Korean artist U-Ram Choe’s kinetic sculptures are made of delicately curved sections of wrought metal, joined together in movable parts that are driven by motors to expand, contract, or otherwise suggest the autonomic motions of such primitive life forms as plants and single-celled aquatic creatures.
The intricate workmanship and graceful movements of these mechanical sculptures offer viewers an unparalleled visual delight. At the same time, they have profound philosophical implications, inviting consideration of the subject of life’s origins, evolution, and future. Evoking new developments in genetic engineering, prosthetic technologies, and robotics, these graceful and disturbing works propose the existence of species that, while constructed of inorganic materials and powered by light and electricity, mimic the behavior and appetites of living beings.
