Wabi Sabi embraces humility and imperfection, and Leena Cho admires these qualities. They inform her thinking on her relationship with the viewer. She tries to keep her lines simple so the viewer can imagine what is not there. For example, focusing on negative space might involve looking at the beauty that’s not there. Leena Cho hopes her paintings and other artistic work will serve as windows to see through and discover something new that is empowering for the viewer’s life.
Mentor Edward Monovich
Leena Cho’s observations have particular relevance to contemporary culture. Through advertisements, talking heads and political figures, we hear rapid-fire, hermetically sealed arguments- opinions without openness. Now more than ever, we need a dose of Leena’s space. Contrary to loud and authoritarian sources, ambiguities in Art encourage listening and empathy.
To grasp spatially active art, one must observe at a crawling pace. A slow reading of painterly space reveals multi-faceted possibilities, which are a reflection of the high potential of humanity itself. Through Leena’s “window,” we see our best selves. Where the “dance” between negative space and positive shape is pliable, possibility thrives. Works are incomplete, until viewers contribute to Cho’s vision. This spirit of generosity invites all who enter to be transformed. Leena’s pictorial strategy links beauty to imperfection, process and experience, where Art facilitates exchange and growth.
Opportunity
Leena Cho honors the integrity of both the artist and the viewer as makers of meaning; neither is required to be the bearer of someone else’s meaning. This approach to beauty enlivens the viewer’s curiosity. Reflecting on this approach to beauty, poet John O’Donohue wrote: “It calls us ever towards a greater fullness of presence.”
Leena Cho, Painter, 2016 Participant
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