SMP GALLERY's origins in New York
SMP GALLERY at STYLE MEETS PEOPLE Tokyo Midtown
SMP GALLERY at Tokyo Midtown Opens Exhibition Featuring Seoul-Based Photographer Jonghyun Nam
The lifestyle shop STYLE MEETS PEOPLE at Tokyo Midtown has been offering "relaxury (relaxation + luxury for mind + body)" since the building's opening in 2007, proposing "quality time of comfort." The shop's parent company, Space M Projects Japan Ltd. (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative: Masako Matsuura), was founded in New York in 1986 and celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
In cities where diverse values intersect, art has the power to quietly resonate with people's senses, transcending differences in language and culture. STYLE MEETS PEOPLE operates the gallery "SMP GALLERY" within the store, serving as a "neutral gallery" that introduces the appeal of artists and their works while crossing boundaries between art, craft, and design.
Jonghyun Nam Photo Exhibition Overview
This exhibition "The Gaze of a Korean Photographer: Jonghyun Nam" marks the first solo exhibition at SMP GALLERY for Jonghyun Nam, a photographer based in Seoul, South Korea.
The show features representative works from four major series that the photographer has continuously explored: "WINTER LOTUS / THE THINGS / THE CHAIR / BARBIE", with a total of 26 pieces including four related art books.
The subjects range from expansive snow fields and Korean white porcelain to European and American furniture and Barbie dolls. This collection of works, where landscapes and still life, melancholy and humor quietly intersect, presents objects that seem to breathe in silence on Hanji (traditional Korean handmade paper).
Through each series, Jonghyun Nam captures the subtle tension and space created by objects, spaces, memories, and images from different perspectives. The quiet yet vivid images encourage an experience that naturally connects with each viewer's emotions and memories.
Egg Chair, The Chair series ©2016 Jonghyun Nam
Ant chair/Arne Jacobsen Part1, The Chair series ©2016 Jonghyun Nam
White lotus ©2014 Jonghyun Nam. Captured during harsh winter, showing lotus stalks broken and covered with snow. The photographer notes that this snowy lotus field scene, photographed over 10 years ago, has become increasingly rare in recent years due to the effects of global warming.
Audrey with lovely heart con chair, Barbie series ©2024 Jonghyun Nam
Channel with egg chair
Grace kelly with Joseon Tabaco box
"You can be anything!" BARBIE Series Captivates Fashion and Furniture Enthusiasts
The BARBIE series reimagines Barbie not merely as a symbol of beauty, but as an embodiment of childhood dreams and imagination. While evolving into diverse identities, Barbie has continued to carry the slogan "You can be anything!" Through this imagery, the photographer depicts growth, memory, and the longing that remains deep in the heart from a "boyhood" perspective. The encounter with Barbie dolls beautifully restored by collectors awakens forgotten dreams and childhood warmth, gently inviting us to look toward wishes and possibilities we may have let go as adults. The final day, March 9, is "National Barbie Day"※.
This is an exhibition that Barbie fans should definitely see.
※Every year, March 9 is celebrated to commemorate the debut of the Barbie doll at the New York International Toy Fair on the same date in 1959.
About the Works: Hanji + Photography - Words from Jonghyun Nam
"I continue to create works with landscapes and still life as my main motifs. In landscape photography, I am conscious of capturing 'the passage of time,' while in still life photography, I focus on 'the nature of existence itself.' What I consistently confront is the authenticity that subjects inherently possess.
In this exploration, I chose the technique of deliberately removing 'shadows' from photographs. By eliminating the staging created by light and shadow and stripping away excess elements, I believed that subjects could emerge as simply being there, transcending their outlines and meanings.
Supporting this expression is Hanji, traditional Korean handmade paper. Also called 'Bakji,' Hanji is completed through layers of processes, with the final touch entrusted to the user. The act of printing photographs is also a quiet dialogue of facing the subject, layering time, and circulating thoughts.
