By Ines Min
Staff Reporter
``Meaah.''
This sound is one of the reasons why Han Sun-hyun has been carving reliefs of goats and other animals for the past four years. Not that he's complaining.
The 42-year-old sculptor explains why many of his wooden works portray goats _ in a variety of humanistic activities such as playing billiards, reading or holding onto a bundle of balloons.
``The sound goats make is consistent, always the same. I like that," Han said in an interview with The Korea Times at his current exhibition at Samtoh Gallery in Daehangno, over the weekend.
Other telling characteristics that drew the artist to the animal include having a strong constitution ― goats are noted for being able to eat almost anything, including poisonous weeds that would hurt most other animals ― and having the ability to climb even the highest of boulders.
Though the reasons Han provides seem simple enough on the outset, his artwork portrays much more complex ideas about his approach to these special four-legged creatures.
Depicted on beautifully textured, imported African wood, the subjects conduct their activities while carefully balanced on a bridge comprised of a single log. The singularity of their paths emanates a sense of determined intention: These goats have not only chosen the risky route, but travel along it with relative comfort and ease.
Viewers would be hard-pressed to keep from walking toward the artwork with its intricate detailing, while the hues of subdued and worn paints allow the relief figures to candidly pop up from their meticulously etched backgrounds.
Though Han says the pieces are best viewed from afar, the many-grooved surfaces belie his minimalist approach ― which is exactly what he wants.
``My works aren't that difficult to explain,'' the sculptor said, pointing to a piece that showed a woman standing on his trademark log bridge, arms outstretched. ``It's easy, but people who become curious will ask, `Is that piece just attached to the background?' or `Is that painted?'
``And as they become curious about whether or not it is, they start to think, 'Oh! That must've been difficult to make.'
``I want to show them a sense of fatigue, and from that fatigue, fresh art,'' Han said. ``It's like how it's refreshing to sweat after hiking a tall mountain.''
As each piece takes roughly a week to complete, the Italian-taught sculptor knows the meaning of toil. An artist for more than 15 years, Han puts in his studio hours with discipline and passion. Having studied in Carrara, Italy ― a small town of 65,000 known for supplying Michelangelo with marble for ``David'' ― for five years, the sculptor learned to appreciate the virtue of patience and hard work.
Parallels seem to run between Han's life and his choice of subject matter, which aims to turn the spotlight onto those often overlooked.
``If you look at art history or human history, the hero is always portrayed as a human,'' he said. ``Animals were only extras. I wanted, as a director, to cast those animals as the protagonist.''
This is not to say Han's works are not without a sense of absurdist humor. One piece showcased presents a "No goats'' sign next to a construction worker who is drinking on the job. A goat waits patiently beside the notice.
``I believe that goats do dream,'' he said in reference to his exhibit's title. ``One strength of herbivores is that they don't try to disturb lions or other animals like that. Although it might seem like they're simply trying to avoid them, I think they move to higher ground in a thoughtful manner, to starve them to death.
``I don't think they move in order to avoid predators, but so that they have time to contemplate their thoughts and to see the world.''
``Making the Dreams of Goats'' is on exhibition at Samtoh Gallery in Daehangno, northern Seoul, until May 23. The venue is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily and closed Mondays. Admission is free; visit www.isamtoh.com.