Kudzu

Jiha Moon makes paintings using Hanji (mulberry) paper, a traditional medium in Korean art. Moon exploits its capacity to soak up paint while holding dense layers of pigment stacked on top. Moon describes the effect of these materials as analogous to the “twists and layers” of her own identity as a person from South Korea who has lived in the United States over a decade. This painting bursts with symbols and designs ambiguously connected to both nationalities, as well as to broader notions of “Asian-ness” in American pop culture. The title, kudzu, refers to a creeping vine native to eastern Asia promoted in the United States in the late nineteenth century as an ornamental Japanese plant. American authorities planted kudzu aggressively against soil erosion in the 1930s, so that it became ubiquitous across the American south and entangled in regional identity. Here the pink and blue vine embraces a whirlwind of cartoon-like shapes—birds, leaves, and mountaintops—their candy colors densely coded with humor and contradiction.

Jiha Moon

2012

Ink and acrylic on hanji paper mounted on canvas

24 x 24 inches