Artist Ahn Chang-hong Opens First US Solo Exhibition 《noon-mool》; Savina Museum of Contemporary Art Continues 30-Year Partnership

The eyes of a taxidermied animal face the viewer even after death. The way humans have looked at and handled other lives is reversed into being the one questioned the moment they face that gaze.

The eyes of a taxidermied animal face the viewer even after death. The way humans have looked at and handled other forms of life is reversed the moment one meets that gaze, turning the observer into the one being questioned.

The first solo museum exhibition in the United States by Korean contemporary artist Ahn Chang-hong, titled 《noon-mool》, is being held at the American University Katzen Arts Center in Washington, D.C. Spanning the 2nd and 3rd floors of the museum, the exhibition features the artist's recent paintings, sculptures, and multimedia works that deal with history, violence, memory, human anxiety, and the vulnerability of life.

The Savina Museum of Contemporary Art also participated as a partner institution. The museum has continued research into Ahn Chang-hong's exhibitions and works for about 30 years, and in 2021, it hosted the 《Ahn Chang-hong Special Invitational Exhibition》 at the Guayasamín Museum in Quito, Ecuador.

What stands out in the exhibition is the 〈Taxidermy〉 series, which represents Ahn Chang-hong's recent work. By adding brushstrokes onto large-scale photographs of taxidermied animals, he overlays the record of reality with the artist's interpretation onto a single screen. The appearance of animals that have lost their vitality looks like beautiful specimens while simultaneously evoking the death and human violence that existed in the process.

The artist does not limit his questions to animals alone. In the sight of animals being captured, classified, and exhibited by humans, he also observes a society where powerless beings are objectified. The works extend their gaze toward the socially vulnerable, animal welfare, and environmental issues, prompting a reflection on the attitude humans have taken toward nature and other forms of life.

Born in 1952, Ahn Chang-hong has steadily captured the state of Korean society and the individuals living within it in his work since the 1980s. He has expressed not only the wounds stemming from experiences in modern Korean history, such as the Japanese colonial period and industrialization, but also social inequality, violence, and the anxiety of human existence through various methods including painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, and installation.

The American University Katzen Arts Center, where the exhibition is held, is a university museum that has steadily presented works dealing with human rights, social justice, and political and social issues, as well as international contemporary art. A key point of this exhibition is how Ahn Chang-hong's work, which originates from the historical experiences of Korean society, will be read by American audiences as more universal issues of violence, life, and memory.

The exhibition runs until December 6.