Posthuman Ensemble

Kyoungha LEE

1976/ Republic of Korea

〈Vacant Lot 1〉, 2020.

Oil on Canvas, 97 × 97 cm

〈Vacant Lot 2〉, 2020.

Oil on Canvas, 97 × 97 cm

〈Vacant Lot 3〉, 2020.

Oil & Charcoal on Canvas, 72.5 × 72.5 cm

〈Vacant Lot 4〉, 2020.

Oil on Canvas, 72.5 × 72.5 cm

Kyoungha Lee observed a nearby empty lot’s construction and followed how it changed—as if it were growing—over time using a microscopic approach that shifted the focus from humans to the other things happening in the space. Through this process, Lee discovered that the debris left behind by the torn-down building, such as pieces of bricks and Styrofoam, form a part of the cycle where human-made materials are broken down into dust and, eventually, earth. Coupled with observing the plants growing in the lot, Lee realized that the artificial and natural do not exist in a state of binary division but in parallel. The artist uses the empty lot and relationships between numerous
nonhumans in the space to demonstrate that human lives are an ephemeral yet fixed part of nature’s endless cycle of creation and destruction.