Re-bound-ary Pratt Studios Gallery NY 2010
March 29 2010 - April 2 2010 200 Willoughby ave. Brooklyn Candidate for the Master of Fine Arts Degree Department of Fine Arts
I have been involved with architectural images and a wide range of materials. In my art, building and clothing images repeat.
Mourning Coffee coffee, sugar, foam cups 2009
I have a lot of feelings and thoughts about buildings. My father is an architect and civil engineer, so my childhood environment was opened to building sites of dams, roads and bridges. They looked ugly at first, but they became more interesting and beautiful to me during the later stages of construction. Another inspiration about buildings originates from the accident that I experienced. When I was 13 years old, I observed a department store building collapsing across from my house in Seoul, Korea. It was a disastrous accident that caused 502 fatalities and more than 1000 injured people including many of my neighbors. It turned out that this accident occurred due to the flimsy construction of a greedy construction company.
Castle of grandma hemp, Korean traditional ironing tool 20x26¡± 2010
Korean Tranditional Ironing (pounding) Tool, "Da-deu-mee"
My notion of society and thoughts about the world increased with my anger towards the collapsing of the luxury building. My impression was pink concrete debris mixed up with the clothes of the people inside. This traumatic image constantly stimulates me when I create something. I illuminate the darker side of urban capitalism using architectural images related to this experience.
Compassion rod, T-sharts 2010
I like to contrast two opposite feelings about architecture: fear and gratification. When I see a skyscraper, I have both feelings at the same time. This probably is natural because a modern building is a metaphor of economic growth as well as its shadow. Though a skyscraper is regarded as a result of economic success, the success always involves a darker facet.
21 Ceramic cast cup , 1 Foam cup Dimensions variable 2010
Three bricks felt, silk,ceramic casting bricks 57x39¡± 2009
Based on this feeling, building images always pose to me an existential question; where are we from and where will we go. In history, humans have constructed many buildings for practical or religious reasons. These numerous buildings sometimes disappeared or even have been rebuilt. Even though skyscrapers stand securely and gloriously, it is hard to say that they will exist forever. I feel that all building are in a state of construction or decay and imply the insecure existence of human beings. That is why I like to think of buildings as being insecurely in the present, between the past and the future.
Re-bound-ary silkscreen print on Mylar 36x240¡± inch 2010
Built-ing digital print 24x30.5¡± 2009
Concrete statue of Aphrodite_digital-print_24x30.5¡± 2009 Concrete statue of a woman_24x30.5¡± 2009
concrete statue of Eirene_24x30.5¡± 2009
Concrete statue of an old fisherman_24x30.5¡± 2009
too sweet to purify (@pratt studio) sugar, bleach, plastic spoon, wood stool, table cloth 2010
"Beautiful Beautiful Beautiful Strong Magical " -Cyrilla Mozenter (artist, professor)
"Delicate, Poetic, Sensitive, Flowing, Subtle, Calm, Strong, Intriguing, Moving, Feeling of walking through your dream...." -from a guest book
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