Nayoung Kang (b. 1989) focuses on “care labor” and the relationships formed within it, delicately capturing the physical and emotional tensions embedded in the structures of life through works in various synesthetic media. Drawing from autobiographical experiences in her daily life, she constructs the narratives of her work based on psychological states, specific situations, and critical awareness. Through diverse media, she continues to recreate the places and moments in which these emotions and sentiments are projected.

Until 2019, during her time working abroad, Nayoung Kang explored psychological states such as instability and loneliness experienced as a foreigner, expressing them through various media. In particular, she has examined situations where internal and external perspectives collide—that is, when the personal meaning of one’s life confronts the objective view imposed from outside—focusing on the sense of meaninglessness an individual is left to endure in such moments.

Since taking on the role of caring for a family member, Kang’s work has begun to center on acts and attitudes of protection and care. She has explored the physical points of friction experienced by bodies that suffer from chronic illness or have lost their original functions as they attempt to adapt to everyday environments.
 
Her practice has continued as an experiment in sensorially reproducing the physical and emotional strength required to care for someone, along with the accompanying weight of responsibility and unspoken longing.

Since then, Nayoung Kang has focused on the complex psychological states that arise when the body does not function properly. Through her ‘For the Fist Bump’ (2021–2022) series, she sought to explore what is often considered fundamental or taken for granted.
 
In this work, the artist focused on the “right hand,” examining the fundamental ways in which body parts function and the various conditions that surround them. In this sense, the series investigates the different functions and meanings that emerge within the range of a single body part’s operation.

This work began with the dynamics among family members—their support, encouragement, wishes, and unity. The fist-shaped objects were modeled after the hands of her family members and include the fists of an adult man, an adult woman, and a younger woman. The three large sculptural masses supporting these fists incorporate fragments of body parts that metaphorically reference specific actions and situations—such as a foot and a hand bracing against the ground when catching someone from falling, or hands gripping fruits.

Alongside these works imbued with personal wishes and hopes, Nayoung Kang has explored issues of accessibility, protection, and care by engaging with the moments in which fragile, functionally impaired bodies come into conflict with their living environments.
 
For instance, her work To Barely Fit (2023), presented in the 《DOOSAN Art Lab Exhibition 2023》, was created in response to the physical barriers that specific bodies encounter within social environments. Kang drew attention to the fact that a revolving door—commonly considered convenient because it remains constantly open—can, in fact, be firmly closed off to those who lack agility, such as the elderly or individuals in wheelchairs.

Based on this, To Barely Fit (2023) was created with references to revolving doors and prosthetic limbs. Kang constructed the work using materials such as silicone and sponge—commonly used in prosthetics and rehabilitation devices to protect the body or prevent injury—to reimagine the conventional revolving door, which often hinders accessibility. Each door was designed to allow passage for a variety of bodies.
 
Like an actual revolving door, the four panels rotate slowly. In this work, Kang embeds gestures of gentle touch and supportive care, speaking to the thresholds that surround us—and to the many who are unable to cross them.

In her solo exhibition 《Heavy-Duty》, held the following year at CR Collective, Nayoung Kang sought to explore the dynamics of care and emotional strength within a household by projecting these themes onto the space of the “home.” To do so, she transformed the exhibition space into one that revealed the relationship between caregiver and recipient, guided by the spatial experiences of daily life, remembered routines, and assistive devices.
 
Whereas Kang’s earlier works focused on researching alternative public facilities for atypical bodies to adapt to environments deemed “universal,” and included sculptural and video works infused with her family’s collective desire for normalization, this exhibition approached bodily disability and limitation through the metaphor of the home as an object.

The video series ‘Local Rule’ (2024), composed of five individual works, captures “the domestic environment where training takes place in preparation for stepping outside the door, along with the movements, language, and gazes of those who assist. However, this “training” refers simply to the routines of an ordinary day.” (from the artist note)
 
In one scene, three caregivers—each supporting a different part of the body—practice walking with the care recipient while watching their reflection in the living room window, working together to maintain physical balance and prevent a fall. Their roles are not fixed but shift depending on the relational context. In front of the dining table, they sing vocal exercises to support both eating and speech correction, while in the bathroom, moments of tension emerge as they coordinate movements to prevent the care recipient’s body from touching the bathtub, toilet, or door.

As thresholds between the inside and outside of the home, spaces such as the entrance or doorstep serve as places of preparation and organization in anticipation of unknown and uncertain situations. By focusing on the door’s threshold as a barrier to entry, the artist reflects on the notion of liberation from the home.
 
In relation to her exhibition 《Heavy-Duty》, Nayoung Kang describes it as “a story about people who train to handle fragile strength.” Since there is no cost-efficient machine that can replace humans, Kang emphasizes that the issue of care involves delicate and sensitive labor—demanding a shift in our perception, gaze, and attitude in order to truly sense and respond to fragility.

The recurring image of butterflies throughout the exhibition serves as a metaphor for those who “train to handle fragile strength.” Just as only a human with skin can delicately hold a butterfly’s wing, this imagery suggests that humans, too, navigate the physical and emotional balances of life within relationships of care—much like a butterfly maintaining equilibrium with its two wings in flight.

