ARARIO GALLERY SEOUL is pleased to present A Man Asleep, a solo exhibition by KIM Inbai (b. 1978), on view from Tuesday, September 1 to Saturday, October 24, 2026. Coinciding with Frieze Seoul and Kiaf in September, a time when the global art world turns its attention to the city, this large-scale presentation spans all floors of the gallery, marking a momentous return for KIM with his first solo exhibition at ARARIO GALLERY SEOUL in 12 years. The exhibition spotlights approximately 29 new sculptures and two-dimensional works that employ a sculptural methodology to address the sensation of ‘absence,’ a subject the artist has long explored.

KIM has continuously experimented with how we perceive subjects and their boundaries by translating two-dimensional elements of lines and planes into three-dimensional space, or by boldly distorting anatomical structures. Unbound by solid outer forms, he commands a unique visual language that subverts conventional systems of visual perception, such as sculpting invisible empty spaces or casting empty molds devoid of an internal original form. For KIM, sculpture is not a fixed phenomenon but an existence in process, one that is constantly generated, deconstructed, and capable of becoming anything depending on the perspective and environment. 

KIM Inbai’s solo exhibition A Man Asleep takes its point of departure from the unique narrative style of Georges Perec’s novel A Man Asleep. From beginning to end, the novel addresses a character using the second-person pronoun “you,” obsessively tracing every thought, emotion, and trivial action as if seeing right through them, yet it ultimately fails to fully capture their existence. In fact, the more specifically the subject is designated, the more an unbridgeable gap emerges between the word and the actual existence.

The works KIM presents in this exhibition shed light on the gaze that attempts to capture a subject and the sensory gap that lies within. It is an attempt to materialize the spatial rift between the designating word and its intended subject. Focusing on the subtle discrepancies between things that resemble each other and are perceived as identical yet never perfectly overlap, he poses the fundamental question: “What does it mean to see what is not there?” By bringing into the realm of sculpture the minor gaps that inevitably arise the moment a subject is defined by a single form and meaning, KIM directs his attention beyond the forms clearly revealed before our eyes, focusing instead on the ‘absence’ existing in between and the manner in which it manifests as a sensation within the space.

Artist Statement

Georges Perec’s autobiographical novel A Man Asleep (Un homme qui dort) is written entirely in the second person. The sentences beginning with “you” trace every thought, emotion, and trivial action as if seeing right through the subject. However, while the pronoun “you” seems to point clearly to a specific person, it ultimately fails to fully capture their existence. A subtle discrepancy remains between the designating word and its intended subject, and the novel sustains this gap to the very end.

In this exhibition, I attempt to translate this sensation into sculpture. I focus on things that resemble one another and are perceived as identical, yet never perfectly overlap. Even in the moment they are considered one, a subtle difference remains between them. I have long explored this sensation of ‘absence’ through my sculptural practice, and these new works are an extension of that ongoing endeavor. What does it mean to see what is not there? In what manner does absence exist? I hope these questions reach the audience not merely as logical concepts, but through symbol and sensation.

―Excerpt from KIM Inbai’s Artist Note

Venue
ARARIO GALLERY SEOUL (85 Yulgok-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Korea) B1F, 1F, 3F, 4F

Artists
KIM Inbai

Exhibition Dates
1 Sep – 24 Oct 2026

Gallery Hours
Tuesday – Saturday | 11 AM – 6 PM

Website
https://www.arariogallery.com

Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/arariogallery.official

Contact
info@arariogallery.com

About the Artist

KIM Inbai was born in Seoul, Korea, in 1978. KIM received his BFA in 2003 and MFA in 2009, majoring in sculpture at Hongik University, Seoul, Korea. He has held solo exhibitions at ARARIO GALLERY SEOUL (Seoul, Korea, 2026; 2014; 2007), Primary Practice (Seoul, Korea, 2024), Perigee Gallery (Seoul, Korea, 2020), ARARIO GALLERY SHANGHAI (Shanghai, China, 2019), ARARIO GALLERY CHEONAN (Cheonan, Korea, 2011), DOOSAN Gallery (New York, US, 2010) and Gallery Skape (Seoul, Korea, 2006). In addition, he has participated in group exhibition at Songeun (Seoul, Korea, 2026; 2021), ARARIO GALLERY SHANGHAI (Shanghai, China, 2025),  ARARIO GALLERY SEOUL (Seoul, Korea, 2023; 2021; 2018), Daegu Art Museum (Daegu, Korea, 2022; 2018), Bern Kunstmuseum(2021, Bern, Switzerland), DOOSAN Gallery (Seoul, Korea, 2019), Seoul Museum of Art (Seoul, Korea, 2019), Seoul Olympic Museum of Art (Seoul, Korea, 2016), Sungkok Art Museum (Seoul, Korea, 2015), Asia Culture Center (Gwangju, Korea, 2015), Arario Museum DONGMUN MOTEL II (Jeju, Korea, 2015), Amore Pacific Museum of Art (Jeju, Korea, 2014), Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art (Ansan, Korea, 2011), MAD (NY, US, 2011), Saatchi Gallery(London, UK, 2009) and more. He has been selected for the 35th Kim Se-Choong Youth Sculpture Award in 2024. His works are collected by institutions such as the Seoul Museum of Art (Korea), Busan Museum of Art (Korea), Daegu Art Museum (Korea), ARARIO Collection (Korea) and more.

(Text and images courtesy of ARARIO GALLERY SEOUL)