Meekyoung Shin | |
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![]() Meekyoung Shin and some of her sculptures. | |
Born | 1967 (age 56–57) Cheongju, South Korea |
Nationality | South Korean |
Education | Seoul National University, Slade School of Fine Art, Royal College of Art |
Alma mater | Seoul National University |
Known for | Soap carved sculptures in Greco-Roman, Chinese, and Korean styles |
Notable work | Written in Soap: A Plinth Project, Translation Series, Toilet Project (Toilet Bodhisattva), Crouching Aphrodite |
Style | Sculpture, soap carving |
Website | https://www.meekyoungshin.com/ |
Meekyoung Shin ( Korean: 신미경; b. 1967) is a South Korean sculptor who specializes in soap carving to create statues and other objects in Greco-Roman, Korean, and Chinese styles.
Born in Cheongju, South Korea in 1967, [1] Shin completed her BFA and MFA at Seoul National University, then moved to London to do her MFA at the Slade School of Fine Art in 1995. [2] [3] She completed her MFA in the ceramics and glass program at the Royal College of Art. [4] [5]
The size of her work ranges from handheld size to towering sculptures, [6] with one of her sculptures utilizing 50,000 bars of soap. [7] Her methods include using plaster to cast elements, and then sculpting with replications of Greco-Roman sculpture styles, [8] Chinese ceramic styles, [9] or Korean ceramic styles. [6] The use of scented soap is significant in her work as an added sensory experience in her exhibitions. In her exhibitions for Toilet Bodhisattva, [10] she cast small versions of a Buddha statue so that the viewer may experience the same material used in the exhibition. [9] For other Toilet Project works, she created statues of classical busts. [11] Shin has cast parts of herself to make sculptures, [12] such as in her work Crouching Aphrodite. [13]
The material she uses is meant to call into question the nature of stability and the meaning in cultural contexts. [6] [14] The use of soap is meant to explore translation across cultures [15] and the passage of time. [16] She changed the features to evoke Asian features on her 2002 statue Crouching Aphrodite to challenge classical standards of beauty. [17] [11] Her work is also sometimes painted, or formed with pieces missing to better evoke the cultures that the inspiration derives from. [18] She additionally uses materials such as fragrance, pigments, varnish, gold leaf, resin, and acrlyic in her work. [11] [19]
A statue of Prince William, Duke of Cumberland was removed in 1868, then replicated by Shin in soap (initially in clay); [20] the replication was installed on the same plinth in 2012 at Cavendish Square, and left exposed to the elements for over a year in the London rain until its removal in 2016. [21] [22] The statue, called Written in Soap: A Plinth Project, [23] was meant to be there for a year, and the dissolution of the material is meant to refer to changing meaning of statues and changing perceptions of history. [24] [25] [26] The soap was scented, [26] vegetable-based, and had a skeletal support attached to the base holding the sculpture upright. [27] This work has been cited in investigations into colonial legacy in public spaces. [28]
Her work has been exhibited at Princessehof Ceramics Museum, [29] the National Centre for Craft & Design, [30] Kukje Gallery, [1] [31] Art Basel, [32] the Arko Art Center in Seoul, [33] the Barakat Gallery, [34] the Philadelphia Museum of Art, [7] CR Collective in west Seoul, [35] the Saatchi Gallery, [36] the Wooyang Museum of Contemporary Art, [37] the Mongin Art Center, [38] and Haunch of Venison. [39] [40] Other versions of Written in Soap: A Plinth Project were also installed at the National Museum of Contemporary Art and at the Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei. [14] [41]
Meekyoung Shin | |
---|---|
![]() Meekyoung Shin and some of her sculptures. | |
Born | 1967 (age 56–57) Cheongju, South Korea |
Nationality | South Korean |
Education | Seoul National University, Slade School of Fine Art, Royal College of Art |
Alma mater | Seoul National University |
Known for | Soap carved sculptures in Greco-Roman, Chinese, and Korean styles |
Notable work | Written in Soap: A Plinth Project, Translation Series, Toilet Project (Toilet Bodhisattva), Crouching Aphrodite |
Style | Sculpture, soap carving |
Website | https://www.meekyoungshin.com/ |
Meekyoung Shin ( Korean: 신미경; b. 1967) is a South Korean sculptor who specializes in soap carving to create statues and other objects in Greco-Roman, Korean, and Chinese styles.
Born in Cheongju, South Korea in 1967, [1] Shin completed her BFA and MFA at Seoul National University, then moved to London to do her MFA at the Slade School of Fine Art in 1995. [2] [3] She completed her MFA in the ceramics and glass program at the Royal College of Art. [4] [5]
The size of her work ranges from handheld size to towering sculptures, [6] with one of her sculptures utilizing 50,000 bars of soap. [7] Her methods include using plaster to cast elements, and then sculpting with replications of Greco-Roman sculpture styles, [8] Chinese ceramic styles, [9] or Korean ceramic styles. [6] The use of scented soap is significant in her work as an added sensory experience in her exhibitions. In her exhibitions for Toilet Bodhisattva, [10] she cast small versions of a Buddha statue so that the viewer may experience the same material used in the exhibition. [9] For other Toilet Project works, she created statues of classical busts. [11] Shin has cast parts of herself to make sculptures, [12] such as in her work Crouching Aphrodite. [13]
The material she uses is meant to call into question the nature of stability and the meaning in cultural contexts. [6] [14] The use of soap is meant to explore translation across cultures [15] and the passage of time. [16] She changed the features to evoke Asian features on her 2002 statue Crouching Aphrodite to challenge classical standards of beauty. [17] [11] Her work is also sometimes painted, or formed with pieces missing to better evoke the cultures that the inspiration derives from. [18] She additionally uses materials such as fragrance, pigments, varnish, gold leaf, resin, and acrlyic in her work. [11] [19]
A statue of Prince William, Duke of Cumberland was removed in 1868, then replicated by Shin in soap (initially in clay); [20] the replication was installed on the same plinth in 2012 at Cavendish Square, and left exposed to the elements for over a year in the London rain until its removal in 2016. [21] [22] The statue, called Written in Soap: A Plinth Project, [23] was meant to be there for a year, and the dissolution of the material is meant to refer to changing meaning of statues and changing perceptions of history. [24] [25] [26] The soap was scented, [26] vegetable-based, and had a skeletal support attached to the base holding the sculpture upright. [27] This work has been cited in investigations into colonial legacy in public spaces. [28]
Her work has been exhibited at Princessehof Ceramics Museum, [29] the National Centre for Craft & Design, [30] Kukje Gallery, [1] [31] Art Basel, [32] the Arko Art Center in Seoul, [33] the Barakat Gallery, [34] the Philadelphia Museum of Art, [7] CR Collective in west Seoul, [35] the Saatchi Gallery, [36] the Wooyang Museum of Contemporary Art, [37] the Mongin Art Center, [38] and Haunch of Venison. [39] [40] Other versions of Written in Soap: A Plinth Project were also installed at the National Museum of Contemporary Art and at the Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei. [14] [41]