Hyojin Kim

Hyojin Kim raises a question regarding the meaning of one's staring and being stared at by others. She observes small bits of daily life and transforms them into special occasions; her gaze subjects as she herself is also subjected to the gaze from others, and this simultaneous phenomenon confuses her even more as she explores it further. At the moment both eyes meet, the artist feels unforeseen and ineffable pressure imposedon her. What truly defines her works is the very interest in this type of interaction through the gaze. Her works reflect where she stands in a crowd in the complicated mesh of human society and her journey in order to discover the answer to the question.

As for her, her being subjected to someone else's gaze leads to several changes in her inner-world. The centre of her inner-world, where she herself was initially positioned, has shifted to the foreign entity. That is, she has become aware of herself being subjected to another existence. Furthermore, she cannot accurately identify her characters as she is still on the journey of self-exploration through her inner-world. Her very existence depends on being studied and stared by someone else: the power of the 'someone'.

The artist adopts a sort of masochistic attitude toward the gaze. Doing so exposes the artist to the potential harm from the biased gaze from someone else besides herself, and she seems to enjoy the peril of being objectified. However, self-exposure to prejudice allows Kim to become more self-aware by learning someone else's stare. Nevertheless, her insatiable curiosity to define and refine her self-awareness does not wane and is channeled on her works unexpectedly. She, who sees no escape from the subjection of others, expresses her confusion and curiosity through arts.