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    Swans, Plants, and Fragmented Figures Warmly Embrace in Yool Kim’s Paintings

    “Sitting on the Couch.” All images courtesy of Yool Kim, shared with permission

    Swans, Plants, and Fragmented Figures Warmly Embrace in Yool Kim’s Paintings

    November 28, 2024

    Art

    Grace Ebert

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    Warmth permeates Yool Kim’s most recent body of work, which portrays tangled masses of limbs and swans in rich palettes of reds, pinks, and oranges.

    Laying dense lines in acrylic paint, the Seoul-based artist examines the interactions between living things and their sometimes contradictory desires. Her new paintings entwine fragmented iterations of human figures with graceful black and white birds, monsteras, and ferns to explore peace and equality.

    “A Peaceful Afternoon”

    “I wanted to express the beauty of being able to care (for) the weak and taking care of each other, without a sense of superiority and inferiority in living things that are set by the world,” Kim tells Colossal. “By hugging, touching, or leaning on each other, I highlighted the meaning of connection and warmth.”

    As with earlier bodies of work, this series similarly explores the fractured nature of the self. Kim shares that she’s feeling calmer and more tranquil these days, which is reflected in the ways figures stretch to embrace one another.

    “I also wanted to express that I have many egos and personalities within me; I am a human being full of complexity who cannot grasp existence as a single disposition,” she adds. “I’m always considering myself.”

    Kim will show paintings in several exhibitions this spring, the first of which opens in March at Hall Spassov in Seattle. Find more of her work on Instagram.

    “An Autumn Night”

    “Cozy & Silent”

    “Dream”

    “Let Me Shine, Let You Shine”

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    Energetic Characters Collide in Roco’s Bold, Cartoonish Jumbles

    All images courtesy of Rodrigo Oñate Roco, shared with permission

    Energetic Characters Collide in Roco’s Bold, Cartoonish Jumbles

    October 22, 2024

    Art

    Grace Ebert

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    Rodrigo Oñate, a.k.a. Roco, marries the visual languages of graffiti, comics, and pop culture in his energetic paintings. Splitting his time between Chicago and Querétaro, Mexico, the artist works on walls and canvases, mish-mashing a flurry of characters along with simple patterns, squiggles, and the occasional surreal detail, like a gloved hand embedded with an eye.

    Roco describes his process as entirely intuitive and almost like graffiti writing. “I throw some lines and from there. I start staging characters and elements adding textures and intricate forms,” he says. “I like movement and fluid forms, (and I’m) also always looking for a good balance of color and texture in the composition.”

    Several cartoonish characters recur throughout the spirited works and often emerge from personal connections. Birds, for example, come from Roco’s mother telling him that the animals flocking to their family garden were ancestors visiting from another realm, while dogs mimic his three dogs.

    Other creatures have broader symbolism, like the jaguars and large cats recalling the spiritual guides of Mexican mythology. And the primates? They’re included because they bring a sense of play and joy, the two feelings the artist hopes to convey with each work.

    Prints and other goods are available in Roco’s shop, and you can find more on Instagram.

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    From Reviled to Revered, an Enormous Pigeon Perches Atop the High Line

    “Dinosaur.” All photos by Timothy Schneck, courtesy of the High Line, shared with permission

    From Reviled to Revered, an Enormous Pigeon Perches Atop the High Line

    October 21, 2024

    ArtNature

    Grace Ebert

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    The latest sculpture to grace New York City’s High Line is a monumental tribute to an unlikely creature.

    Perched above 10th Avenue, a hyper-realistic pigeon stops to rest in the outdoor pavilion. The work of artist Iván Argote (previously), the hand-painted, aluminum bird is titled “Dinosaur” and looms 21 feet in the air, rivaling the enormous proportions of some of its ancestors.

    Argote is known for questioning the role of monuments and statues, particularly as they relate to colonial histories and power imbalances. For this work, he upends the human-animal relationship and notions of migration and value as the common street bird is vaulted into a glorified figure, peering down on pedestrians and drivers. The artist says in a statement:

    The name “Dinosaur” makes reference to the sculpture’s scale and to the pigeon’s ancestors who millions of years ago dominated the globe, as we humans do today… the name also serves as a reference to the dinosaur’s extinction. Like them, one day we won’t be around anymore, but perhaps a remnant of humanity will live on—as pigeons do—in the dark corners and gaps of future worlds.

    Despite their ubiquity throughout North American cities, pigeons aren’t native to the continent. The birds were initially brought from Europe as a barnyard animal and food source, but as they escaped into the wild, they grew into the scavenging flocks they are today. No longer domesticated and not quite wild, pigeons occupy a unique position.

    Argote’s work is a cheeky nod to the birds and suggests they’re more deserving of appreciation than some of the figures we’ve collectively honored in the past. Standing tall and confident atop a concrete plinth, the sculpture also serves as a reminder that “everyone is an immigrant,” a statement says. “Even the pigeon, a New York fixture, initially migrated here and made the city their home, like millions of other ‘native’ New Yorkers.”

    “Dinosaur” will be on view through spring. Find more from Argote on Instagram.

