HUmanscape
This essay was written in the caltalogue for the exhibition “ Humanscape”, Sheppard Fine Art Gallery, University of Nevada Reno, 2007
Essay written by Ann M. Wolfe
Curator of Exhibition and Collections, Nevada Museum of Art
For Eunkang Koh, whose personal philosophy is heavily influenced by her early exposure to Korean myths and the tenets of Buddhism, the physical world in which we live in is nothing more than a perceived illusion, where humans assume the role of actors performing on a grand theatrical stage. Within the world that Eunkang constructs, she probes the darker side of human/animal nature and social interaction, suggesting that the reality we perceive is subject to forces beyond our control. “ I choose to depict our human society using metaphor and attire,” Koh asserts. “ I am creating my own reality.”
Koh was born in Seoul, South Korea in 1974, and her penchant for fantasy and storytelling was instilled in her by her close relatives at an early age. She recalls vividly visits made with her father to elaborate Buddhist temples in the mountains of Seoul, where her encounters with intricately carved sculptures of mysterious hybrid creatures kindled her creative childhood imagination. The Buddhist folk tales and fanciful legends narrated by her maternal grandmother offered another escape for Koh, who still affectionately recounts the story of a mischievous ghost-like apparition with a predilection for masterminding harmless pranks. Such fantastical musings provided only brief respites, however, for a young girl who otherwise spent most of her early life in and out of medical facilities combating an assortment of then-undiagnosable maladies. Because she felt somewhat out-of –sync with the mainstream and never truly identified with her peers, normalcy was something about which she only ever dreamed.
In 1994, Koh entered the art program at Hong-Ik University in Seoul- a decision that would profoundly shape her worldwide view and the rest of her life. While at school her creative expression blossomed and she cultivated her own fiercely independent sprit. Subsequent travels to New York and then through Europe exposed her to people, places, and art movement that made her former cultural upbringing seem restrictive and confining. Upon returning home to Korea, she realized that her life there would never be the same; for the next one-and-one-half years she sequestered herself in her studio for twelve hours every night, emerging only for short period to sleep and eat during the day. In 2002, she entered graduate studies in visual art at California State University, Long Beach, and began what she feels was her true life as an artist in a diverse and progressive metropolitan area. Among Koh’s earliest mature work was a clever series of illustrated books she wittily dubbed Hairy Tales(2005) that assumed the guise of traditional children’s fairy tales, but with a sordid yet comical twist. From among the pages of Koh’s narratives, mythical hybrid creatures were released from a range of metaphorical enclosures, including eggs, seeds, glass bottles, and webs- all symbolizing the artist’s personal into an exciting and challenging new world of her own making.
The bizarre cast of characters that inhabited Hairy Tales re-appeared and mutated again in hundreds of prints and drawings that followed. In 8 Reincarnations (2006), human faces and animal appendages morph together seamlessly in a colorful display of imaginary delight’ similar mutant-creatures charged with orgiastic energy populate what appears as an erotic pleasure playground in the charcoal drawingRush (2007) and Birth (2007). Koh took such sexualized imagery one step further when she dismembered human body parts and recombined them to create a spectacular array of imaginary edible Entrée that appeared in her series Menu for Dinner (2004). In more recent examples of Koh’s drawings, such as Something We Cannot Avoid (2006), mysterious figures traverse a stark landscape no doubt influenced by her recent move to the Nevada desert. Whether we view Koh’s artistic as amusing diversion or cautionary prophecies, one can be sure that the entire visual experience will be sensual and subversive.
Essay written by Ann M. Wolfe
Curator of Exhibition and Collections, Nevada Museum of Art
For Eunkang Koh, whose personal philosophy is heavily influenced by her early exposure to Korean myths and the tenets of Buddhism, the physical world in which we live in is nothing more than a perceived illusion, where humans assume the role of actors performing on a grand theatrical stage. Within the world that Eunkang constructs, she probes the darker side of human/animal nature and social interaction, suggesting that the reality we perceive is subject to forces beyond our control. “ I choose to depict our human society using metaphor and attire,” Koh asserts. “ I am creating my own reality.”
Koh was born in Seoul, South Korea in 1974, and her penchant for fantasy and storytelling was instilled in her by her close relatives at an early age. She recalls vividly visits made with her father to elaborate Buddhist temples in the mountains of Seoul, where her encounters with intricately carved sculptures of mysterious hybrid creatures kindled her creative childhood imagination. The Buddhist folk tales and fanciful legends narrated by her maternal grandmother offered another escape for Koh, who still affectionately recounts the story of a mischievous ghost-like apparition with a predilection for masterminding harmless pranks. Such fantastical musings provided only brief respites, however, for a young girl who otherwise spent most of her early life in and out of medical facilities combating an assortment of then-undiagnosable maladies. Because she felt somewhat out-of –sync with the mainstream and never truly identified with her peers, normalcy was something about which she only ever dreamed.
In 1994, Koh entered the art program at Hong-Ik University in Seoul- a decision that would profoundly shape her worldwide view and the rest of her life. While at school her creative expression blossomed and she cultivated her own fiercely independent sprit. Subsequent travels to New York and then through Europe exposed her to people, places, and art movement that made her former cultural upbringing seem restrictive and confining. Upon returning home to Korea, she realized that her life there would never be the same; for the next one-and-one-half years she sequestered herself in her studio for twelve hours every night, emerging only for short period to sleep and eat during the day. In 2002, she entered graduate studies in visual art at California State University, Long Beach, and began what she feels was her true life as an artist in a diverse and progressive metropolitan area. Among Koh’s earliest mature work was a clever series of illustrated books she wittily dubbed Hairy Tales(2005) that assumed the guise of traditional children’s fairy tales, but with a sordid yet comical twist. From among the pages of Koh’s narratives, mythical hybrid creatures were released from a range of metaphorical enclosures, including eggs, seeds, glass bottles, and webs- all symbolizing the artist’s personal into an exciting and challenging new world of her own making.
The bizarre cast of characters that inhabited Hairy Tales re-appeared and mutated again in hundreds of prints and drawings that followed. In 8 Reincarnations (2006), human faces and animal appendages morph together seamlessly in a colorful display of imaginary delight’ similar mutant-creatures charged with orgiastic energy populate what appears as an erotic pleasure playground in the charcoal drawingRush (2007) and Birth (2007). Koh took such sexualized imagery one step further when she dismembered human body parts and recombined them to create a spectacular array of imaginary edible Entrée that appeared in her series Menu for Dinner (2004). In more recent examples of Koh’s drawings, such as Something We Cannot Avoid (2006), mysterious figures traverse a stark landscape no doubt influenced by her recent move to the Nevada desert. Whether we view Koh’s artistic as amusing diversion or cautionary prophecies, one can be sure that the entire visual experience will be sensual and subversive.