Dahoon Nam studied Art History at the University of Toronto. He currently lives and works in Seoul.
ATELIER
AKI is pleased to present Dahoon Nam's solo exhibition, 《National Junkyard of Modern
and Contemporary Art》, as its
first exhibition of 2025. Marking the artist’s 11th solo show, this exhibition expands on the concept of
"art through replication" while delving deeper into social
discourse.
The
exhibition title, 《National Junkyard of Modern and Contemporary Art》, parodies iconic symbols of contemporary art, dissolving the
boundaries between art and everyday life. By doing so, it invites viewers to
critically reexamine modern society from a fresh perspective. Through this
work, Dahoon Nam challenges conventional notions of art, expands social
discourse, and encourages audiences to reassess the pressing issues of
contemporary society.
The
exhibition reconstructs iconic contemporary artworks using materials salvaged
from junkyards. Alexander Calder’s mobiles, reimagined with car headlights; Ellsworth Kelly’s paintings, recreated with car doors; Alberto Giacometti’s sculptures, crafted from Kia Morning wheels; and Richard Serra’s sculptures, built from car mufflers and hoods, each work
dismantles the authority and originality of contemporary art, offering a bold
new visual interpretation.
By repurposing discarded remnants of mass production
and consumerism, the exhibition critically examines the material and economic
value of contemporary art, its environmental impact, and the fundamental
intrinsic value of art itself.
In
this exhibition, Nam explores the symbolism of modernity and industrialization
inherent in automobiles through his work.
As
both an icon of progress and innovation and a byproduct of mass production and
overconsumption, the car becomes a medium through which the artist
simultaneously reveals its positive and negative connotations.
By repurposing
mass-produced auto parts into art, Nam not only critiques the structural issues
of contemporary society but also employs humor and satire to offer audiences a
fresh and thought-provoking visual experience.
Expanding
on themes explored in his previous works, Nam uses replication and reproduction
to critically examine the relationship between contemporary art and capitalism.
As seen in MoMA from TEMU, where he deconstructed the authority of contemporary
art through low-cost mass-produced goods, Nam once again challenges artistic
conventions by reconstructing iconic artworks with discarded car parts,
dissolving the boundary between art and consumer products.
By highlighting mass
production and waste, the exhibition symbolically confronts issues of
overconsumption and environmental impact. Through his signature blend of humor
and satire, Nam delivers these themes in a way that is both accessible and
strikingly thought-provoking.