In her recent work, Nayoung Kang extends her focus from the process of preparing to leave the house to the journey of actually crossing the threshold and going out into the world. In her solo exhibition 《A Sunday Outing》 at the Kumho Museum of Art in 2025, the artist recreated within the exhibition space the process of a family—composed of a caregiver and a care recipient—going out in an effort to experience the same ordinary daily life as others.

The exhibition traces the process of going out with a family member who has a disability, unfolding the journey’s embedded experiences of time, speed, distance, accessibility, and emotion through narrative-driven video and installation works. At the center of the journey is a car—reflecting the artist’s autobiographical experience of relying solely on a vehicle when going out with a family member with limited mobility.
 
The video presents the family getting into the car, traveling toward their destination, and getting out again, all shown in real time without any editing. As viewers watch, they are invited to experience the full duration of the family’s movement alongside them.

Nayoung Kang not only conveys this process visually but also encourages the audience to actively move their bodies and engage multiple senses, inviting them to participate in the family’s journey. The work spatializes the tensions and emotions arising from the many unavoidable obstacles encountered along the way—such as uneven, bumpy roads and gravel-covered parking lots—allowing viewers to indirectly experience another’s world through their own bodies.

The work Nayoung Kang exhibited in the 《Young Korean Artists 2025: Here and Now》 exhibition at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) also addresses the journey of mobility accompanied by care. Her new work E14 (2025) tells the story of what happens when a family sets out to go to the movies. Whereas earlier pieces likened physical disabilities and limitations to the archi-tecture of a house, these works reconstruct a space where acts of caregiving and complex emotions become entangled during the journey to the theater.

Kang’s works carry a fervent wish for vulnerable family members to return to what is considered normal or everyday life, while also seeking to draw attention to the social dimensions of care. Kang reflects on how the responsibilities, burdens, and hopes imposed by caring for a vulnerable body arise within certain socio-structural conditions.
 
Through ongoing experiments expressed in contemporary visual language, she calls for a rethinking of the gaze and attitude toward various minorities who are often perceived as imperfect within the framework of normalcy.

 “I focus on the emotions and psychological states triggered by bodies that do not function properly. For example, feelings of helplessness and frustration, as well as the hope for a miracle despite it all—I find the starting point of my work not in the body itself, but in the surrounding relationships and sense of connection.”    (Nayoung Kang, interview excerpt from 《The Raw》 exhibition catalogue, Incheon Art Platform) 

Nayoung Kang graduated from University of Leeds with a bachelor’s degree in Fine Art and received her Master’s degree from Royal College of Art of Sculpture. Her solo exhibitions include 《A Sunday Outing》 (Kumho Museum of Art, Seoul, 2025), 《Heavy-Duty》 (CR Collective, Seoul, 2024), 《The Missing Fish》 (osisun, Seoul, 2023), among others.
 
She has also participated in numerous group exhibitions, including 《Young Korean Artists 2025: Here and Now》 (MMCA, Gwacheon, 2025), 《DOOSAN Art Lab Exhibition 2023》 (DOOSAN Gallery, Seoul, 2023), 《re;side》 (Suwon Art Space Gwanggyo, Suwon, 2022), 《The Raw》 (Incheon Art Platform, Incheon, 2022), 《Fingers Crossed》 (out_sight, Seoul, 2021), 《Non-self Standings》 (Amado Art Space, Seoul, 2020), 《Parlour Geometrique》 (Chiswick House, London, 2018), and 《Hypnogogic Holiday》(Safehouse Gallery 2, London, 2018).
 
Kang has participated in residency programs, including MMCA Residency Goyang (Goyang, 2025), Suwon Cultural Foundation’s Pureunjidae Changgiak Saemteo (Suwon, 2022), and the Mas Els Igols Artist Residency Program (Barcelona, 2018).

References

• 강나영, Nayoung Kang (Artist Website)
• 국립현대미술관, 작가인터뷰 | 강나영 | 젊은 모색 2025: 지금, 여기 (National Musuem of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA), ARTIST INTERVIEW | Kang Nayoung | Young Korean Artists 2025: Here and Now)
• 국립현대미술관 레지던시, [2025 고양레지던시 21기 입주작가 소개] 강나영 (National Musuem of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA), [2025 MMCA Residency Goyang Artist-in-Residence] Nayoung Kang)
• 인천아트플랫폼, [도록] 날 것 (Incheon Art Platform, [Catalogue] The Raw)
• 두산아트센터, [서문] 두산아트랩 전시 2023 (DOOSAN Art Center, [Preface] DOOSAN Art Lab Exhibition 2023)
• 국립현대미술관, [리플렛] 젊은 모색 2025: 지금, 여기 (National Musuem of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA), [Refleat] Young Korean Artists 2025: Here and Now)
• 씨알콜렉티브, [서문] 헤비-듀티 Haevy-Duty (CR Collective, [Preface] Haevy-Duty)
• 퍼블릭아트, [리뷰] 강나영_헤비-듀티 (Public Art, [Review] Nayoung Kang_Heavy-Duty)
• 금호미술관, [전시 소개] 외출하는 날 (Kumho Museum of Art, [Exhibition Overveiw] A Sunday Outing)
• 서울자치신문, 금호미술관 2025 금호영아티스트 (2부) 강나영 유상우 주형준 작가 개인전, 2025.06.02