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    Eight Pairs of Woven Shoes Fit for Cranes Roost in a Field of Pebbles

    All photos by Ahina, courtesy of the artist and Real DMZ Project, shared with permission

    Eight Pairs of Woven Shoes Fit for Cranes Roost in a Field of Pebbles

    October 17, 2024

    ArtCraftNature

    Grace Ebert

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    If a white crane were to choose a pair of boots, would he gravitate toward knee-high lace-ups or balance his talons in yellow tabi stilettos?

    Young In Hong fashioned a collection of shoes with these long-legged birds in mind. Titled “White Cranes and Snowfall,” the playful sculptures are made from woven sedges and nested in a shallow field of pebbles, intertwining references to avian life and endangered craft traditions.

    Based in Bristol, Hong visited Korea in the winter of 2023 and witnessed a flock of rare cranes migrating to the demilitarized zone dividing the peninsula. “The once blood-stained DMZ has now become an ecological paradise for the cranes,” she shares. “When nature is left alone it can replenish its lives, and when we as humans observe other species more carefully, we can learn something from them that alters our way of being in the world.”

    Researchers estimate that in the seven decades since the zone was established, about “1,200 plant species, 83 fish varieties, 51 different mammals, and numerous birds, insects, and microorganisms” have thrived in the area, many of which were previously endangered or threatened.

    Observing the birds inspired the latest series in Hong’s growing collection of avian footwear. Each references jipsin, flat sandals woven from straw and largely worn by farmers and the working class throughout Korea. Affordable and widely available, the shoes would wear down quickly—a long day’s walk could burn through a pair—and people across the socioeconomic order knew how to make them. Straw is biodegradable, too, making jipsin naturally sustainable.

    To learn the craft practiced for generations, Hong began working with Choong Kyung Lee, a straw-weaving master from Asan in 2021. Together, they created numerous projects, including shoes fit for a baby elephant, giraffe, kangaroo, heron, gorilla, and bear. “For me, the collaboration with Lee was a journey to open up my eyes towards natural fibre weaving, a part of the history of Korea that has not been thoroughly written about,” Hong shared.

    For “White Cranes and Snowfall,” the artist pulled out specific personalities to inspire each design rather than thinking of the birds as anonymous entities. Displayed together, the sculptures become a stand-in for community and gathering—and perhaps a cheeky and yet urgent plea to imagine oneself in another’s shoes, even if those shoes belong to another species. The artist adds:

    For me, fictionalising the collective white cranes, and visualising them through humorously designed shoes, is to remind us of the fact that birds are like us, expressing tastes and preferences, also by having individually different characters and personalities.

    “White Cranes and Snowfall” is on view through November 7 at Secession in Vienna. Two of Hong’s textile works are also on view this month as part of the 7th Changwon Sculpture Biennale, and she’s currently preparing for two solo shows, one opening at Art Sonje Center in May and another at PKM Gallery in September. Peruse an archive of her works on her website and Instagram.

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    Nature and Geometry Merge in Yulia Brodskaya’s Meticulously Quilled Paper Birds

    “Nature of Things.” All images courtesy of Yulia Brodskaya, shared with permission

    Nature and Geometry Merge in Yulia Brodskaya’s Meticulously Quilled Paper Birds

    October 10, 2024

    ArtCraftNature

    Kate Mothes

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    From individual strips of colorful, methodically folded paper, Yulia Brodskaya’s vibrant compositions take wing. In a new series of quilled artworks, the artist (previously) taps into her love of drawing to emphasize the power of a line.

    “In my paper art practice, a drawn two-dimensional line is represented by a three-dimensional strip of paper glued on its edge,” Brodskaya says. For her mini-series of birds, the dimensionality of each line symbolizes ethereality and energy made visible.

    “Eagle of Light”

    In “Nature of Things,” for example, a kingfisher sits on the edge of a leaf, which appears to overflow with a geometric grid evocative of quantum illustrations of black holes.

    Foliage initially inspired the composition. “I was just sitting, observing its shape, following the curving lines with my eyes, and it didn’t take long to receive a vision of a superimposed toroidal shape…” she says, “like an organising principle that has always been there.”

    Find more of Brodskaya’s work on her website, and peek into her practice on Instagram.

    Detail of “Eagle of Light”

    “Things of Nature”

    Detail of “Nature of Things”

    “Take Off”

    Detail of “Take Off”

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    Tran Nguyen’s Ethereal Portraits Portray Melancholy Moments

    All images © Tran Nguyen, shared with permission

    Tran Nguyen’s Ethereal Portraits Portray Melancholy Moments

    September 12, 2024

    Art Illustration

    Jackie Andres

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    In Tran Nguyen’s portraits, spirited subjects coexist with ethereal environments. “I’ve always enjoyed themes revolving around melancholy, the female figure, and species found in nature,” she says.

    Whimsically walking alongside praying mantises, embracing a tiger in a suit, or encircled by swans, each character is presented with delicate detail, down to their flowing tendrils of hair and gossamer garments. This daintiness lends itself to the compelling air of fantasy that characterizes Nguyen’s style.

    After working on large-scale murals for some time, the Georgia-based artist mainly uses acrylic paint and colored pencils. On heavyweight watercolor paper, light washes of acrylic block in initial fields of color and precede layers of paint to create value. Colored pencils execute final details, like refining darker values.

    Though she loves working with traditional materials, Nguyen is also creating a new apparel line. Check out her website and Instagram for updates.

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