MATV has been hosting art galleries for some time now, and from now until November 4th, Korean artist Youngsheen Jhe’s artwork is going to be hanging in the establishment. On Oct. 20, MATV welcomed community members and the artist herself, to a reception for the artwork. Light refreshments were served, and guests had a discussion regarding the art, and what it means to each individual.
Youngsheen Jhe was born in Korea, where as a child, used art to make her everyday life more exciting. Today, she lives in Lexington, Massachusetts, although has connections in Malden, where she participated in a local sketch group.
Jhe calls the city of Malden “very unique,” since it’s community members love to “know something new or interesting.” Malden residents, Jhe says, “know how to celebrate art.” Jhe was “deeply honored to be [there] as an artist,” and truly felt her art was appreciated.
Jhe’s paintings are oil on canvas, and her “Truth of Life” gallery showcased at MATV has a focus on mannequins which were incorporated within human lives.
Guillermo Hamlin, Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator for MATV, said that setting up the gallery was “quite easy and simple,” as he had help from Jhe herself, who labeled all paintings. The gallery was set up in a single afternoon.
While searching for potential artists to showcase at the MATV gallery, Hamlin said that the gallery coordinators looked for art that could “resonate with the Malden Community." The main purpose of showcasing galleries at MATV, Hamlin states, is to “enrich, educate, and entertain the public," which Jhe’s provocative and intense paintings do.
Associate Director at MATV, Anne D’Urso-Rose, helped coordinate the art gallery. This is only a small part of her job’s entirety, although it is one of her favorites. In preparation for the gallery, a video was put out highlighting the artist. Those at MATV working on the gallery had to do a lot of promotion in order for the gallery to be a success.
D’Urso-Rose “loved [Jhe’s] work” calling it “intriguing and very high-quality.” D’Uro-Rose organized a discussion during the artist’s reception, in which guests talked about the art, as the artist sat back and listened to what people thought of her art and what it meant to people. D’Urso-Rose had organized the discussion because of the “narrative [quality] of the paintings.” The paintings “[told] a story although you don’t know what the story is.”
At the reception on October 20, Mayor Gary Christenson was in attendance. Christenson believes that the galleries are a great way to bring together the Malden community, and enrich the community as a whole. Christenson thinks of the art galleries held at MATV to be a “great diversion for [him] from the everyday, tedious, monotonous life that [he says he] leads in [his] capacity as an elected official.” Galleries like the Jhe's reminds Christenson that there is “more to life than policies and budgets.”
More photos from Jhe's gallery can be found on our Facebook page here.
