (2018) in which the unmasked protagonist receives a call from the masked figure in Time Traveler III (2020) leading to the demise of one of the figures in Time Traveler I. In this way, viewers can freely interpret the underlying stories as well the independent meanings of each artwork in Leegan Koo’s portfolio.
第二个系列的标题为“The Time Traveler Series” “时间旅人系列”，详细介绍了一个人的过去和未来以及它们之间是如何互相影响的。 它描绘了蒙面人物的暴力和具有威胁性的版本。 从理论上讲，该系列的故事可能与其他作品联系在一起，例如作品Salmon Lover (2018) 中一个没有带面具的主角接到作品Time Traveler III (2020)中带着面具的人物的电话，而导致作品Time Traveler I中的其中一位人物的死亡。 通过这种方式，观看者可以自由地解释故事背后的潜在寓意以及在Leegan Koo作品集中每件艺术品的独立含义。
Salmon Lover (2018) by Leegan Koo
三文鱼情人(2018) 创作于Leegan Koo
Time Traveler III (2020) by Leegan Koo
时间旅人III(2020) 创作于Leegan Koo
Time Traveler by Leegan Koo
时间旅人 创作于Leegan Koo
The use of pop culture, realism, and surrealism paired with Koo’s collective life experiences make for a fresh take on visual storytelling. The concept of a multiverse of worlds inside his works brings about a new viewing experience as more works are revealed. An unexpected clue or another underlying message develops adding to the richness of each work. With that in mind, his works are worth multiple viewings.
流行文化，现实主义和超现实主义的运用与Koo的生活经历相结合，使视觉叙事有了新的视角。 随着更多作品的出现，他作品中的多重宇宙概念带来了新的观看体验。 一个意料之外的线索或其他潜在信息，从而增加了每件作品的丰富性。 考虑到这一点，他的作品值得多次欣赏和品味。
For more information on the artist visit his website:
有关艺术家的更多信息，请访问他的网站
Translation 翻译：Eva Li
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