AEROPLASTICS

In the organizer's words:

Ju Young Kim's (*1991 in Seoul, KR) first presentation at max goelitz in Berlin addresses transitional states and transit zones by transforming industrial transport modules from airplanes into symbolically coded works. For her expansive installation, Kim expands her diploma thesis AEROPLASTICS with newly developed works and places them in a new exhibition context.

In AEROPLASTICS, Ju Young Kim merges robust high-tech airplane parts with Art Nouveau elements made of glass, ceramics and metal to create novel, symbolically recoded objects. In addition to the variety of materials used, the works are characterized by a precise understanding of the formal language, an interplay of different colors and the integration of surreal details.

The objects in the AEROPLASTICS series raise questions about the relativity of time and space in the context of transnational and transcontinental journeys. As a means of transportation, the airplane forms a connection or interface between time zones and geographical borders. On its journey from one place to another, it crosses land and sea, leaving political, economic and cultural systems behind. The airplane thus becomes the embodiment of constant moments of transition and indefinable interstices - ambivalent spheres of nowhere and everywhere.

For people, this experience condenses into a feeling of parallel existence and instability, forcing them to explore their own concepts of identity, belonging and home. Just as the material nature of an airplane is designed to withstand extreme environmental conditions such as heat, cold, wind and rain, travelers must also be able to cope with all the changes, challenges and adversities they encounter on their journey and at their respective destinations.

Excerpt from Alexandra Baringer's text on the diploma exhibition. Ju Young Kim's diploma thesis was awarded the 2024 Debutant Grant at the Academy of Fine Arts Munich. The presentation AEROPLASTICS is accompanied by an exhibition text by curator Linda Franken (KW Berlin).