"Home is what we carry with us"- Do Ho Suh

I recently visited the MCA in Sydney to see the work of South Korean artist Do Ho Suh. Suh is renown for his made-to-scale sculptures and installations, which he says, "address the often-complex relationships between the body, memory and space”.

Rubbing/Loving Project: Seoul Home 

 Rubbing/Loving Project: Seoul Home

This is Do Ho Suh’s first solo exhibition in Australia and it’s a must-see. If like me, you appreciate intricacy and faithful representation in art, then you are going to stand aghast when you see his major installation; “Rubbing/Loving Project: Seoul Home”. From 2013 to 2022, Suh reconstructs his childhood home to scale with a series of large graphite paper rubbings. He has meticulously rendered the exterior of his entire traditional Korean hanok house.

 The installations that will really blow your mind are the analogous and obviously labour-intensive projects called “Floor” and “Who am we?”. “Floor” (1997-2000) features thousands and thousands of tiny, hand-sculpted figures, all with their arms in the air, collectively supporting the thick transparent glass plates, walked upon by mesmerised gallery visitors. 

 

"Floor"
"Floor"

 

“Who am we?” is a custom printed wallpaper that features thousands of miniscule portraits taken from Suh’s high school year books. Initially, you cannot see the cameo shapes are actually portraits and it's not until I used my Iphone to focus and zoom in on them that I could full appreciate these were the faces of the many students who attended the same high school as Suh.

"Who am we?"
"Who am we?"
Equally memorable are the two installations whose frameworks have been encased in bright, translucent, fine netting-like fabric. “Staircase III” and “Hub” are Suh’s interpretations of both his New York apartment, where he lived for 20 years, and how he sees transitional spaces, such as corridors, entryways and foyers. You are able to experience these full-scaled, transient structures by walking either around them, as in “Staircase III” or right through the middle as you can in “Hub”.
"Hub"
"Hub"
"Staircase III"

 "Staircase III"

Don’t miss “Metal Jacket” either. This took nine years to complete and comprises of hundreds of stainless steel military identification tags, all overlaid on each other like roof tiles. This was influenced by Suh’s experience after he was conscripted into the South Korean army and demonstrates the sheer volume of people who served their country with him.

"Metal Jacket"
"Metal Jacket"
"Metal Jacket" close up.

Close up of "Metal Jacket"

 

If you haven’t had a chance yet to see this exhibition yet, then know you only have about three weeks left as the exhibition, which opened on 4 November 2022, closes on 27 February 2023.

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