Korean Feminist Artists: Confront and Deconstruct - Hardcover

by Kim Hong-Hee (Author), Kim Hyesoon (Author)

As featured in Artsy, Hyperallergic, and Artnet

Explore the vibrant history and profound cultural resonance of feminist art from Korea and the diaspora

Renowned curator and scholar Dr. Kim Hong-hee's book is the first to delve into Korean feminist artists' impact on the East Asian cultural landscape.

This unprecedented visual survey celebrates the work of 42 contemporary artists, from rising stars to globally recognized names, including Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Kyungah Ham, Kimsooja, Lee Bul, Mire Lee, Minouk Lim, Haegue Yang, and Yun Suknam. Organized by themes including queer politics, ecofeminism, the diaspora, and abstraction, Korean Feminist Artists features artworks across painting, sculpture, photography, film, video, installation, handicrafts, and performance. Through rich imagery and insightful writing, the book explores the quest of these pioneering artists for social, cultural, and sexual equality, from their confrontations with the mainstream art establishment to the significance of their aesthetic and political interventions.

Richly illustrated with nearly 260 beautifully reproduced images and closing with a personal and thought-provoking essay from influential South Korean poet Kim Hyesoon, this vital and timely survey reveals the impact of women artists on Korean culture at large.

Author Biography

Dr. Kim Hong-hee is an art historian, curator, and critic based in Seoul, who specializes in video art and feminist art. She is chairperson of the board of the Nam June Paik Cultural Foundation and served as Director of the Seoul Museum of Art (2012-16) and the Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art (2006-10). She was a member of the Finding Committee of Documenta 14 (2017), Artistic Director of the 6th Gwangju Biennale (2006), and Commissioner of the South Korean Pavilion at the 50th Venice Biennale (2003).

Kim Hyesoon is one of the most influential contemporary poets of South Korea. She is the first female poet to receive the prestigious Midang and Kim Su-yong awards, and her work has been translated into many languages, including Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, and Swedish. Kim lives in Seoul and teaches creative writing at the Seoul Institute of the Arts. Kim has won several international literature prizes, including the National Book Critics Circle Award (2024).