My works are mirrors that reflect my life, my thoughts, my heart and my soul. Since my works are about my experience and reactions toward my life, cultural differences between east and west culture have a tremendous impact on my works. Moving to America was a turning point to me these years. The surrounding is totally different and everything is new to me. I found that I’m not only learning art but also learning how to live in a foreign place. Once my life was occupied by these unknown things, my works manifest every emotions I have in every moment. This is not me trying to unify art and life, It is them integrating with each other spontaneously. Somehow I think that art is life, and life is art

Lung, Yun

English

Keck Graduate Institute

Claremont Colleges
Scholarship @ Claremont
CGU MFA Theses CGU Student Scholarship
1-1-2015
Art You Alright
Yun Lung
Claremont Graduate University
This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the CGU Student Scholarship at Scholarship @ Claremont. It has been accepted for inclusion
in CGU MFA Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship @ Claremont. For more information, please contact
scholarship@cuc.claremont.edu.
Recommended Citation
Lung, Yun, "Art You Alright" (2015). CGU MFA Theses. Paper 105.
http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_mfatheses/105
	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  Yun	  Lung	  
	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  Statement	  	  	  	  	  	  My	  works	  are	  mirrors	  that	  reflect	  my	  life,	  my	  thoughts,	  my	  heart	  and	  my	  soul.	  	  	  	  	  	  Since	  my	  works	  are	  about	  my	  experience	  and	  reactions	  toward	  my	  life,	  cultural	  differences	  between	  east	  and	  west	  culture	  have	  a	  tremendous	  impact	  on	  my	  works.	  Moving	  to	  America	  was	  a	  turning	  point	  to	  me	  these	  years.	  The	  surrounding	  is	  totally	  different	  and	  everything	  is	  new	  to	  me.	  I	  found	  that	  I’m	  not	  only	  learning	  art	  but	  also	  learning	  how	  to	  live	  in	  a	  foreign	  place.	  Once	  my	  life	  was	  occupied	  by	  these	  unknown	  things,	  my	  works	  manifest	  every	  emotions	  I	  have	  in	  every	  moment.	  This	  is	  not	  me	  trying	  to	  unify	  art	  and	  life,	  It	  is	  them	  integrating	  with	  each	  other	  spontaneously.	  Somehow	  I	  think	  that	  art	  is	  life,	  and	  life	  is	  art.	  	  	  	  	  	  To	  live	  happily	  is	  my	  personal	  philosophy,	  so	  the	  sense	  of	  humor	  is	  an	  important	  element	  which	  I	  pursue	  in	  my	  works.	  I	  collage	  different	  found	  images	  to	  make	  unreasonable	  works	  that	  convey	  my	  experience	  through	  free,	  innocent	  and	  joyful	  ways.	  For	  example,	  I	  placed	  an	  onion	  on	  a	  couch	  instead	  of	  a	  potato,	  creating	  a	  “couch	  onion”.	  