Sun H. Choi – Nostalgic Memory II

A little headache, a sore throat, a serious burn out: Chose a pill out of the wide range of candy-colored remedies and hope to get well soon. Damien Hirst was inspired by the multiple colors and forms of pills, and of course of their "magic" potential enclosed in tiny capsules. He arranged hundreds of different pills in a display case with stiff orthogonal grid structure. Like recommended, the pills are stored away from heat and humidity beyond a glass pane. This pane also prevents the sensual contact with the viewer, he can see the objects, but he can't smell or taste them. But what would he be able to smell? The disgusting odour of petrochemicals.

Nowadays the western medical practice focussed on a symptom combating approach to various diseases is about to conquer the whole world. Slowly the traditional methods of healing disappear, their imprint remains in the memory of people succumbing the change to what could be called western lifestyle. Especially the olfactory memory responds quickly and directly to a special smell which evokes the correlating memories, mostly childhood memories, at once. (German artist Thomas Rentmeister used this effect too, when he worked with Nutella or with a special baby cream.)

In her installation work Sun H. Choi uses this part of human neurological disposition to offer her audience an experience that appeals to all of our senses. She refers to "Han Yak", the traditional Korean healing concept, consisting of a special combination of various herbs and dried food wrapped in little paper bags. She arranges the single components, which she pins on the wall, in swirling clouds terminating in gracile branches. This kind of flow evoked by the graphic twirls reveals a different almost opposite approach to health and illness than in western medicine. The whole complex body of the patient is considered, not only a single symptom. In Korea people are still reminded of their mother's care and love smelling the ingredient of a "Han Yak". Nostalgic pains.

I use pins as an anchor and also as a metaphor for the painful memories that stick to us. We cannot remove them and we cannot ignore them. The pain is difficult, but it makes us beautiful and stronger like how the mother's sacrifice brings us love. All of us have struggles. As long as we are alive and breathing in the world, we will all experience pain. We have to embrace those painful memories to make our lives better than they were before. Beauty can truly come from pain. I hope this acupuncture by pins will help heal others how it healed me. -Sun H. Choi

SUN H. CHOI was born in South Korea. She immigrated to the United States in 1994. Now she lives and works in Des Plaines and Chicago. She received a BFA from Sungshin Women's University, in Seoul South Korea. In 2000, she graduated with a BFA, and later in 2002, she obtained a MFA in Painting and Drawing from the School of Art Institute of Chicago. She has curated a couple of exhibitions such as the "New Dialogue of Korean American Artists" in the Fine Arts Center Gallery at The Northeastern University in 2011. She has held many other group shows in the U.S., Canada and in Korea. Sun H. Choi is currently teaching at Gallery 37, and teaches private art lessons.

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