Sang Woo Kim makes his London solo debut with The Seer, The Seen, a dual-location exhibition at Herald St on view until 1st February. Through a powerful display of self-portraits and pigment transfer works, Kim boldly addresses themes of individuality exploring the complex dynamics of seeing and being seen with unapologetic honesty. The show is a must-see in the beautiful intimate gallery located close to the British Museum.

Born in South Korea and raised in the UK, Kim’s work reflects the tension of straddling two worlds. His self-portraits are defined by multiple sets of probing eyes—some directly meeting the viewer’s gaze, others looking beyond. For Kim, reclaiming this gaze is an act of defiance, a means of unraveling the threads of racism and fetishisation that influenced his experience in England. Methodical and, at times, obsessive, these works transform his image from one of objectification into one of resistance, offering a powerful reckoning of self-image and identity.

In his London solo debut, the contrast between his eyes and those of others—held open by a speculum, directed away from the viewer, or staring in awe at something beyond the frame—suggests a multifaceted dynamic of observation, bridging the artist and his surroundings within the imperial metropolis. As Eugene Yiu Nam Cheng writes, “To frame an individual life as being particularly important or exceptional, without asking how that life is but a consequence of the world around it, would be to remove it from the experience of living.”

Images: by Jackson White and views of the exhibition (c) Herald St.