Photographs deeply absorbed into Hanji's fibers take on a serene presence reminiscent of ink paintings, and the silent objects gently speak to the viewer. Through photographs born from light and living in paper, I want to quietly reconsider the very act of 'seeing.'"
The Moon, the Flowers, The things series ©2025 Jonghyun Nam
The Moon, the Wild Rose
Artist Biography | Jonghyun Nam - Based in Seoul, South Korea. Won the Grand Prix at the Sydney International Photography Exhibition (Australia) in 1993.
Held first solo exhibition in the UK in 2001. Since then, based in Seoul, has held numerous solo and group exhibitions centered in Japan and Korea. In addition to exhibitions at galleries, museums, and temple spaces in Korea, has participated in art fairs and international cultural exchange exhibitions. In recent years, has also exhibited overseas in Venice (Italy) and Jakarta (Indonesia).
Exhibition Intent and Background
Since its opening, STYLE MEETS PEOPLE has proposed art not as something special, but as an extension of daily life through the "ART MEETS PEOPLE" project. The shop creates a space where people can casually drop by and feel "why am I drawn to this work," reaching not only those familiar with art but also those encountering works for the first time, across generations.
As an extension of this activity, SMP GALLERY continues to propose new values of art that accompanies daily life through the harmony of artists' expressions, works, and space, introducing expressions that transcend genres and borders under the theme "Living with Art."
In recent years, Korean contemporary art has garnered significant international attention. Against the backdrop of the Korean government's easing of export restrictions on postwar artworks and the introduction of new art promotion laws, the overseas expansion of contemporary artists and market revitalization have progressed. Last year, multiple exhibitions focusing on Korean art were held in New York, showing a worldwide expansion of this movement.
Rather than treating this trend as a passing boom, SMP GALLERY values carefully engaging with the expressions and philosophies that individual artists have cultivated over many years, introducing the quiet power that works themselves possess. This exhibition aims to show the current state of Korean photographic expression while also being an opportunity to reconsider the richness of the act of "seeing" shared across cultures and borders through photographer Jonghyun Nam's gaze.
Exhibition Details
| Photo Exhibition Title: | Jonghyun Nam Photo Exhibition The Gaze of a Korean Photographer |
|---|---|
| Location: | SMP GALLERY (inside STYLE MEETS PEOPLE store) Tokyo Midtown Roppongi Galleria 3F |
| Dates/Hours: | February 13 (Fri) to March 9 (Mon), 2026 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM (until 5:00 PM on the final day) |
| Admission: | Free |
| Inquiries: | TEL: 03-5413-3705 info@stylemeetspeople.com |
| Exhibition/Event Official URL | https://smp-gallery.com |
| Instagram: | https://www.instagram.com/stylemeetspeople/ |
Message from the Organizer
Having lived in New York for 27 years, I started a business with my life and business partner in 1986. In an environment where art is part of daily life, I have been exposed to different cultures and diverse values.
Emotion and creative empathy born across language and borders. With this experience as a foundation, I operate "SMP GALLERY" as a neutral and open space. I value gently passing on the thoughts behind the works and the artists' gazes to the sensibilities of visitors.
We are storytellers conveying artists, their works, and their appeal.
Artists sharpen their five senses, engage with materials, and sublimate their perspectives and sensibilities into works through "made in mind." We at SMP GALLERY/STYLE MEETS PEOPLE have valued the thoughts of artists and the moments when people encounter works, transcending genres of art, craft, and design, and crossing borders.
Unraveling, narrating, and conveying the stories behind them together with our staff. That is what we consider our role.
Masako Matsuura
SMP GALLERY/STYLE MEETS PEOPLE
Representative, Space M Projects Japan Ltd.
At Jonghyun Nam's photography studio in Seoul, South Korea, during a meeting for the solo exhibition last fall. ©2025 Jonghyun Nam
