Hyperrealism is a genre of artwork that resembles a high-resolution photograph–pair that with distortion and amputations, and you have an idea of the artwork of Korean-based artist Xooang Choi. This dark master of the imagination makes you feel as if your real life has bled into an inexorable nightmare. Exaggerated in size and isolated from the rest of their bodies, hyper-realistic mouths, hands, and other anatomical parts communicate in a visceral and instinctual way that visually obliterates language barriers. Ang has perfected sculpting the human form in grotesque detail, modifying its proportions to create disturbing works that unearth dark emotions.
The sculptures wear poignant expressions; anger and frustration are written on their faces. The body itself is treated like a malleable sculpting medium in Choi’s marble-like, flesh-toned works. Body parts are isolated and taken out of context–heads and hands are multiplied and used to create larger shapes. The characters created are reminiscent of those you might see in a Tool music video.
Choi often adds eroticism to his graphic visions, like twisted, elongated tongues protruding from genderless heads–but he also enjoys incorporating violent manipulations of the human physique, including disjointed body parts, lacing, or even twisting off a limb like an engorged sausage. Formed of resin and oil paint, the sculptural work gives metaphorical shape to real issues including human rights, society’s pathological state, and sex/gender politics among other themes.
“I believe in this method of expression that is exhaustive in rendering every single detail of movement and surface of the human body–this is a very powerful way to approach viewers almost directly, literally skin to skin.”–Xooang Choi
Whether these statements pertain to the political climate of Korea or globally, Choi’s visual language is universal enough to move you. Or at the very least add to the cast of characters for your next pavor nocturnus.
To find out more about Xooang Choi’s artwork and to get sneak peeks of new art in progress, check out his official Facebook Page. You can also follow him on Instagram @xooang.
