![]() ![]() They filled the room with artificial plants attached to personal massage devices and had them permanently moving all over the space. It struck me in a way I didn’t expect it to actually. Rachel Youn recently had an installation called “Gather” up at the Contemporary Art Museum in St. What artwork have you seen recently that has resonated with you? I want to expose the fact that all of these constructs trying to negotiate or influence our identities don’t need to actually have the gravity our society gives them - which kitsch is the perfect vehicle to do so. The subject matter of my work can feel really heavy at times, and it’s stuff I deal with on a daily basis. Because of that, my work kind of becomes humorous or exaggerated in a way that I use to my benefit. Most of the items I’m drawn to are ironic in their sincerity, cartoonish, or just kind of ugly by design standards. ![]() I try to ask questions about privilege, masculinity, and sexuality (queerness) in my work and the objects must be able to fit into that equation somehow. I care a lot about these objects and images and attempt to give them reverence, but I also want to question their legitimacy when intersected with other forces. A lot of my work deals with tropes and archetypes, and so I think the objects I utilize represent that in some shape or form. There are lots of (cowboy) Western undertones to my work, some sports imagery, a bit of tacky home decor, and trope-y romance. Mostly, I am drawn to objects that remind me of the environment I was raised in - things that seem like they represent some cultural or social expectation. It’s kind of sentimental and tender too, but often a bit odd. Yeah, I think kitsch has this ability to bring some form of humor or lightness to anything. What draws you to the objects that you use in your work and where do you find inspiration to use them in the way that you do? Your art brings that emotional gratification with your usage of kitsch. I love being able to find a specific observation and point to it in order to draw attention to it and kind of say like “are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Maybe that’s naive, but if I was able to answer it I think art would lose its charm. We have a great opportunity to exist in space and observe our surroundings which can often be really confounding and overwhelming. My job as an artist is to ask questions - those questions could be political, personal, sociological, etc - but I don’t think the role of the artist is to have answers for these things. So, if they feel a sense of ambiguity or a moment of confusion I really welcome that. I also appreciate that there may be a degree of separation between the audience and the work I don’t want every ingredient to reveal itself. As I grow as an individual my own interpretation of these things change too, so I hope I can project that sense of adjustment and permeability to new ideas. The combination of imagery and materials in my work are meant to contradict, exaggerate, and detach any previous associations you might with them. I want people to understand that the symbols and ideas perpetuated by our cultural environment aren’t fixed. What is the biggest thing that you want people to take away from viewing your art? ![]()
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