Untitled No.12 I Hyun Kim

School of Fine Art, Sculpture

Hyun Kim’s current artistic practice rejects his traditional education in South Korea, where art is understood only as the acquisition of a technique and critical thought as single-sided evaluations of those techniques. Hyun Kim is an autodidact; this places him in an interesting space artistically, as an artist who had to fight strenuously to expand his understanding of contemporary art and to form his own specific critical awareness and practice of art. He has participated in many group shows in both South Korea and London, and has been selected for the prestigious Red Gate Residency in Beijing.

On "Untitled No.12"

"Untitled No.12 focuses on the individual as the receiver of oppression. Here, the decoupage technique reveals an individual’s subconscious or unconscious by removing the person situated within the photograph, thus showing its other side. Moreover, the collage of red papers under what has been ripped off represents three different meanings of power: (1) they clearly reflect the state power, anti-communist ideology engraved in the unconscious, (2) they show how the state power had totally eradicated the diverse and specific ‘others’ into one ideological color, and (3) they contain my rooted and still functioning fear, stemming from the banned questions and reflections facing the government.”

Year: 2016

Edition: 1/7  

Image size: 28cm x 42cm

Original photo print under acrylic glass
Alu-Dibond & Fuji Crystal DP II