Having emigrated to France after the coup d'état in Myanmar in 2021, Aung Ko was forced to change his life, integrate a different culture, meet new people and search for a new identity. His life has been shaken by major geographical and logistical changes. In France, despite political support, hospitality and freedom of speech for him and his family, Aung Ko faces many personal difficulties and struggles. Trying to detach himself from his former life while assimilating the painful rifts, he pursued his artistic career while earning a master's degree at the Beaux-Arts in Paris.
This new solo exhibition (Here and There) at A2Z ART GALLERY is our artist's way of expressing the physical and mental duality in which he finds himself. Violence, conflict, chaos, deadly scenes - this is what the artist witnessed during the civil war in Yangon. The gunshots, the screams of the soldiers and the cries of the victims still haunt him every night. These scenes will forever scar his memory and that of his family. Having survived such trauma has had a considerable impact on Aung Ko's creative process. His painting techniques, in constant evolution, tend to adapt to certain stages of his life. From one work to the next, the style, palette and subject matter can change considerably.
For his latest series, he drew inspiration from the great European masters. Aung Ko indulges in vivid brushstrokes and a color palette reminiscent of Goya's revolutionary paintings and Freud's expressive neo-figurative portraits. Our artist seeks to capture glimpses and examples of his everyday life. He embodies a "panoramic camera" capturing moments in time. Interweaving historical representations, surreal colors, imaginary figures, realistic animals, symbols, attributes, objects and emblems from his homeland or his host country, mixing ancient mediums with contemporary processes; from his memories and through a very personal appreciation of the world, Aung Ko proposes an alternative perspective, a purely intimate vision, of contemporary society. His work is rooted in chaos, but can also carry hope!
Moreover, (Here and There) also represents Aung Ko's enduring bond with his native country. Despite the physical distance, Aung Ko constantly advocates a harmonious future for her homeland.
