A Hug From The Art World is delighted to present Eye to Eye,
an exhibition of new work by SOCKO.
The exhibition opens on Thursday, March 7th, with a reception and party from 6-8 pm, and runs through April 20th. Eye to Eye is SOCKO’s first solo exhibition at A Hug From The Art World.
Eye to Eye is comprised of two dozen new paintings and sculptures which focus on Dough, a recursive character throughout SOCKO’s work. Dough’s wide-eyed gaze emanates youthful innocence and nostalgic joy. Though he draws heavily upon a childhood spanning South Korea, Canada, and Los Angeles, SOCKO has created an imaginative world for Dough, from outer space to The Rink at Rockefeller Center. In coordination with the exhibition, No Direction, the artist’s clothing label, has released a limited edition run of varsity jackets hand embroidered with Dough’s likeness.
By iterating Dough across a range of nationalities, cultures, and media, they become a malleable vessel for nostalgia. SOCKO refers to his work as a guiding light, an invitation to revisit the rocking horses of our youth.
SOCKO incorporates concrete, acrylic, oil stick, airbrush, and glossy acrylic eyeballs into his painting practice, lending them a deceptive flatness from afar that belies their dimensionality and sculptural impasto. By contrast, the sculptures are flawlessly rendered in varnished wood, copper, resin, and crystal glass. Across media, his work is executed in a calming palette of pastels and dreamlike neutral shades.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
SOCKO (Sae Hoon Jang) was born in 1993 in Seoul, Republic of Korea. He attended The School of Visual Arts in New York City, earning his BFA in 2019 and MPS in 2021. Drawing from his past associations with fashion, the moniker SOCKO is equal parts alter ego and mission statement. Defined as, “stunningly effective, aiming at the target,” the adjective resonated with Jang’s artistic intentions. “I want to spread my art into people’s lives forever and hit that target, connecting with people, effectively.”
Recent solo exhibitions of SOCKO’s work have been held at Long Story Short Gallery, New York; VLAB Gallery, Madrid; Maison Ozmen, Paris; Lorin Gallery, Los Angeles; and Kantor Gallery, Beverly Hills.
He now lives and works in Manhattan.
