“Creatures of Habit #2” by Richard Beaumont at “Creatures of Habit” exhibition / Courtesy of artist By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter As the expatriate community in Korea expands, so is the number of international artists among them. This month, there are two on-going group exhibitions featuring expatriate artists, giving the audience a glimpse of how Korea has inspired and influenced their works. ``Creatures of Habit'' is the second exhibition of the International Artists Community, with artworks by 24 artists from seven countries at the Jay and Na Galleries, downtown Seoul. ``Re-Spectacle'' is being held at Soul Underground, a small cafe in Hongdae, featuring works by three artists from Australia, Canada and the United States. Creatures of Habit The International Artists Community (IAC), a group of 80 artists and art enthusiasts, opened its second exhibition ``Creatures of Habit'' last week. The show features paintings, photographs, videos, installations and performance art by artists from Brunei, Canada, Chile, Korea, Lebanon, the United Kingdom and the United States. ``The theme of the exhibition is `habits,' therefore the whole format of the show is aimed at breaking away from the usual or habitual arrangement of an art show,'' exhibition curator Richard J. Beaumont told The Korea Times. Living as expatriates in Korea, the artists explore habits that they might not have even known they had until after they had left their own countries and traveled abroad. ``As more people do this, they experience the phenomena known as culture shock. This occurs when someone is confronted with the alien habits of another culture and also discovers that their own habits are suddenly of questionable use and validity,'' he said. At the exhibition, Jang Oui-loung's ``Trial of Strength'' depicts the struggle of trying to break from the grips of a bad habit, while printer Mike Stewart shows ``The Seven Deadly Sins'' as a reminder of the power of tradition in keeping people morally straight. Canadian artist Alexander Benetau explores ``inner cleansing'' in the work ``Learning How to Meditate,'' while Beaumont's series ``Creatures of Habit'' examines the various ways how customs can affect people's lives. The IAC's membership has been increasing steadily, and Beaumont said there is always room for more artists to join. The exhibition runs through April 17. To get there, get off at Anguk Station Line 3 exit 5 and go to the SK Hub Building. The galleries are located at the basement level. Re-Spectacle On the walls of Soul Underground cafe, there are ``bojagi'' pieces made of plastic bags, Egyptian-themed paintings on wooden boxes, and digital prints with darkly humorous images and phrases. These are not part of the cafe's usual grungy interior design, but are artworks by Anna Phillips, Mark Trussell and Eric Williams. Phillips, a teacher originally from Tasmania, Australia, creates ``bojagi'' and crocheted pieces made from plastic bags. She has been interested in elevating plastic as an object of beauty, not just as a utilitarian item. Living in Seoul for over five years, Phillips has become enamored with the Korean traditional art of bojagi. ``I have attempted to use the traditional art of bojagi with Korean plastic bags, which have such dynamic motifs and symbols printed on their surfaces. With my latest art pieces, I am trying to reflect and comment on modern life, and our relationship to the past, both from an international and personal perspective,'' she told The Korea Times. Mark Trussell, a Canadian who works as a writer, has collected wooden gift boxes and wine boxes, and used them as a canvas for his Egyptian art that somehow mixes modern and ancient themes. ``There is something distinctly modern about the look of ancient (Egyptian) treasures. Many archaeologists state that the vast majority of ancient artifacts are ancient garbage... My idea is to take modern rubbish and make it into Egyptian treasure,'' Trussell said. Williams, an American artist, likes to play with words and images in his digital print works. He uses images he found on the Internet and pairs it with acerbic, sarcastic and funny statements. ``The piece in the show is really kind of an installation of about 45 different pieces together. It's like a teenager's bedroom, which is a lot like my head. There are my heroes, my villains, my favorite jokes, things that repulse and impress me, all in one place together for the world to see,'' Williams said. The exhibition demonstrates how the three artists work with common everyday materials and images. ``We wanted to show how the common isn't necessarily common or mundane. Everything can have meaning and value. It is just a way of looking at things,'' Phillips said. The exhibition runs through April 30. To get there, get off at Hongik University Station Line 2, exit 4. Soul Underground is on the 3rd floor of the building behind Seven Springs restaurant.