Have you ever heard about the Trojan horse
from China? I hadn't either until I saw Young-Min Kang's Trojan
chopstick horse at Studio 107. His latest creation is a child's
rocking horse covered with hundreds of Chinese chopsticks, the disposable
variety available in many Asian restaurants.
The horse is riding on a three-foot-high
railway bridge that suddenly starts to look very Oriental, as if it were
made of bamboo. The work is a modern metaphor on the 10-year siege of
Troy by the Greeks, who finally entered the city through a giant wooden
horse offered as a gift. Not that the Chinese are literally invading us,
but look at your cell phone, electronic gadgets and kitchen utensils,
and you will find the ubiquitous "Made in China" sticker. The
bridge is referring to the railway that Chinese immigrants helped build
in the 19th century and that made the settling of the West and commerce
between the coasts possible. The artist questions in a very sly way our
relationship to other nations and our dependence on consumerism and reflects
on the role immigrants play in the economic power of the United States.
Other notable pieces in the show were Jeongmee
Yoon's photographs of kids sitting amidst their prized pink possessions.
You probably saw one of the images in last month's event calendar. Candace
Briceno's hand-sewn paintings were equally detail obsessed, with
hundreds of white felt roses flowing over the canvas like a river in a
dream. |