First-generation Korean woman sculptor Kim Yun Shin and the Danish artist collective SUPERFLEX are participating in the 60th International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Having traversed disparate regions and cultures throughout their careers, both artists present works at the Giardini that reflect the complexity of global migration and hybrid cultural vocabularies that define our age, in accordance with this year’s theme-Stranieri Ovunque - Foreigners Everywhere.
Kim Yun Shin presents four wood and four stone sculptures—all of which come from her Add Two Add One, Divide One Divide Two series. The wood sculptures employ species such as Korean red pine and walnut trees, while her stone sculptures have been carved from semi-precious stones including onyx and jasper. The artist’s time-honored journey as a “stranger” exploring unfamiliar landscapes and places is evident in her particular formal vocabularies that remain embedded in her work.
Meanwhile, SUPERFLEX presents an updated rendition of their work, Foreigners, Please Don’t Leave Us Alone With The Danes! (2002). The exhibited work centers around posters that read “FOREIGNERS, PLEASE DON’T LEAVE US ALONE WITH THE DANES!,” raising awareness of the refugee crisis and further criticizing the reactionary immigration politics in Denmark. The artist collective chose to print the text using black on a blaring orange background, creating an eye-catching design reminiscent of a public billboard, framing universal concerns surrounding foreigners, immigrants, refugees, and diasporic communities.