Installation view of 《Hyper Yellow》 ©Ilmin Museum of ArtIlmin Museum of Art presents a solo
exhibition 《Hyper Yellow》 by
Minouk Lim, on view through April 20. This exhibition marks the artist's first
solo show at a domestic museum in a decade.
For over 30 years, Minouk Lim has been
questioning the political and activist role of art, as well as its function in
social practice. Three years ago, she conducted research on the interplay
between cities and art through a research grant from the Obayashi Foundation.
Her solo exhibition, 《Hyper Yellow》, presents 28 new works—including installations, videos, sculptures,
paintings, and drawings—centered around the concept of "Hyper
Yellow," which emerged from this research.
"Hyper Yellow" is interpreted as
a state that exceeds "yellow." The term "yellow" here
carries both racial connotations and references the Yellow Sea, which connects
Korea, China, and Japan. The artist has meticulously explored the complex
cultural perceptions shaped through the Yellow Sea, tracing their historical
artifacts, records, rituals, and religious traces.
Installation view of 《Hyper Yellow》 ©Ilmin Museum of Art《Hyper Yellow》
blends this research with the speculative archaeology of science fiction (SF),
envisioning a future moment when the unknown arrives and collides with history.
On the first floor, a large-scale installation titled
Solaris, inspired by Stanislaw Lem’s 1961 novel, takes shape
as an imagined terrain. This speculative space of Solaris is mapped with the
architectural structure of Todai-ji, a Japanese temple, which the artist
encountered during her research.
On the second floor, the exhibition
presents the three-channel video work East Sea Story, which
encapsulates the "Hyper Yellow" concept by transcending specific
geographical and historical boundaries. The video captures scenes from a
regional festival in Japan, documenting a ritual that prompted the artist to
reflect on the modernity of ceremonial traditions.
Installation view of 《Hyper Yellow》 ©Ilmin Museum of ArtOn the third floor, the artist arranges a sculptural installation that reorganizes various artifacts and natural objects from her personal collection. By weaving together objects that bear the weight of time and history, the work not only materializes accumulated narratives but also questions what contemporary art can articulate in the face of postmodernism, globalization, and neoliberalism—forces that have shaped our era.
Ji Yeon Lee has been working as an editor for the media art and culture channel AliceOn since 2021 and worked as an exhibition coordinator at samuso (now Space for Contemporary Art) from 2021 to 2023.