I	  also	  placed	  a	  beautiful	  woman	  and	  credit	  cards	  in	  a	  hamburger	  to	  symbolizing	  human	  desires.	  	  I	  also	  play	  with	  words	  in	  works’	  titles.	  By	  switching	  or	  combining	  words	  that	  have	  similar	  pronunciations	  to	  make	  them	  strange.	  “Pizza	  Hurt”	  is	  an	  injured	  pizza	  sculpture	  wearing	  bandages.	  The	  inspiration	  of	  this	  work	  is	  my	  language	  barrier	  which	  makes	  me	  feel	  awkward	  but	  funny	  every	  time	  and	  I	  also	  consider	  it	  as	  an	  issue	  of	  cultural	  differences.	  	  I	  personify	  objects	  and	  try	  to	  put	  myself	  in	  their	  shoes.	  This	  method	  enables	  me	  to	  think	  in	  a	  weird	  way	  and	  create	  strange	  works.	  I	  am	  attracted	  to	  the	  balance	  between	  two	  opposite	  concepts,	  such	  as	  
pleasure	  and	  pain,	  cute	  and	  dangerous,	  bitter	  and	  sweet,	  etc.	  I	  believe	  that	  the	  latent	  humor	  would	  permeate	  from	  the	  middle	  of	  the	  two	  sides.	  To	  be	  brief,	  I	  pursue	  the	  sense	  of	  humor	  by	  challenging	  logic	  and	  disorienting	  the	  audience.	  	  	  	  	  	  	  I	  am	  obsessed	  with	  the	  food	  culture	  in	  America	  especially.	  Born	  in	  an	  Asian	  country	  which	  values	  healthy	  eating,	  American	  fast	  food	  is	  like	  a	  forbidden	  fruit	  that	  has	  a	  special	  attraction	  for	  me.	  I	  was	  particularly	  lured	  by	  fast	  food’s	  colors,	  shapes,	  packages	  and	  also	  the	  trait	  that	  it	  is	  so	  yummy,	  but	  not	  so	  healthy.	  I	  usually	  involve	  them	  in	  my	  works	  and	  my	  inspirations	  come	  from	  hundreds	  of	  fast	  food	  and	  supermarket	  flyers	  in	  my	  mailbox	  every	  week.	  Since	  the	  quantity	  of	  this	  kind	  of	  advertisement	  is	  so	  overwhelming	  that	  I	  can’t	  help	  but	  let	  them	  fill	  in	  my	  whole	  brain,	  I	  can	  always	  connect	  everything	  with	  food	  and	  am	  always	  thinking	  about	  the	  question	  of	  whether	  food	  looks	  concrete	  or	  abstract.	  Seeing	  the	  triangle-­‐shaped	  pizza,	  round	  pepperoni,	  melting	  strawberry-­‐vanilla	  ice	  cream	  and	  the	  texture	  of	  meat	  makes	  me	  believe	  that	  every	  cook	  is	  actually	  an	  Abstract	  Expressionist	  artist.	  Besides,	  using	  these	  flyers	  to	  make	  paper	  Mache	  or	  repaint	  the	  objects	  on	  flyers	  makes	  me	  feel	  that	  there	  is	  an	  intricate	  relationship	  between	  my	  inspirations	  and	  works.	  Moreover,	  I	  finally	  realized	  that	  I	  was	  under	  the	  influence	  of	  consumerism	  in	  this	  country	  subconsciously.	  	  	  	  	  To	  me,	  art	  is	  not	  just	  my	  silent	  language	  through	  which	  I	  say	  what	  I	  want	  to	  say	  and	  communicate	  freely	  with	  people,	  but	  also	  a	  channel	  to	  explore	  and	  understand	  the	  world	  and	  myself.	  	  	  


