Kaleidoscope

I was working with a small prototype of an LED kaleidoscope. The elements of the kaleidoscope are finite, but the ‘situation’ of their combination is infinite. I found that it is interesting that the separation of space can be seen as a symbolic use of time discrepancies. By concentrating only on the visual part, I tried to break down the boundaries of the notion of actual space that people have.

Cardboard, Arduino, led, 170 x 170 x 340 mm, 2019
Cardboard, Arduino, led, 270 x 270 x 340 mm, 2019

Then I came up with questions like ‘What is a sense of vision?’, ‘What if I put totally different input to each of eyes?’, ‘Then, how does our brain interpret the information?’. My previous prototype was only for one eye, but I made another hole for another eye. My eyes and brain have struggling to digest totally new information and experience. It was a bit dizzy experience gazing both colorful LEDs (but at one point, I realize that my fixating eye is my left eye). The experience, along with separating myself from the kaleidoscope world to actual space, separating visual information from each eyes took a while to adjust.

Where did I exist at that moment? Was it in a space that I was facing through the hole? Or was I in the space I was standing on?

StukaFest

StuKafest 28th of February,2019 , Nieuweekekhof 34a,Groningen, Netherlands

Shared studio does not allow me to spread or enjoy my inner abundance. There is no genuine private space allowed. Those who pass by me can easily recognize what I am doing whenever they want to know. And as soon as I close the bathroom door about 30 seconds from the studio, I find the narrow physical space quite emotionally expansive. The space that each person wants will be different, but the effect will not be much different. The reason for wanting such a space is not merely to need a place to hide or to avoid problems. Because such a space kindly explains; What type of person I am and what type of person do I wanted to be, what kind of emotions and qualities do I responded to, what kind of life do I pursue, and what kind of problems do I have.

 

I wanted to convey my feelings about this space to others. And, luckily, that opportunity came. January 30, 2019, Visit to StuKafest location: Nieuweekekhof 34a, on this day, I found my canvas. A toilet in the form of an under-the-stairs attic, not a typical square type toilet, I wanted to paint this space with pleasure with colorful lights. Music and psychedelic light of the space welcoming people to the party; party toilet. 

Creative writing

Y2 Groningen, Oosterhamrikkade 2Y, 9714 BA Groningen-24/05/2019
Mixed media, 420 x 594 mm, 2019

I wrote passage comes up after undertaking the incense of mint. I wrote about a scene that I had not experienced. The scene rush into my head along with the fragrance, and I did not want to miss those images, so I wrote in Korean right before it disappears. After three revisions, it was translated into English. 

 

Luckily, I have a chance to exhibit at Y2. I translate this writing in two ways; visually and audibly. Because on the train, or while walking, I can hear sounds around me. And the sound is not understood in language, but it sounds like a background noise. When I saw people having so much fun, I could not even dare to try to know what they are talking about. I can only understand people talking in English. Speaking in Dutch is like an encrypted sound to me; on the contrary, audio-visually, Korean is too (for people who can’t speak this language). 

 

I tried to make both audio track’s volume as same as during the audio editing process. Then I was ‘Oh, maybe this process is necessary because I can understand both languages.’. 

Moving to new home

I planned to move closer to the city center. The student house that I used to live in the past was furnished already that I needed furniture for a new home. And shopping for furniture with a sense of, like, ‘this much, this big’ was problematic. I made these gloves because I thought it would be good to see the right number(cm) for this gesture. Because whenever I describe size, I usually think ‘this much’ by hand, or ‘this much’ by my height. I wanted to make a handy digital ruler. I’ve got a battery and a mini-Arduino in my glove so that I can carry it in one hand.

By measuring gesture, the distance (cm) is displayed on the screen.

Arduino mini, lcd i2c, ultrasonic sensor, glove, 180x80x30mm, 2019

By then, I moved, but the other important thing left was to bring the bike that was tied up in front of the previous house. I used to go to school by bus before. For reference, I rarely ride a bicycle in Korea. I made a turn signal glove to not to fall on the ground while I turn left or right on the bike road.

Pin, Led, battery, 180x80x20mm,2019

MMM :waiting

8aee505f-8abe-4f70-a2e0-29cdd663c82aPoster, printed, 841 x1189 mm
Performance, 20.12.2018, Praediniussingel 59A, 9711 AG Groningen

This was group project of MMM (Joowon, Aisha, Juan, Steven, George, Ciara

What is MMM (Media, Materials, Makers: Art and/as Research Exploration & Collaboration)
To explore a field where art, (new) media and research meet; to participate in collaborative projects with artists and scholars; to experiment with existing and new methods and approaches of (artistic) research: these could be all descriptions of Media, Material and Makers: Art and/as Research (MMM). MMM is developed as a collaborative module of the Master-programmes Arts, Culture and Media (KCM) and Art History (K&A) – both of the University of Groningen (RuG) – and the Masterprogrammes of the Frank Mohr Institute of the Hanze University.

