A seagull soars across the sky.
For artist Jeong Jaekyung, this bird is more than a part of nature—it is a symbol of transcendence, of flight beyond the scars of division, of hope for freedom and peace.

Rooted in traditional East Asian ink painting, Jeong’s practice engages with the emotional currents of contemporary Korean society, its landscapes, and its historical memory. In this exhibition, flocks of seagulls unfold dynamically across vast expanses of negative space. Rendered with precision, these birds transcend realistic depiction to become figures of longing and aspiration.

The artist has spent years observing the ecology and movements of birds, capturing their vitality with quiet intensity. The result is not simply representation, but an immersive experience: the birds seem to fly not just in the sky, but with the viewer—creating a shared space of sensory empathy.

The large-scale works presented at this Biennale use the interplay of sea, sky, and flight to evoke an imaginative crossing—one that moves beyond national borders, political divisions, and fractured identities.

Jeong Jaekyung reinterprets the techniques of classical painting through a contemporary lens, asking how art can speak of peace and envision the future.

In line with the theme of this Biennale, Neighbors of Civilization, his ink works shift our gaze from the borders on the ground to the boundless sky above the sea—proposing a new, poetic sense of neighborness.

Through quiet yet resolute brushwork,
we feel the weight of each wingbeat, the artist’s yearning woven into every stroke.

Before his ink paintings,
we encounter the possibility of art to carry us—
beyond lines, beyond limits, toward imagined skies.