​International Research & Global Exhibitions

Dundee UK - 2023

Melbourne AUS - 2024

Hong Kong CHINA - 2024

Seoul KOR - 2025

Amsterdam NED - 2025

THE CONCENTRIC INFLUENCES OF SOL LEWITT
Ten Countries - South Korea
Core Artists - Part 1

Core Artists:
​Irene Barberis, Fransje Killaars, Janet Passehl, Wilma Tabacco

International Curator:
Irene Barberis

​South Korea Curator:
Hwang Jan

Research Manager:
​Yiwon Park Research Manager

Artertain Gallery - South Korea
Director Gustav D. Yim

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Sol LeWitt in Korean Contemporary Art

Korean contemporary art has undergone rapid changes and development since the Korean War. Particularly, alongside the political and economic efforts to rebuild society after the war, art also began to express the pain and futility of life in the post-war era. This societal atmosphere created a natural foundation for abstraction and expressionism to take root in Korean contemporary art. Confronting the emotional turmoil and existential uncertainty stemming from the war, the anxious emotions led artists toward expressionist techniques, while the inability to remain content with reality drove them to embrace abstraction.

​Thus, Korean contemporary art emerged from significant emotional upheaval and reflections on an uncertain future. As Korea underwent further societal changes, efforts to restore the social function of art materialized in the form of "Minjung art," a uniquely Korean genre. This movement sought to counter the dominance of modernism—characterized by abstract and expressionist art—that had defined the peak of Korean contemporary art until then. However, as the fervor for democratization subsided, Minjung art naturally gave way to subsequent artistic trends, fading into the background of Korean art history.......

Artertain Gallery​

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THE CONCENTRIC INFLUENCES OF SOL LEWITT - PART 1​
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
​Hong Kong, China. September 2024

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Core Artists:
​Irene Barberis, Fransje Killaars, Janet Passehl, Wilma Tabacco
International Curator: Irene Barberis,
Hong Kong/China Curator: Lukas Tam Wai Ping
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​“My curatorial visions come from an artist’s vision and impulse – perhaps they are too big and at times seemingly impossible, but I think all things are possible, and the risk to establish ‘vision’, very worthwhile.” The Sol LeWitt Project: Ten Countries does this. The undergirding influences, the sense of ‘permission to do’, and the unexpected and hidden impacts of Sol LeWitt’s life and practice fuel the research in The Concentric Influences of Sol LeWitt: Foundations, Pivots and Place project across ten countries. It is exciting and exhilarating to know just how deeply Sol touched artists over decades and how his ideas continue to play a pivotal role in Art, Architecture and Education today.

Irene Barberis
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The “concentric circle” of The Sol LeWitt Project brings together artists, curators, art historians, art critics, collectors, and cultural figures to form a core group dedicated to exploring the meanings of art and the profound influence Sol LeWitt has had on various domains, including art, architecture, and intellectual thought. Through friendship, dialogue, and collaboration, this collective not only examines LeWitt’s impact but also celebrates the beautiful ways in which art manifests in everyday life.

Lukas Tam Wai Ping

RMIT Gallery, Melbourne. Australia
30 May to 27 July 2024
CONCENTRIC INFLUENCES OF SOL LEWITT - PART 1

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​Exhibition Catalogue Forward

The studio of an artist is incredibly special – even evocative – the racks of work, the plan press draws, the smells of production. The studio of a great artist might become a museum, but it is less usual for it to continue as a place of art making and research. This exhibition is an important step in acknowledging the studio space as a legacy that can enable research and the insights of academics, as well fostering the new work of contemporary artists.
 
RMIT Culture is delighted to present The Concentric Influences of Sol Lewitt, Part 1: Irene Barberis, Fransje Killaars, Janet Passehl, Wilma Tabacco at RMIT Gallery. It’s not often an opportunity such as this presents itself, and RMIT Culture is pleased to be able to take an active part in this multi-country research project. Academic, artist and curator Dr Irene Barberis’ important and formative project into the practice of Sol LeWitt shares important cultural stories that may not otherwise be available to us and highlights her ongoing research outcomes into the world of Sol LeWitt through the lens of his studio.
 
RMIT Culture would like to thank most warmly, Dr Irene Barberis – curator, academic, researcher and artist – for working with us to share her project at RMIT Gallery, the first Australian iteration of this extensive 10 country exhibition.
 
We would also like to thank the contributing core artists who are central to this research project, Fransje Killaars, Janet Passehl
and Wilma Tabacco. As ever the RMIT Culture team have worked assiduously to develop this project, both the exhibition and catalogue – notably Exhibition Coordinator Julia Powles, Engagement Coordinator Lisa Linton, Senior Production Coordinator Erik North with Simon Maisch and filmmaker Pat Mooney alongside the unwavering and patient support of Exhibition Assistants Michaela Bear, Jemima Penny and Celine Saoud. Finally, we thank Saskia Loer Hansen, Deputy Vice Chancellor International and Engagement, and Amy Harrington, Director, Philanthropy & Public Engagement, whose ongoing support of our programming is deeply appreciated.

Helen Rayment
RMIT Gallery Manager, Melbourne/Narm  Australia

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Exhibition Forward by: Helen Rayment. Introduction: Kit Wise
Artists: Jant Passehl, Fransje Killaars, Irene Barberis and Wilma Tabacco.

DJCAD Dundee​, UK​
September 2023
​CONCENTRIC INFLUENCES OF SOL LEWITT - PART 1

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Exhibition Catalogue Forward
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We are delighted to host Dr Irene Barberis at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design (DJCAD) as one of our Honorary Research Fellows, visiting from RMIT University in Australia. Irene's creative and curatorial research for the LeWitt Project, UK is highly complementary to our research, teaching and learning excellence and, as such, it has been an immense privilege to witness the fulsome development of Irene's own drawings and paintings for the new Sol LeWitt Studio Suite of Tapestries here in Dundee. These build on her experience of knowing Sol LeWitt (1928-2007) and the privilege of recently being in residence in Le Witt's studio in Chester, Connecticut as well as her own creative practice and extraordinary The Tapestry of Light, the creative energy and focus that Irene has brought to Dundee in a short space of time is exemplary. Her evocative and insightful monograph, SOL LEWITT Exploring the Chester Studio A VISUAL DOCUMENTATION, records Le Witt's studio as he left it for the first time and from the perspective of an artist with a first-hand knowledge of his working practice.
 
Alongside these creative endeavours, Irene's focus has been on developing the UK element of an ambitious multi-site, global exhibition project, Concentric Influences of Sol LeWitt: Foundations, Pivots, and Place. This introductory exhibition is a key part of establishing a dialogue with others and to explore the influences of LeWitt in the UK, with Dundee as a centre for this exploration. These four artists - Fransje Killaars, Janet Passehl, Wilma Tabacco, and Irene Barberis herself - form the core of the exhibition as it takes on global dimensions and shift-shapes in each country, setting out a proposition for others to explore and connect the influence of Le Witt on contemporary practitioners across the world. We are grateful to all who have supported this significant research project -and to Irene for so generously sharing her research with us.
 
We very much look forward to realising the UK element of the Concentric Influences of Sol LeWitt: Foundations, Pivots, and Place exhibition in Dundee in the future.
 
Professor Anita Taylor
Dean of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design
University of Dundee

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Exhibition Forward by: Anita Taylor, Introduction: David S. Areford
​Core Artists and Artist Statements: Jant Passehl, Fransje Killaars, Irene Barberis and Wilma Tabacco.