On view unitl 24 November.
LET’S START HERE is the beginning of an uncompromised vision by Korean artist Yoon Shun (1984, Antwerp), who showcases his first solo show in Gallery Hioco Delany. This exhibition displays a collection of functional art pieces in metal and wood.
It has been four years since Yoon Shun graduated from Furniture Design in the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, The Netherlands. Shun refers to his work as ‘domesticated sculpture’ instead of the broader used term ‘functional art’. Unlike traditional arts, such as painting, Shun’s domesticated sculptures allow the viewer to engage with and adapt the work for one's own usage. The pieces invite you to not only observe but also interact with the materials and forms, finding their own uses.
For LET’S START HERE paper-thin, steel sheets are cut and repeatedly shaped into layered forms. The aluminum objects follow flowing, natural lines, while dense oak wood is sculpted in architectural shapes. Touch is the starting point of the artist's creative journey and the most crucial criteria when choosing materials. The smooth feel of woods and metals spark his inspiration. For Shun, it is only when a material is touched, that its personality is revealed and ideas can start taking form.
Shun’s working method can be seen as a puzzle. The artist creates assemblages of metal, paper and wood or sketches shapes on several papers, which he collages into a whole. Only when the pieces are fully crafted, the artist determines if the idea works, and scraps it if need be. Every exhibited piece in this room is a result of a thought-out process of trial and error.
The creative process of Shun is deeply personal and rooted in his heritage. His childhood in rural South Korea gave him an appreciation for both nature and tradition, which we see reflected in his work. One of his main influences is Minhwa, a genre of Korean folk painting that combines function and aesthetics—ideas central to his own practice. The symbols of various animals or floral motifs in Minhwa provide the owner with luck, health, success, etc. Shun compares this balance of beauty and utility to his craft. But his work can also be directly associated with the traditional artworks. Looking at the burned oak wood used in some of his pieces, we can find a nod to the stripes of a tiger- a common symbol in Minhwa.
Shun’s work bridges the ancient and the contemporary, blending the symbolism of Minhwa with modernist ideas of form and space. One such modernist, Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi, is a great inspiration for Shun. Shun draws lessons out of the works of Noguchi taking him as a benchmark for the quality of his designs. Like Noguchi, he also believes that each piece he creates is a reflection of past experiences. Shun’s method of trial and error—sketching, crafting, and adjusting until the final object feels complete—demonstrates his commitment to the evolution of an idea over time.
The artist refrains from making analyses of unfinished works, rather focussing on what is presented before him after the creation process. Even the function of the object is only pinpointed in a later stage of the process. In some cases it is even left out in the open and for the viewer to decide. In this way, his work continues to evolve through the personal experiences of those who interact with it.
Text by Jens Roothoofd
