Framed Bias

"Framed Bias originates from my experience visiting the Martin Building at the Denver Art Museum in Denver, Colorado — an architectural landmark designed by Gio Ponti. The building’s entire exterior is clad in uniquely designed tiles by Ponti himself, rising with the commanding presence of a medieval fortress. Particularly striking is the recurring pattern of "diagonals within squares" found on the tiles, which served as both the formal motif and conceptual point of departure for this work. Small, irregularly placed windows bring light and color into the building while dividing the space with both tension and freedom. This visual experience revealed how structure and openness, formality and fluidity, can coexist.

Through this architectural encounter, I became acutely aware of how museums serve as both solid institutions of authority and frameworks that guide the display and interpretation of art. At the same time, I sensed how multiple perceptions and sensory experiences could exist within those same rigid boundaries. However, I also observed clear distinctions in the way large American museums present art. Western art is often organized by genre, movement, or artist, whereas non-Western art continues to be categorized by geography—by country or region. While these exhibitions appear to advocate diversity and inclusion on the surface, they often reveal an underlying institutional frame that divides center from periphery. This framing is not limited to exhibition design but permeates the entire museum system, including texts, printed materials, and visitor flow.

Framed Bias begins precisely at this point—a reflection on the institutional structures of museums, the invisible biases and authority they uphold, and my personal gaze confronting them.

My practice has long been rooted in the techniques of traditional jogakbo (Korean patchwork). Jogakbo extends beyond its utilitarian origins to embody a formal and metaphorical language. It is a medium that reconfigures existing orders and constructs new narratives from remnants and fragments. In this project, I translated the visual impressions of the Martin Building’s tile patterns and window structures into the geometric composition of jogakbo. The result is a kind of reframing—a proposal to reconsider existing frames from a different perspective.