Reaching
YOUNHEE PAIK 백연희
QUALIA CONTEMPORARY ART | Curated by Phil E. Linhares | May 16 – July 3, 2026
229 Hamilton Ave Palo Alto, CA 94301
+1 650-656-9132 info@qualiagallery.com
w w w.qualiagallery.com
Reaching: Paintings by Younhee Paik
This exhibition presents a series of paintings created in the twenty-first century by the renowned artist Younhee Paik. Now in her eighth decade, these works are a culmination of a lifetime painting, studying, observing nature and living a life of spiritual awareness. Paik works in series, forming collections over lengthy periods; they include “Mercy on Us”, 1990 1996; “Forest of Trees”, 1991 - 2018; “City Awakening”, 1998 - 2009; “Wondrous Flight”, 2005 - 2015 and “Ancient River”, 2004 - 2021. The “Reaching” series begins in 2003, running through 2022; it is distinguished by a darker palette and almost exclusive use of aluminum panels replacing canvas, which are highly durable, allowing a greater variety of textures due to the rigidity of the panels. “Reaching” is also distinguished by images referring to boats, navigation and celestial reckoning. The contents and titlings of many Younhee Paik paintings conjure movement- both actual and metaphorical: “climb”, “reaching “ and “passage” denote a sense of striving toward a goal, a destination, an accomplishment or the granting of a long-sought wish. She is guided in her life and work by spiritual and humanitarian feelings, a deep love of nature and gratitude for the gift of life. Blessed with a warm and supportive family, her parents recognized her early interest in art and music. At the outset of the Korean War in 1950, Younhee, along with her parents, two older sisters and two younger brothers sought refuge in the fishing village Song Do, Pusan, on Korea’s southern coast.
w w w.qualiagallery.com
Reaching: Paintings by Younhee Paik Returning to Seoul in 1953, she enjoyed a happy childhood, and began formal art studies at age 15, later attending the Seoul School of Music and Art. At 19 she entered Seoul National University, earning her Bachelor of Art degree. At age 23, she immigrated to the United States, first to Boston but soon found her true home in San Francisco at the storied, century-old San Francisco Art Institute. SFAI, as it is known, had a distinguished faculty and a proud history for nurturing aspiring artists. “They left me alone to paint”, she declared, “they” being her mentors Bruce McGaw and Julius Hatofsky, both accomplished painters and teachers. McGaw was the youngest of a group of artists introduced in the ground-breaking exhibition “Bay Area Figurative Artists” at the Oakland Museum. He was in good company with his older friends Richard Diebenkorn, Elmer Bischoff and David Park. Julius Hatofsky was a respected abstract expressionist painter from New York; he introduced Younhee to the powerful and emotional expression of William Blake. McGaw and Hatofsky, along with sculptor Alvin Light instilled a firm sense of discipline upon Younhee, a work ethic she maintains to this day. Her graduate studies at SFAI, the support of her mentors and the good fortune to have studied during the last “Golden Age” of the venerable institution prepared Younhee for her future as a working artist. She entered the art world with training in both Asian and Western art traditions. Life accelerated in the years after earning her Master of Fine Art degree at SFAI: marriage, and between the birth of her daughter and her son was her first San Francisco solo exhibition. Her New York debut followed in 1983, with many other solo and group exhibitions in subsequent years. These resulted in recognition in the artist community, acquisitions by museums and private collectors and teaching opportunities. After her children were educated and entered the adult world Younhee was able to travel the world, greatly enriching her art; the people, sights, sounds, atmosphere and history broadened her perspective on every aspect of life and enriched her faith as well as her art. “Reaching” ultimately describes her wishes for a future beyond her own: she established the Chim Foundation ( Chim: creativity, healing and inspiration for the mind) for education in visual art, music and yoga for people with special needs. Her home, studio and grounds will serve as a welcome environment for gatherings of students, parents and volunteers. Classes will be conducted by trained artists and educators in visual art, music and yoga, and the Chim studio will present two concerts and scheduled exhibitions for the students, parents and the community. Younhee Paik’s legacy will include her paintings, her life’s work, and a special place, a gift to the community that expresses her love for art, music, nature and all people.