Art You Alright

Scholarship@Claremont

Claremont CollegesScholarship @ ClaremontCGU MFA Theses CGU Student Scholarship1-1-2015Art You AlrightYun LungClaremont Graduate UniversityThis Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the CGU Student Scholarship at Scholarship @ Claremont. It has been accepted for inclusionin CGU MFA Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship @ Claremont. For more information, please contactscholarship@cuc.claremont.edu.Recommended CitationLung, Yun, "Art You Alright" (2015). CGU MFA Theses. Paper 105.http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cgu_mfatheses/105	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  Yun	  Lung	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  Statement	  	  	  	  	  	  My	  works	  are	  mirrors	  that	  reflect	  my	  life,	  my	  thoughts,	  my	  heart	  and	  my	  soul.	  	  	  	  	  	  Since	  my	  works	  are	  about	  my	  experience	  and	  reactions	  toward	  my	  life,	  cultural	  differences	  between	  east	  and	  west	  culture	  have	  a	  tremendous	  impact	  on	  my	  works.	  Moving	  to	  America	  was	  a	  turning	  point	  to	  me	  these	  years.	  The	  surrounding	  is	  totally	  different	  and	  everything	  is	  new	  to	  me.	  I	  found	  that	  I’m	  not	  only	  learning	  art	  but	  also	  learning	  how	  to	  live	  in	  a	  foreign	  place.	  Once	  my	  life	  was	  occupied	  by	  these	  unknown	  things,	  my	  works	  manifest	  every	  emotions	  I	  have	  in	  every	  moment.	  This	  is	  not	  me	  trying	  to	  unify	  art	  and	  life,	  It	  is	  them	  integrating	  with	  each	  other	  spontaneously.	  Somehow	  I	  think	  that	  art	  is	  life,	  and	  life	  is	  art.	  	  	  	  	  	  To	  live	  happily	  is	  my	  personal	  philosophy,	  so	  the	  sense	  of	  humor	  is	  an	  important	  element	  which	  I	  pursue	  in	  my	  works.	  I	  collage	  different	  found	  images	  to	  make	  unreasonable	  works	  that	  convey	  my	  experience	  through	  free,	  innocent	  and	  joyful	  ways.	  For	  example,	  I	  placed	  an	  onion	  on	  a	  couch	  instead	  of	  a	  potato,	  creating	  a	  “couch	  onion”.	  I	  also	  placed	  a	  beautiful	  woman	  and	  credit	  cards	  in	  a	  hamburger	  to	  symbolizing	  human	  desires.	  	  I	  also	  play	  with	  words	  in	  works’	  titles.	  By	  switching	  or	  combining	  words	  that	  have	  similar	  pronunciations	  to	  make	  them	  strange.	  “Pizza	  Hurt”	  is	  an	  injured	  pizza	  sculpture	  wearing	  bandages.	  The	  inspiration	  of	  this	  work	  is	  my	  language	  barrier	  which	  makes	  me	  feel	  awkward	  but	  funny	  every	  time	  and	  I	  also	  consider	  it	  as	  an	  issue	  of	  cultural	  differences.	  	  I	  personify	  objects	  and	  try	  to	  put	  myself	  in	  their	  shoes.	  This	  method	  enables	  me	  to	  think	  in	  a	  weird	  way	  and	  create	  strange	  works.	  I	  am	  attracted	  to	  the	  balance	  between	  two	  opposite	  concepts,	  such	  as	  pleasure	  and	  pain,	  cute	  and	  dangerous,	  bitter	  and	  sweet,	  etc.	  I	  believe	  that	  the	  latent	  humor	  would	  permeate	  from	  the	  middle	  of	  the	  two	  sides.	  To	  be	  brief,	  I	  pursue	  the	  sense	  of	  humor	  by	  challenging	  logic	  and	  disorienting	  the	  audience.	  	  	  	  	  	  	  I	  am	  obsessed	  with	  the	  food	  culture	  in	  America	  especially.	  Born	  in	  an	  Asian	  country	  which	  values	  healthy	  eating,	  American	  fast	  food	  is	  like	  a	  forbidden	  fruit	  that	  has	  a	  special	  attraction	  for	  me.	  I	  was	  particularly	  lured	  by	  fast	  food’s	  colors,	  shapes,	  packages	  and	  also	  the	  trait	  that	  it	  is	  so	  yummy,	  but	  not	  so	  healthy.	  I	  usually	  involve	  them	  in	  my	  works	  and	  my	  inspirations	  come	  from	  hundreds	  of	  fast	  food	  and	  supermarket	  flyers	  in	  my	  mailbox	  every	  week.	  Since	  the	  quantity	  of	  this	  kind	  of	  advertisement	  is	  so	  overwhelming	  that	  I	  can’t	  help	  but	  let	  them	  fill	  in	  my	  whole	  brain,	  I	  can	  always	  connect	  everything	  with	  food	  and	  am	  always	  thinking	  about	  the	  question	  of	  whether	  food	  looks	  concrete	  or	  abstract.	  Seeing	  the	  triangle-­‐shaped	  pizza,	  round	  pepperoni,	  melting	  strawberry-­‐vanilla	  ice	  cream	  and	  the	  texture	  of	  meat	  makes	  me	  believe	  that	  every	  cook	  is	  actually	  an	  Abstract	  Expressionist	  artist.	  Besides,	  using	  these	  flyers	  to	  make	  paper	  Mache	  or	  repaint	  the	  objects	  on	  flyers	  makes	  me	  feel	  that	  there	  is	  an	  intricate	  relationship	  between	  my	  inspirations	  and	  works.	  Moreover,	  I	  finally	  realized	  that	  I	  was	  under	  the	  influence	  of	  consumerism	  in	  this	  country	  subconsciously.	  	  	  	  	  To	  me,	  art	  is	  not	  just	  my	  silent	  language	  through	  which	  I	  say	  what	  I	  want	  to	  say	  and	  communicate	  freely	  with	  people,	  but	  also	  a	  channel	  to	  explore	  and	  understand	  the	  world	  and	  myself.	  	  	  

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Art You Alright

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