We needed to deal with the theme; time and space. so we decided to focus on ‘waiting’ time. Premiere of a film and poster were installed. With performance, audience had to wait in front of the room where the film would be shown, looking at the poster, trailer and asked to be patient. But it was completely choreographed scam.

 

Allergy life

180 x 100 x 72mm, formax, arduino, paper, 2018

In the fall of 2019, when I had a stuffy nose, I wanted to see a doctor. And after waiting for about ten days, I was able to meet General practice on the Zernike campus. (In Korea, if I want to see a doctor, I don’t need any reservation, but just go to the hospital and wait about 30 minutes, then I can get treatment.) Explaining my symptoms, he suggested me to get enough rest and drink warm tea. At the moment, I was perplexed and asked him immediately to prescribe antihistamines and asked if he could do an allergy test. But he asked me to mark the day that I get sick on the calendar and to be cautious about next year. It was the moment when I realized that I had nested in a country of autoimmunity and natural healing. And in the long run, I thought this way of treatment would be better, but it was difficult for me to adjust to this system right away. As I have a body that is used to have four or five pills for a cold. I started taking medicine late, or maybe it was due to pollen that is lethal to me, I probably lived for about a month with almost no sense of smell. My head kept hurting because of my stuffy nose. I didn’t feel while eating and had trouble breathing properly while sleeping. I felt like I had lost all the joyful things in my life.

And suddenly I came with a lot of questions like, ‘What if the world’s sense of smell disappears? How can we feel the scent on an object or anywhere? And if the sense of smell disappears, what senses can we use to feel it? If we can feel the sense of smell using different senses, what kind of sense is possible?’

It is a project to show the visualisation of olfactory. “What if the sense of smell is blocked, how can I feel the sense of smell in my life?” When a butterfly sits on a flower, we can think of it has fragrant.

Replicaaa

Soap, screw nail, 300 x250 x200 mm, 2017

We live in the era of technology of duplication. I decided to create this work by thinking about how to define and accept the work of art that is replicated. Through the technique of photography, painting start to replicated as photo. The things (made by craft man) became a product through the technology of mass production. But there is no perfect replication. I want to show this concept through using easily changeable material ‘soap’. There is no perfect replication. Only the appearance is duplicated as aura can’t be duplicated.

The materials of the original and replica are different. The meaning and the way to the owner are different. Ordinary chair is composed of wood, I duplicate its appearance so that it has the form of a bath chair, but its made of soap. And it makes users to be in different position. It may be the similar for user to put a chair in the bathroom. However, the way you sit on a chair and use it will not be used in this work. Instead, it will be used to bubble and clean up the body. Finally, it will have different uses and meanings.

process

Secret locker

                                                                                         Formex, Silicon pad, Arduino, 350 x 300 x 280mm, 2017

There is a sense of anxiety that may be read if you do not lock it, but there is a disadvantage that the secret is revealed paradoxically when the lock is installed.

6 of weight objects are password to unlock the locker.  Focusing on the breaking from the conventional form of locker, I want people to think as if it is not a locker.

By this locker, I can keep my secret things more safely and secretly. While holding the button attached to the bottom of the product, put the weight objects and release the button.And with this process, the passwords are stored within the six pressure sensors. It is not necessary to put all of weight objects (only one weight object can be a password).

 

Process

What if things alive

In the process of becoming an adult, people learnt that they compelled not to think outside the box and regarded their childhood imagination as insane crap. This work has started from this thought where I, myself became the god and instilled life in my object and my space. If my objects were alive in my space and lived with me, what emotions would they have?

 

Puberty mirror

Formax , PIR sensor, servo motor, Mirror paper, 600 x 400 x70 mm, 2017

I impersonated object like the litter bin, mirror and toilet paper holder in the bathroom which might be considered as a little stupid and unreasonable. This is a work starting from a small question, “The original function of mirror is to show thing as it is, but what if mirror does not want to show me?” When recognizing a person, it distorts the surface of mirror and reveals its feelings.

Process

 

Stuffed trash bin

Formax , pressure sensor, servo motor, 3d-printed part, 150 x 150x 300mm, 2017

When PIR sensor detects human, servo motors those which placing on the back of the mirror start to move. This is a work starting from a question,  “Does a stuffed trash bin want to vomit trash it ate?” When the emptied trash becomes to contain a certain amount of trash, it can fall itself down and pour trash out. When pressure sensor detects weight, servo motor push the upper part to throw all the trashes.

Process

 

Pretending nothing happened

Formax , fabric, motor, PIR sensor, 3d- printed plastic ,290 x 100 x 98 mm, 2017

It is a tissue hanger that plays to unwind tissue recklessly and pretends nothing happened by winding tissue as many times as it was unwound when detecting a person comes. When PIR sensor value is low, a stepper motor starts rotating, and as soon as it is high, it rotates in the opposite direction.

process