Artist Seongryul, who has explored summer landscapes and memories of youth, returns to audiences with his new solo exhibition, 《Cloud 9》.
The exhibition runs from August 20 to September 19 at Gallery Joeun.

When talking about Seongryul’s work, it’s impossible to leave out “summer.”
He places figures within landscapes of blue skies, dense greenery, light, and wind, repeatedly looking back at moments that have since passed. His representative work 《Within Summer》 also reflects this world, through which the artist has explored stories of growth, memory, and loss through scenes from everyday life.

The title of this exhibition, 《Cloud 9》, is an English expression that refers to a state of complete happiness or euphoria.
At the same time, it directly brings to mind the images of the sky and clouds that have consistently appeared in the artist’s work.

In 《Cloud 9》, Seongryul expands the world of landscapes and memories that he has explored for many years in another direction.
In particular, the clouds and sky go beyond simply serving as a backdrop and can be read as important images that connect the emotions and time within the works.
Moving one step beyond his previous focus on specific places in the real world, the works show an attempt to capture more abstract and sensory moments.

One interesting thing about his paintings is that there is always another emotion present within the bright and beautiful landscapes.
The intense sunlight and blue skies do not simply recreate the refreshing feeling of summer.
Instead, the landscapes bring to mind time that has passed, moments that cannot be returned to, and the sense of loss encountered as we grow.

That’s why Seongryul’s work initially comes across as “pretty paintings,” but leaves you with a slightly different feeling the longer you look at them.
There is both the joy of looking at a beautiful landscape and the loneliness of knowing that the landscape may already belong to a time that has passed.

This exhibition offers a chance to see how Seongryul’s distinctive sensibility is moving from “summer” to “the sky,” and from memory toward a more present-day sensibility.

Seongryul graduated from the Department of Animation at the Korea National University of Arts and has worked across various fields, including graphic novels and illustration.
In particular, his work was recognized when 《Within Summer》 won the Best Award at the 16th Japan International MANGA Award.
Since then, he has continued to expand his own visual language through painting, drawing, animation, and various collaborative projects.

《Cloud 9》 offers another glimpse into this evolution in Seongryul’s work.

The artist who once looked back on memories of summer now turns his gaze a little higher.
Toward moments that are as hard to hold onto as light passing through the clouds, and toward the times we remember as when we were happiest.

TITLE 《Cloud 9》
DATES 08/20/2026 ~ 09/19/2026
Venue Gallery Joeun