Biographical Text
Haegue Yang (b. 1971, Korea) currently lives and works in Berlin and Seoul. Her works are known for their eloquent and seductive sculptural language of visual abstraction out of her research on historical figures and events. Bringing together a variety of working methods, ranging from complex spatial installations with industrially produced items, such as Venetian blinds, to hand-made sculptures using rather low-tech craft such as paper folding, known as origami, knitting, macramé and other types of weavings. Recently, bells have been entered as sonic and performative elements, which illuminate one of her interests in the notion of movements, in physical, social and metaphorical sense. Also to mention as new material encounter is synthetic straw, an intriguing elements gesturing towards the notion of folk which is both an anthropological reference well as democratic base. Yang’s oeuvre has reached a level of rich complexity and across her work is a focus on sculpture and a rigorous negotiation with materiality through processes of creation and the final form itself, yet the invisible part of investigation on history has been additionally inherent, which has been widely discussed as a method of unique abstraction.
Haegue Yang has exhibited in major international exhibitions including the 53rd Venice Biennale (2009) as South Korean representative, dOCUMENTA (13) in Kassel, Germany (2012); Mediacity Seoul, Korea (2014); and Taipei Biennale, Taiwan (2014). Her recent solo exhibitions include Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China (2015); Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea (2015); Museum of Contemporary Art, Strasbourg (2013); Bergen Kunsthall, Bergen, Norway (2013), Haus der Kunst München, Munich, Germany (2012); and major institutions including the New Museum in New York, Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Kunsthaus Bregenz in Austria, Modern Art Oxford in UK, Aspen Art Museum in US, Arnolfini and Tate Modern Tanks in UK among others have hosted her solo shows.