Seoul
Titled ‘Bulky’, Haneyl Choi’s first institutional solo show this year – at the Arario Museum in Space, Seoul – took as its focus the culture of gay male bodybuilding, a subject which allowed Choi ample scope for the kind of conceptual mischief that has become his hallmark. His sculptures are often bawdy and irreverent, but just as often they sound a spiritual note – one sculpture in ‘Bulky’ refers to the story of Ichadon, a sixth-century Buddhist monk; Choi also draws influence from Western sculptors such as Franz West and Rachel Harrison. His works are composed from a wide range of modern materials from aluminium to silicon, as well as everyday objects (one work incorporates a Los Angeles Dodgers baseball cap). This year has seen his work exhibited in a host of group shows at major museums and galleries in Seoul, including Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Museumhead, Gallery Hyundai and Ilmin Museum of Art.
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