In The Nearest Faraway Place, presented by Pace in Seoul, Frederich Kunath brings romantic vistas into conversation with pop culture signals and felt emotion. He has said he wants his paintings to feel like songs, and a statement for the exhibition frames the mood as one of yearning: Kunath explores themes of distance and (re)location, where a longing emerges between the place youre in and the place youre destined to be. The exhibition continues through October 24.
Art history remixed with a cinematic wink
Kunaths compositions nod to the Weltlandschaft, or the world landscape, a tradition traced to the Northern Renaissance, and to the Hudson River School with its roots in 19th-century European Romanticism. Many images begin as seemingly classical scenesglistening light, an idealized absence of structures or peoplebefore he punctures the reverie with sticker-like, cartoonish figures and other absurd interjections. The resulting spaces feel surreal and set-like, vibrant and cinematic, traversing pop culture, irony, and fiction with nostalgic wistfulness and a touch of comedy. By bringing together aesthetic contexts and familiar tropes, he materializes his subconscious, the gallery says. Feelings arise before we know where they come from.
Signals, slogans, and skywriting
References materialize where least expected: the logo for the band Oasis appears in the top corner of Sometimes Im Almost There, and the ubiquitous The End of theatrical releases haunts other canvases. Phrases land atop uncanny scenarios, as in the eponymous The most beautiful world in the world (20202026), an acrylic on canvas measuring 203.2 x 292.1 x 5.1 centimeters that depicts an existential aerial advertisement.
Works cited in the exhibitions coverage underscore the range of formats and moods Kunath employs:
- Sometimes Im Almost There (2026), oil on canvas, 121.9 x 97.8 centimeters.
- The End (LA) (2026), oil on canvas, 121.9 x 152.4 x 3.8 centimeters (installation view).
- Were Not Here For Long (2026), oil on canvas, 152.4 x 121.9 x 5.1 centimeters. Photo by Evan Walsh.
- Its me Im worried about (964) (2026), watercolor on paper, 60.6 x 45.7 centimeters.
- The End (Nick Drake) (2026), oil on canvas, 152.4 x 182.9 x 5.1 centimeters (installation view).
Whether through a wry corner emblem, a cinematic cue, or an uneasy skyborne message, Kunath keeps sightlines open between art history and the present, inviting viewers to stand somewhere between where they are and where they might be headed.
