Artist Spotlight: Sunae Aum's "Noise for the Future"

Sunae Aum, Noise for the Future, Mixed media, 30 x 24"

Sunae Aum’s debut exhibition at TAG, Noise for the Future, tackles philosophical questions that garner answers in the form of her rich and textured mixed media abstract paintings. To empty a mind is not to secure an empty space, but to fill it with something unnamable, to achieve something unnamable and objective. Aum’s compositions respond to this call with swirling forms, patterns, and a cascading application of paint on canvas, creating a murky, misty effect, utilizing abalone, jade, fixed pigment, stone powder, and other mixed media to give texture to her pieces.

Sunae Aum, Noise for the Future - M -2, Mixed media, 36 x 24"

Noise for the Future finds Aum responding to a battle deep within herself regarding her own artistic inclinations. “To make my mind empty is not as difficult as keeping it that way. Is it possible to produce work without pretensions and self-assertion? How far can one flee from his or her prejudices about things”? Every brush stroke, splatter of paint, and decision comes into question, which makes the creation process an intimate, yet arduous experience.

Sunae Aum, OLED-1, Mixed media, 36 x 24"

The ancient Chinese philosopher Chuang Tzu once said, “Non-doing does not mean doing nothing and keeping silent. Leave everything as it is by nature. Then, its nature will be fulfilled.”

Sunae Aum, Noise for the Future - W 2, Mixed media, 36 x 24"

Aum equates emptying ones mind to disposing of a heavy burden, where there is no need for suffering. Entering and existing the state of non-doing while creating, however, is not as simple. This body of work is the result of the artist’s acceptance of allowing thoughts, ideas, and techniques into her state of non-being, filling her mind and transfiguring her mentality into a state of active doing.

The exhibition runs through March 17.

Meet Sunae at the Artist Panel, Saturday March 11, 3pm