Sangsun Bae(LEE & BAE)
Sangsun Bae’s inspiration comes from the umbilical cord, which is the primal, physical line that connects two humans, and uses it as a metaphor to address her thoughts on humans and human life through topics such as the lines of a human body, the physical distance from others, relationship between humans, and the relationship between history and individuals. She makes use of a wide range of media, including charcoal and velvet paintings, three-dimensional ceramics, and photos, to reveal the irony of organic lines that can’t be unentangled, thereby continuing her questions on humans and life.
Sangsun Bae was born in Hwasun, Jeollanam-do in 1971. She majored in Western painting at Sungkyunkwan University, and then studied at the Graduate School of Musashino Art University and Kyoto City University of Art in Japan, before continuing her studies at Royal College of Art in the U.K., where she majored in print. In 2005 and 2008, she was named one of the notable artists in “Prospect of Contemporary Art – Artists on a New Plane” at the Mori Art Museum in Japan, and attracted critical attention. Bae has held a number of solo exhibitions and participated in group exhibitions as well as art fairs. She has been presenting works in major cities around the world, including Seoul, London, Hong Kong, Miami, Basel and Paris, with positive reviews from art critics. The artist currently lives in Kyoto and works in Korea and Japan.
In the photography series Chandelier, countless and colorful thin threads that are intertwined emerge from darkness. Korean and Japanese silk threads are so tightly tangled that they can’t be unraveled easily. Sangsun Bae’s work, which has been devoted to the discourse on “relationship,” sheds light on the subject once again, on a historical background based on constant consideration and research. Photography and videos are added to existing paintings such as Gordias’ Knot, The Shape of Relations, and The Echo of Line, which express the identity of relationship, demonstrating the complex situation of Korea-Japan relations in modern history. Chandelier series shines dim light on the memories of colonial rule that have been suppressed and buried in the history of the country.
• Excerpt from a critique by Megumi Takashima