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MEEYOUNG KIM, Sunday Afternoon, 2015, oil on canvas, 130 × 97 cm. Courtesy Sophie’s Tree, New York.
Interview with Sophie’s Tree founder Sophie Hyewon Hong
Located in an apartment building in midtown Manhattan, Sophie’s Tree is a space for art exhibitions founded by Sophie Hyewon Hong in 2015. In fact, the venue is Hong’s own New York residence and, as such, she describes the artworks that she displays, and temporarily lives with, as “guests.” Through this intimate concept of sharing, her exhibitions take on a more personal approach, bringing out deep layers of conversations that are hard to inspire within a standard, “white cube” space. After many years of working at an art advisory firm, Hong sought a return to her true passion, which traces back to her time in art school in South Korea, when she organized exhibitions with her artist friends. Sophie’s Tree brings together Hong’s expertise from years in art administration and advisory with a sensitivity towards artists and art-making.
Recently, ArtAsiaPacific sat down with Hong to discuss the lead up to the founding of Sophie’s Tree, as well as its current projects and future plans.
You have a unique background in that you previously worked in private art advising, but also prior to that you had a studio practice in South Korea. When you were beginning to think about starting Sophie’s Tree, was there a certain “need” you saw in the art world or in your life that you wanted to fulfill? Was Sophie’s Tree an answer to a particular problem in some way?
Yes, as an undergrad, I trained to be an artist. I was fortunate to have teachers who were very demanding in their vision of art. At the time, I wasn’t able to think about how I could function in the arts other than being an artist; but I realized I didn’t have the courage to continue making art for a lifetime, as I knew how hard it would be. So I started curating a few exhibitions with artist friends and became attracted to the art world as a whole, where creative people come together to make, introduce, define and collect works of art.
After moving to New York, I gained experience at various art institutions. During my time at Kim Heirston Art Advisory, I was very fortunate to manage all aspects of their acquisition process, including scoping a Picasso or works by an emerging artist, traveling to international art events, and seeing magnificent private collections. However, after a few years I wanted to be more directly involved in the art scene. When I saw works by 1980s-born artists such as Lucien Smith get featured on auction catalogues with six-figure estimates, and a Francis Bacon triptych fetch over USD 140 million in the Christie’s sales room, nothing felt real to me. I missed the discussion and the time spent with artist friends. So I decided to work directly with them and make exhibitions.
Looking at your exhibition programming thus far, one superficial commonality is that the artists are all ethnically Korean. Was this intentional?
When I decided on opening Sophie’s Tree, I didn’t have a grand scheme, but I immediately recalled the artists whom I’ve always had strong feelings towards, who happened to be my friends and extensions of friends. I wanted to work with them and show their works. They also led me to meet a different artist, then another and then another. Everything happened quickly and quite naturally. As my studio practice had been in Korea, most of the artists that I had interacted with were Korean. I am also pretty shy, and I like to observe and take time to build relationships. Having an open approach to relationships is not a specialty of mine. To me, a personal relationship is the key in choosing artists, so Sophie’s Tree’s exhibition program naturally reflects this “friendship.”
All of the artists that we have shown currently live and work abroad. I didn’t quite think of their ethnicity. I don’t have a particular preference or bias towards Korean artists. I am more concerned about building up an open community, whether they are Korean or not.
That is interesting to hear about there not being a grand scheme. I do feel that, looking at your programming, it really does not seem contrived or that there are any “agendas” being pushed. But I also wonder about the idea of friendships and art. It isn’t a new concept—many art collectives and important groups in history were a formation of friends. Can you elucidate a bit more about your view of friendship and art, and how it may impact how you run your space?
I don’t want my exhibition space to be a closed, self-reflective entity. I want to constantly expand my community of artists, curators and young collectors, even though it might take a long time. And it has been a very organic process for me. If I find an artwork interesting, I want to know the artist more, and over time the relationship becomes a friendship.
I think it’s a very natural phenomenon that people who share similar ideas, understandings, or visions of art find each other and keep a long-term relationship that is similar to friendship. I haven’t noticed this friendship affecting my view of their work and the operation of the gallery so far. But one thing that I am sure is that it is very important to have one’s own group of people in the art world, with whom to share supportive and constructive critiques for a lifetime.
With regards to my programming, I actually do have one agenda. I want to introduce good painters. I am interested in paintings—both its aesthetics and forms as well as its critical and conceptual foundation. I’d like to address keywords that might still be valid in contemporary art.
Can you expand a little more on your statement in regards to painting?
I think art must come out of a serious thought process about aesthetic, form and taste. And painting has a long, extensive history of the above. Thus, its critique is rigid and it has been said to be either dead or valid after abstraction. I still believe in the fundamental visual language of this old medium. So far, Sophie’s Tree has shown: Seeun Kim’s simple and honest landscapes that show her repetitive practice; bold painterly paintings by Meeyoung Kim, whose style falls between abstraction and figuration; and distinguished installation artist Jewyo Rhii’s first paintings, rooted in her continuous interest in moving pictures and storytelling. This year, we will show outdoor paintings by Hyein Lee and Jinju Lee’s narrative paintings, which serve as visual rhetoric.
When I went to see your exhibition of Jewyo Rhii in late 2015, it felt like the works fit so well with the residential environment of Sophie’s Tree. I think your vision of getting back into conversation with artists and spending time with your artist friends really translates well in putting together exhibitions in your own apartment. Do you agree? What do you envision for the future of Sophie’s Tree?
I do agree and have been truly enjoying putting together these appointment-only shows in my living room. I think the domestic setting brings certain different layers of context to the artists’ works and exhibitions. It’s also amazing to see how the scale, and the space being a private venue, gives visitors a more personal experience when they enter the home.
If only I could have a larger space! I am planning to move in several years. I’m always daydreaming of finding the right, independent space somewhere in New York City where I can also have a separate living space—whether it’s commercial or residential. I’d love to do that once I am ready to take the next step.
Sophie’s Tree founder Sophie Hyewon Hong. Courtesy Sophie’s Tree, New York.