RYU In
Born as the youngest son of RYU Gyeong-chae (1920-1995), a pioneer in the field of Korean abstract sculpture, and a playwright mother (1921-2009), RYU In left an indelible mark on Korea’s contemporary sculpture history before his passing at the age of 43 (1956-1999). He launched his career as a sculpture from a strong desire to escape from the shadows of his father and an irrepressible desire to work with the materiality of soil. Introducing precise and powerful depictures of the human body to the Korean art world in the ‘80s, where abstract and installation were the dominant mode of expression, RYU In came into fame as a figurative sculpture artist, winning awards ranging from Korea Fine Arts Association top award, Chungang Arts Association first prize, and the “Today’s Young Artist Award” sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Sports. Since then, he introduced new figurative sculptures by incorporating formal properties, along with the first combination of sculpture and installation. Adopting new modes of expression for traditional depictions of the human body, RYU In won a number of prestigious awards, and became known as a great genius of his time. However, due to excessive drinking and a variety of physical ailments including tuberculosis, hepatocirrhosis, and arthritis, he passed away at the age of 43.
He featured reconstructions of the most dramatic scenes, fusing the extraordinary senses he inherited from his father who was a leading figure in abstract art, a talent in stage production his mother gifted him with, and a unique sense of imagination, based on realistic representation. His innovative spatial interpretation conveys fundamental anxiety, indignation, and complex along with a powerful desire for life as an innate drive in humanity, expressed through distortions or transformations of realistically represented human bodies and theatrical props.
-
Title Unknown, 1997
-
Title Unknown, 1996
-
Their Attributes, 1995
-
Yellow Ocean Current II , 1995
-
Yellow Sound-Buried Forest, 1994
-
다가온 하늘 | Up coming The Sky, 1994
-
In the Shade of Oblivion, 1993
-
Resurrection-Calm Dawn, 1993
-
Resurrection-Its Emotional Quality, 1993
-
Hana Monument, 1992
-
The Air of the East I, 1992
-
Express Train-A Rationale for the Age, 1991
-
Motive for Murder, 1991
-
Promise with Him, 1991
-
The Absolute-Human Limit, 1990
-
Air of Darkness, 1989
-
Power Stoppage I, 1989
-
The Sound of Breath II, 1989
-
Entering the Mountains, 1988
-
Pillar of Perception, 1988
-
Yun's Rationale II, 1988
-
Descending the Mountains, 1987
-
Entering the Mountains II, 1987
-
Entering the Mountains III, 1987
-
Broken Egg II, 1986
-
Entering the Mountains I, 1986
-
Night-Soul, 1986
-
Thinking of Human Being, 1986
-
Thinking of Human Being, 1986
-
Entering Emptiness II, 1985
-
Broken Egg I, 1984
-
Deep Down from the Bottom, 1984
-
Entering Emptiness I, 1982
-
Self-Portrait, 1980
-
[Exhibition] Kim Bokjin and Korean Modern and Contemporary Sculptors
22 November 2022The sculptural works by GU Bonju, GWON Osang, and RYU In are being exhibited at the group exhibition 'Kim Bokjin and Korean Modern and Contemporary...Read more -
[Project] RYU In: Ballet Collaboration
8 September 2022The first series of the collaboration project 'Awakening #1 ' shows RYU In's works, “Broken Egg II”, awakening from the egg, “Express Train - A...Read more -
[Exhibition] RYU In: The Witness of Times
16 April 2022SON Sangki and RYU In, each dealt with the theme of 'Nanjido' in their own way and captured the times of the 1980s and 1990s....Read more -
[Exhibition] RYU In: Solo Exhibition
10 January 2022Sculptural works by RYU In (1956-1999) are realistic and powerful depictions of the human body where the sculptor threw his whole body and soul into...Read more -
[Art Fair] KIAF Seoul 2021
8 October 2021Arario Gallery participates in Korea’s most important art fair KIAF Seoul 2021 at COEX from 13th October until 17th October 2021. Arario Gallery’s Booth presents...Read more -
[Gallery] RYU In: Special Docent
11 May 2016
-
Ryu In-Awakening, Seoul Olympic Museum of Art Exhibition Catalogue
2020 Book, 201 pages
Publisher: SOMA (Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea)
Dimensions: 280 x 210 mm Read more -
Ryu In: Anxiety and Desire
2015 Paperback, 95 pages
Publisher: Arario Gallery
ISBN: 979-11-86399-00-2
Dimensions: 220 x 285 mm Read more