Yin Soon ock’s Ventriloquism, and another allegory

It has been around 10 years already since the image of cabbage has been set in her artworks. It was around 2004 when I first met one of her works. When I first encountered the image of giant cabbage in the scene of desolate urban, I was deeply impressed by its lucid and fresh feelings, which were unfamiliar and straightforward. At that time, a scene from TV news was overlapped in my mind in a weird way. Which captured, a scene of farmer`s face full of anger and sorrow while they plowed over their cabbage fields because of the drastic fall of the price of cabbages. The cabbage on the screen seemed to be standing heroically in the middle of the city, as if it`s standing for the reality of farms and going into a sit-in. I wonder whether I`m the only one who felt this mysterious and indefinable thrill and pleasure. 

This applications and waves of then might be resulted from the situation of the era. Sure enough, until now, the artists rarely have presented the direct criticisms toward society in their artworks. As her works have shown us, she has employed a `depaysement effect` that uses two or more codes in a contrast way when she is working on her painting. 

`기억된 공간`, `하늘 꽃`, and `샘` are good examples that adopted the depaysement. An allegoric narrative structure is underlying in her works, so that you can appreciate her works not in one fixed way but in multi-code way. Following Choi Jong-sang`s word saying `Something which is nothing`, as `A subject over the subject` the cabbages have been a leading star of the mise en scéne in her works. 

While it has been almost 10 years since she has been working on `cabbage`, she has tried a variety of approaches and changes on her works, resulting in appropriate accomplishment that best suits her nickname as a `cabbage artist`. The artist presented several series in a row on top of `샘` series..  In `The forest-conversation` series, cabbages are represented as a sheltering forest where human community can rest in.

 Like urban landscapes appeared in `The fountain` series, here they have lines that look like fingerprints.I feel like these lines are a variable of combination of people and forest(cabbage) or an episememe that acts like a balancer. When I was into `숲-대화` series, another series was ready to surprise me. It was `몸꽃` series. That is `The body flower` series.

Drawing the cabbages by seeing as flowers, it means the whole body as itself is a flower. I wanted to parody Kim Chun-soo`s `flower`(a poem) when I saw Yin soon-ock`s `The body flower`. "Before I called its name, it was merely one of edible vegetables(motion). Once I called its name, it came to be and became a flower..." From the moment she called a cabbage as "A flower", the cabbage turned into a dreamlike flower. Although we don`t have to go further into ontology or epistemology, it encourages us to change our habitual understanding that used to recognize something from afar off itself.

The artist`s works featuring cabbages, looking forward to her 5th private exhibition, can be considered as a series of `The ventriloquism`. Compared to previous series, the naturalness and coziness are expressed. Therefore it creates doubts whether it has returned to simple narrative expressions. For sure, it can be a returning back to her favorite expression, depaysement. It`s still an unfamiliar combination that cabbages appeared in the middle of `Bulguk temple` or in the gravelly field of Chung-joo lake. Although the intensity and impact have been weakened, depaysement protocol is still valid. Therefore, it is reasonable to accept her long-lasting style as it is. 

Meanwhile, a particular(or following an intended chance) situation is often found all of sudden. The artist, of course, expects to communicate in these kinds of details. Personification, for example, cabbages are talking or doing something like human beings. When you read some stories that paintings try to convey to you, you need to take an `interval`. When your `Find the Hidden Picture` has been completed, you can hear a sound of unexpected humors This is the ventriloquism that she is telling us. Exploring hidden narration, you will find that the group of cabbages means families, children playing balls, a dad holding his baby before 충주dam, students who`ve come to 경주 for a school trip, sports players cheering up one another... etc. A story structure hiding in the objects has settled in ventriloquism context not allowing a single sound to leak out.

Looking back the artworks of Yin Soon-ock, there are some points that she has been sticking to so far. Also there are some parts that have changed a lot. `Grave` series, `하늘 꽃’ and ‘remembered space` series had features of serious and grim auras. However, since introducing the image of cabbages, the screens became far fresher and brighter. Recently, it is not difficult to notice that her style is moving toward a humorous and witty context. Ventriloquism series is a good example.

It is not her first time to show her sense of humor in her work. She has done similar works in cubic clay and ceramic art. She put various facial expressions on a jinggered clay structure. Even sad and serious faces make people laugh. River stones painted with human faces, Face Series, also make people wear a smile although you cannot see it this time. According to their shapes, the stones have been painted with appropriate face. Through this, she well interprets and expresses an objet. It is clear that she realized how to comfort and embrace her audiences and how to have a more relaxing communication and communion with her fans as years of experience have passed. What a welcoming change it is!

Lee Jae Eon ( The art critic )