Philip E.Linhares Oakland, California April, 2026
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Above Wave, 2022 Oil on Aluminum 17 x 24 in | 43.2 x 61 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Golden Climb - Apollo #1, 2003 Oil on Aluminum 48 x 30 in | 121.9 x 76.2 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Jupiter, 2020 Oil on Canvas 12 x 12 in | 30.5 x 30.5 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Mars, 2026 Oil on Canvas 12 x 12 in | 30.5 x 30.5 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Venus, 2026 Oil on Canvas 12 x 12 in | 30.5 x 30.5 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Light Tunnel, 2026 Oil on Canvas 18 x 15 in | 45.7 x 38.1 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Golden Climb - Recall, 2026 Oil on Aluminum 40 x 30 in | 101.6 x 76.2 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Ancient River #5, 2008 Oil on Aluminum 30 x 40 in | 76.2 x 101.6 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Departure Morning, 2019 Oil on Aluminum 24 x 36 in | 61 x 91.4 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Summer Place, 2015 Oil on Aluminum 30 x 80 in | 76.2 x 203.2 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Passage Through Cave, 2021 Oil on Aluminum 17 x 24 in | 43.2 x 61 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK First Trip to Venice, 2021 Oil on Aluminum 36 x 48 in | 91.4 x 121.9 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Nightingale in Winter, 2025 Oil on Aluminum 24 x 48 in | 61 x 121.9 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Reaching #1, 2002 Oil on Aluminum 25 x 30 in | 63.5 x 76.2 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Miracle in the Night #2, 2017 Oil on Aluminum 25 x 36 in | 63.5 x 91.4 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Birth of Zeus, 2021 Oil on Aluminum 87 x 68 in | 221 x 172.7 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Reaching #3, 2002 Oil on Aluminum 30 x 40 in | 76.2 x 101.6 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK White Night - April, 2003 Oil on Aluminum, nine panels 79 x 112 in | 200.7 x 284.5 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK When We Reach, 2012 Oil on Aluminum, three joined panels 48 x 90 in | 121.9 x 228.6 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK New Year, 2025 Oil on Canvas 54 x 72 in | 137.2 x 182.9 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Path to Homeland, 2025 Oil on Aluminum 24 x 48 in | 61 x 121.9 cm
w w w.qualiagallery.com
YOUNHEE PAIK Myeong-seong Paint, found boat NOT FOR SALE
w w w.qualiagallery.com
BIOGRAPHY
YOUNHEE PAIK 백연희 Younhee Paik’s paintings explore the co-existence of the manmade and the universal. Her works frequently combine symbols of human ingenuity, including ladders, boxes, architectural blueprints, with images of the grand cosmos. In this way, Paik expresses her long held feeling that man is so small and nature so vast, but man is always a part of a larger whole. While making the work, Paik embraces accidents and process. Over her canvases and aluminum plates, she spreads water, drips paint, rolls pigment, and pulls fabric, all to achieve visual layering and texture. Paik is on a journey, from man to the cosmos, from here to there. Younhee Paik has shown widely nationally and internationally including solo exhibitions in Seoul, San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles. Her most recent showings include the Whanki Museum, GALLERY HYUNDAI, and the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul, South Korea and the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) in San Jose, California. Paik exhibited as part of the 2007 Incheon Women Artists’ Biennale in Incheon, South Korea and was featured at the 1995 Venice Biennale. Works by Paik are held in the permanent collections of various public and private institutions across South Korea and the United States, including the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea; the Seoul City Museum, Seoul; Samsung Museum, Seoul; TOTAL Art Museum, Seoul; Whanki Museum, Seoul; Soowon City Museum, Soowon; Seoul National University Museum, Seoul; Korean National Consulate, New York, NY; Korean Cultural Service, New York, NY; Bank of America, Sacramento, CA; Triton Museum, Santa Clara, CA; San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, CA; Sonoma County Museum, CA; and the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, CA. Paik received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Seoul National University in Seoul, South Korea and her Master of Fine Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute in San Francisco, California. Over her decades-long artist career, she has held a studio and exhibited in New York, San Francisco, and Seoul while continually revisiting her homeland.
w w w.qualiagallery.com
CURRICULUM VITAE
YOUNHEE PAIK 백연희 b. 1945, Korea; Lives and works in Oakland, CA
EDUCATION
BFA, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea MFA, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, CA
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2026 — Younhee Paik: Reaching, curated by Philip E. Linhares, Qualia Contemporary Art, Palo Alto, CA 2024 — Younhee Paik: Listening for a Thousand Bells, Qualia Contemporary Art, Palo Alto, CA 2022 — Here to There, Qualia Contemporary Art, Palo Alto, CA 2019 — Solo exhibition, Whanki Museum, Seoul, South Korea 2012 — Ascending River, Institute of Contemporary Art San José, San Jose, CA 2005 — Younhee Paik: Ascending River, University Art Gallery, Staller Center for the Arts, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS / BIENNIALS
2024 — Rhythmic Vibrations, American Pavilion, 15th Gwangju Biennale, May 18 Memorial Cultural Center, Gwangju, South Korea 2024 — Into View: New Voices, New Stories, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, CA 2023 — Nature Abstracted: Chiyomi Taneike Longo, Bob Nugent, and Younhee Chung Paik, Museum of Sonoma County, Santa Rosa, CA 1995 — Venice Biennale, Korean Pavilion, Venice, Italy
SELECTED PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea; Seoul City Museum, Seoul, South Korea; Samsung Museum, Seoul, South Korea; TOTAL Art Museum, Seoul, South Korea; Whanki Museum, Seoul, South Korea; Suwon City Museum, Suwon, South Korea; Seoul National University Museum, Seoul, South Korea; Korean National Consulate, New York, NY; Korean Cultural Service, New York, NY; Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, CA; San Jose Museum of Art, San Jose, CA; Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara, CA; Sonoma County Museum, Santa Rosa, CA; Bank of America, Sacramento, CA
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY / CATALOGUES
2005 — Younhee Paik: Ascending River, University Art Gallery, Staller Center for the Arts, Stony Brook University 2005 — Younhee Paik, 1972–2005: Paintings and Installations, Staller Center for the Arts
NOTES
Younhee Paik has presented more than forty solo exhibitions across museums and galleries in the United States and South Korea. Her work spans painting and installation, with recurring motifs of celestial imagery, water, vessels, ladders, light, sacred geometry, and passages between material and spiritual worlds.
w w w.qualiagallery.com