Disquiet vs Harmony brings together nine contemporary artists—four from Korea and five from Italy—whose works explore the aesthetic tension that exists in the liminal space between disquiet and harmony; unrest and balance; chaos and order. Curated by Cynthia Penna and Yujin Iris Jeong, this exhibition presents a timely, cross-cultural dialogue that seeks to excavate and articulate the role of art during times of unrest. 

 

Amidst today’s climate of global uncertainty and fragmentation, this exhibition investigates art’s capacity to simultaneously contain dissonance and harmony. The nine artists from Italy and Korea—Alfonso Sacco, Danilo Ambrosino, Marco Adinolfi, Massimo Cicala, Max Coppeta, Michelle Oh, Ji Oh, YC Kim, YoungHo Seock—address the central theme of disquiet vis-à-vis harmony through a wide range of mediums, including painting, sculpture, installation, and textiles, revealing unexpected parallels and resonances. 

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In Disquiet vs Harmony, art shows that harmony arises from the convergence of disparate yet inseparable elements, joined in a manner that produces an organic and coherent whole; it invites us to understand the world through frameworks of connection and collaboration—principles that we must internalize and enact in our daily lives in the face of the disquiet.

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Alfonso Sacco is an Italian artist whose bright, colorful works explore themes of memory, identity, and presence through his signature fingerprint motif. Although Sacco’s works can be formally situated within abstraction, with vibrant forms drifting across open space, his characteristic fingerprint motif inscribes a tangible imprint of humanity onto them. His work has been shown widely across Europe, including ITALIARTS in Stockholm, Helsinki, and Tallinn, as well as Neapolis 2015 at the PAN in Naples. He was selected for the Porto Franco exhibition by Vittorio Sgarbi and featured in the volume Artisti Sdoganati. Sacco’s projects have been championed by prominent critics such as Achille Bonito Oliva and Francesco Gallo Mazzeo. In 2019, he realized a public installation in Portici dedicated to women affected by violence.

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​Marco Adinolfi and Massimo Cicala have collaborated as an artistic duo since 2020, merging their backgrounds in visual art and architecture. Adinolfi, a multidisciplinary artist with over two decades of experience, explores themes of identity and belonging through painting, sculpture, and installation. Cicala, an architect and visual artist, brings a spatial and perceptual dimension to their work. Together, they approach their practice philosophically, experimenting with materials—particularly “thread,” which serves as both a structural and conceptual element. Their joint works have been exhibited at institutions including the PAN | Palazzo delle Arti Napoli and various galleries in Naples and Los Angeles between 2022 and 2025.

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Danilo Ambrosino is a contemporary artist known for his large-format works that explore themes of nature and climate change. Using acrylic enamels and gold leaf, his practice blends figurative traditions with a contemporary visual language. Ambrosino has exhibited widely in Italy, including at the National Archaeological Museum of Naples, the Royal Palace of Caserta, and the Botanical Gardens of Naples and Palermo. Internationally, his work has been shown at the Mazarine Variations in Paris and the European Parliament in Brussels. His work is recognized for its poetic reflection on global environmental challenges.

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​Max Coppeta is an interdisciplinary visual artist from Campania whose innovative artworks address the evolving relationship between technology and nature and the materiality of the immaterial. Operating somewhere between sculpture, installation, and design, Coppeta creates dynamic pieces that not challenge the physical properties of the materials used but also reveals their latent poetry. Coppeta studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples and the Higher Institute of Design in Turin. Since 2001, he has led a Design and Visual Marketing studio, collaborating with institutions such as Teatro Bellini in Naples. His interdisciplinary practice has earned several awards and his works has been exhibited internationally in cities including Houston, Los Angeles, Caracas, Singapore, Tokyo, Naples, Milan, Turin, and Venice. ​

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Michelle Oh is a Korean-born, Los Angeles-based artist whose vibrant, multi-layered works push the limits of acrylic painting. Through a technique she calls “paint carving,” Oh builds up thick layers of acrylic paint on canvas, then carefully carves into the surface to reveal intricate patterns and hidden colors beneath. Her practice merges the processes of painting, sculpture, and printmaking, challenging the boundaries between these disciplines. Oh earned her BFA from Hong-Ik University and has exhibited widely in the U.S. and internationally. She is an active member of the Korean Artists Association of Southern California and continues to live and work in Los Angeles.

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Ji Oh is a Korean American artist based in Southern California whose work spans drawing and painting. Born in Gwangju, South Korea, she immigrated to Los Angeles at age 16 and later earned her BFA from California State University Fullerton and MFA from Claremont Graduate University. Ji has exhibited extensively across the United States and internationally in Australia, Japan, Korea, Mexico, and Singapore. Her solo exhibitions include shows at PYO Gallery in Los Angeles and INSA Gallery in Seoul. In 2002, she was commissioned by the Kawaguchi Art Station in Japan, where her work remains in the permanent collection of the Lilia Cultural Center. In addition to her studio practice, Ji has curated exhibitions, served as a juror and lecturer, and currently teaches at Ji’s Art Studio in Southern California.

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Youngho Seock is a contemporary Korean artist who integrates dirt and soil into his painting practice, forming deeply textured ridges that rise from serene expanses of color. For Seock, soil embodies the genesis of all life, and through his work, he seeks to channel its primordial, life-giving essence. A graduate of Hongik University’s Department of Painting, Seock is best known for his Conversation series, where in he engages with soil and loam. His recent solo exhibitions include Maru Art Center (2023), GangS Gallery (2020), and Able Fine Art NY Gallery in New York and Seoul. Seock has shown at major international fairs such as the LA Art Show, CONTEXT Art Miami, and AAF Singapore.

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Y.C. Kim is a Korean-born ceramic artist whose practice bridges traditional Korean pottery and contemporary sculptural ceramics. Trained at Seoul National University during a time of cultural revival, Kim later earned an M.A. from UC Berkeley, where studying under Peter Voulkos profoundly shifted her artistic perspective. Her work explores themes of time, mortality, and nature’s vastness, often inspired by the ocean and desert landscapes of California. Kim sees art-making as a continuous process of experimentation, rooted in childlike curiosity and freedom. She has taught ceramics for over three decades, including a long tenure at San Diego City College. A former president of the Allied Craftsmen of San Diego and an active member of NCECA, Kim’s work invites personal interpretation and spiritual reflection.