abstract image; black on white; portrait-like silhouette with head and shoulders but without facial features or clothing--organic twining plant-like forms with twisted thorny branches on face

%C2%A9 2014 Koo Kyung Sook

Markings 14-I, 2014

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Koo Kyung Sook’s monochromatic woodcut is a dense, gestural mélange of line and form that introduces a decided ambiguity to this unconventional self-portrait. Here, abstraction pushes representation to the edge of incomprehensibility. The features of Koo’s face and body are nearly obscured by a fluid thicket of layered marks of different size, shape, and value, leaving the viewer to decipher her transient physiognomy. This sense of a hidden identity is intentional, a reference to women’s “invisible” status in male-dominated societies, such as Koo’s native Korea.

Details
Title
Markings 14-I
Artist Life
born 1960
Role
Artist
Accession Number
2015.91.2
Provenance
The artist, Sacramento, Calif.; (Charles Young Fine Prints and Drawings, Portland, Conn., 2015); sold to MIA, 2015
Curator Approved

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abstract image; black on white; portrait-like silhouette with head and shoulders but without facial features or clothing--organic twining plant-like forms with twisted thorny branches on face

© 2014 Koo Kyung Sook

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