Interview: Heeseop Yoon

Heeseop Yoon was born and raised in Seoul, Korea. She holds her BFA from Chung-ang University, Seoul, Korea and MFA from The City College of NY.  Her large scale line drawing installations deal with memory and perception within cluttered spaces.  Interested in our stockpiles of out-dated technology, hoarding, and collecting, Yoon draws the debris of modern life.  Her large-scale installations and collage prints bring out the contents of our basements and closets in larger-than life form. 

The winner of several awards and residencies, Yoon has exhibited with MASS MOCA, Triple Candie, NY; March Gallery, NY; The Bronx Museum, Bose Pacia, NY and Arario Gallery, Seoul, Korea.  She currently lives in Brooklyn, and works in Long Island City.

What is the name on your passport?
Heeseop Yoon

Where do you live and make work?
I live in Brooklyn and have a studio in Long Island City.

What medium/media do you work in?
Drawing, Installation.

What is the subject matter or your work?
Disorganized piles of stuff.

What's your favorite person, place, or thing right now?
Place:  Home, swimming pool.
Thing: My brand new juicer.
Person: None-stranger.

What do you listen to in the studio?
Right now I am listening to a Podcast called Ddanzis that is a podcast about political/social issues in Korea.

How do you explain your career choice at family gatherings?
I tell them I am a landscape painter.

Who are your favorite artists?
David Hockney, Jessica Stockholder, Tom Friedman, Peter Doig, Folkert de Jong and many more.

How do you see yourself in 40 years?
Working and showing.

If you were creating a film and/or book syllabus what would be on your list?
Drowning by numbers, The Draughtsman's Contract, Dangerous Liaisons, Zoolander, Treeless Mountain, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Paris, je t'aime.

What do you hope people will think about looking at your work?
Experience of Lines.

What was the last exhibition you saw that knocked your socks off?
Katharina Grosse: One Floor Up More Highly at MASS MOCA

How often do you show your work to friends?
A lot of my works are site-specific so I mostly show my work to friends whenever the piece is up in the space.