[Gallery Walk] Annika Lee's 'Sensory Landscape' Evolved Through Technology and Biology

Leeum Museum of Art Hosts Solo Exhibition by Korean-American Artist Annika Lee
Interdisciplinary Works Using Bacteria, Flowers, and Scents
33 Works Including 11 New Pieces on Display Until December 29

Ants, soil microorganisms, fungi, and bacteria?living organisms that help move beyond anthropocentric thinking to provocative narratives through diverse life forms?have drawn the attention of the global art world with the Korean American artist Anicka Yi’s first museum exhibition in Asia now opening to the public.

Attendees of the press conference for Annika Lee's solo exhibition 'There Is Another Evolution, But This One' are touring the exhibition at the Leeum Museum of Art in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Seoul’s Leeum Museum of Art in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, is hosting Anicka Yi’s solo exhibition titled There Is Another Evolution, But This One until December 29.

Using organic and ephemeral materials such as fried flowers, bacteria, and odors to sensitively capture human emotions and senses, and addressing social issues like diaspora and feminism, the artist presents a diverse range of works. This exhibition unveils 33 pieces created over the past decade.

Having explored existential themes such as life and death, permanence and decay through works created with the assistance of living organisms, Anicka Yi recently continues to investigate non-human intelligence including machines, fungi, and seaweed, questioning anthropocentric perspectives.

The exhibition title There Is Another Evolution, But This One borrows the characteristic of a hwadu (a meditative phrase or koan) used in the Korean Buddhist practice of Ganhwaseon (看話禪), a form of Zen meditation aimed at awakening to truth through contemplation of a hwadu. This phrase, reflecting meditation and spiritual transformation, suggests that the artist’s work?collaborating with various non-human organisms, machines, and partners from the beginning?has been an inquiry into the “non-boundary between self and other.”

Reflecting this, the artist collaborates with a wide range of experts including scientists, architects, and perfumers, while revealing the depth and breadth of her work through extensive research spanning biology, philosophy of technology, and environmental justice.

Attendees of the press conference for Annika Lee's solo exhibition "There Is Another Evolution, But This One" at the Leeum Museum of Art in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, are examining "Seoldan," which uses fried flowers.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The artist states that by using living organisms in her work, she wanted to vividly demonstrate the evolutionary process of life and life cycles. She emphasizes that both humans and organisms are part of this cycle, highlighting that each life form operates on different temporal scales, and through her work, she informs the world that diverse forms of life around us are alive and breathing beyond anthropocentric thinking.

In particular, this exhibition is grounded in theories that prehistoric humans migrated from Asia to the Americas and that the movement of birds and fungi significantly influenced evolution. This holds special meaning for the artist, who immigrated to the United States at the age of two. Through dual explorations encompassing material, temporal, and emotional dimensions, she reflects her personal journey as a Korean diaspora and further emphasizes themes of migration and interconnectedness in her work.

The video work Coral Branches Draw Up Moonlight (2024) is a new piece representing a turning point in her practice and is the first work in her large-scale project Gong (空), which explores what happens after death.

Originating from the question “Can the work continue after the artist’s death?”, this piece uses an algorithm trained on existing works produced by Anicka Yi Studio, functioning as a “digital twin” of the studio. Simultaneously, it reflects the studio’s organic working method based on collaborative research and cooperation.

Artist Anika Lee is giving a greeting at the press conference for her solo exhibition "There Is Another Evolution, But This One" held on the afternoon of the 3rd at the Leeum Museum of Art in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Another new work exploring relationships between human and non-human life, Another You (2024), was created in collaboration with microbiology laboratories at Columbia University and Ewha Womans University. Within an infinity mirror installation that produces endless reflections, genetically modified microorganisms expressing marine-derived fluorescent proteins grow and emit faint colors. The process by which ordinary microorganisms inherit genetic material from marine life such as jellyfish and coral through synthetic biology reflects the artist’s interest in the connection points between the ancient ocean and the present.

The new series Biological Pollution Sculptures (2024), made from fried flowers, extends the fried flower works that first appeared in the 2000s. The greasy appearance and sour, decaying smell of the fried flowers present an image to the audience that contrasts with the beauty flowers typically symbolize.

The series Radiolarians (2023) references marine plankton radiolarians, the oldest organisms on Earth found in Cambrian fossils from the Paleozoic era. The radiolarian-like forms, pulsating lights that seem to breathe, and tentacles that repeatedly curl and unfold with rattling sounds project the artist’s concept of “biologizing machines,” imagining communication between organisms and machines.

Attendees of Annika Lee's solo exhibition "There Is Another Evolution, But This One" at the Leeum Museum of Art in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, are examining the "Symbiotic Bread."
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Symbiotic Bread (2014), which explores the complexity of gut microbiomes, visually embodies the relationship between microorganisms and humans, captivating viewers. Softly glowing soap sculptures project images of bacteria, invisible to the naked eye but essential to sustaining life, prompting reflection on the relationship between microbes and humans.

Leeum Museum of Art curator Lee Jin-ah, who planned the exhibition, said, “This exhibition comprehensively covers Anicka Yi’s major works over the past decade and unveils new works that show a significant shift in her practice. It offers an opportunity to review her artistic world so far and suggest directions for the future.”

This exhibition is co-organized with China’s UCCA Center for Contemporary Art and will also be held at UCCA in Beijing next March.