The Bass presents an exhibition of new and existing works from the past decade by South Korean artist Haegue Yang, including major sculptural works and large-scale installations made of venetian blinds, which are regarded as one of her signature materials. Yang’s work reflects a relentless curiosity about the world, yet simultaneously evokes feelings of displacement and “otherness.” The performativity and immersive nature of her works generate profound feelings of foreignness and alienation on both social and existential levels. Such tensions reflect our current realities and provoke questions about nation-state, diaspora and metaphorical homelessness. The Bass is a particularly resonant site to present Yang’s work, considering that over fifty percent of the population in Miami-Dade County is born outside of the United States.
The exhibition titled, In the Cone of Uncertainty, encompasses both the first and second floor galleries of the museum, and exemplifies Yang’s formally and conceptually ambitious and varied body of work. Two of the artist’s early iconic venetian blind installations from 2008 – a year of considerable productivity – will be juxtaposed in one room to create new narratives. In an adjacent gallery, Yang presents works from another series, Sonic Sculptures, which pair notions of movement and sound, history and figure. The works offer a substantial view of Yang’s rich artistic language, including her use of sensorial experiences as a means of evoking history and memory. Additionally, Yang will execute a site-specific wallpaper merging the exhibition spaces across The Bass’ two floors. The work is formed through a research-based process that examines how Miami Beach’s climatically-precarious setting provides unusual access to possible negotiations of identity and community.
Haegue Yang (b. 1971, Seoul, Korea) lives and works between Berlin, Germany and Seoul, Korea. In 2018 she was awarded the prestigious Wolfgang Hahn Prize, accompanied by a comprehensive survey exhibition at the Museum Ludwig, Cologne, Germany that received significant worldwide attention. Yang’s work is exhibited internationally, including recent solo exhibitions at: La Panacée, Montpellier, France (2018); La Triennale di Milano, Italy (2018); Kunsthaus Graz, Austria (2017-2018); KINDL – Centre for Contemporary Art, Berlin, Germany (2017); Centre Pompidou, Paris, France (2016); Hamburger Kunsthalle, Germany (2016); Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, Korea (2015), Aubette 1928 and Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Strasbourg, France (2013); The Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, U.S. (2013); Haus der Kunst, Munich, Germany (2012); Aspen Art Museum, U.S. (2011); New Museum, New York, U.S. (2010); and Korean Pavilion, 53rd Venice Biennale, Italy (2009). Her works are in the collections of major international institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Guggenheim Museum, New York; Walker Art Center, Minneapolis; Centre Pompidou; Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art; and Hamburger Kunsthalle; among others. Yang’s upcoming projects include a solo show at the South London Gallery, London, U.K. opening in March 2019.