Whang, In Kie
Digital Landscape

March 22 - April 5. 2002

Dual characteristics co-exist in In-Kie Whang"s works. A hard lined aspect is presented by the use of industrial materials. Stainless steel plate or plywood takes the place of canvas and industrial silicone, crystal cubes or lego blocks are used instead of paint. These materials are used in conjunction with another technical resource, the computer, to produce images. The other softer presentation comes from the use of traditional Asian references. The images are traced from brush strokes of traditional Asian paintings that go back to the Korean literati paintings (drawings). He even appropriates images from Korean master works to be reinterpreted, in the way described above, in his paintings.

Of course these contradictions are misleading. They only refer to visual appearances. Concept of duality does not fully describe Whang"s work. It is only a means to a different end. Naturally his Asian background must assimilate and reflect the current environment, hence the choice of the computer, which is a contemporary inevitability and industrial materials, which is another inevitability in modern day of Korea. But in the process of the work, the artificiality represented by appearance is denied and overcome by naturalness. The reference to nature and naturalness seem to be the ultimate value in his work. Whang insists that nature is the value man must pursue. It is the value over materiality. It is the value over the capitalistic world. It is the value for civilization. In the end, his work poses the serious and "natural" question, "What is civilization for?"