Tia Yoon’s work explores communication—its attempts and its failure—and addresses problems emerging from different modern social constructions, while experimenting with ways to dissolve the boundaries of binary mindsets (gendered and otherwise). This is done through engagement with fantasies via posthuman spectacles, and through a lens that pays close attention to the experiences of minorities. Yoon is interested in ancient mythologies from the era when spirits lived alongside humans, and through the works they aim to awaken elements of that world. Yoon engages with ideas of identity and resistance to biopower by drawing from these ancient fantasy worlds in which all kinds of experiences and lifestyles are embraced—constituting a fantasy, perhaps, for contemporary society too. The work features fictional characters who communicate with fictional spirits through both human and spirit languages, such as rituals and energy. Yoon also draws inspiration from queer and underground club culture, working with radical tenderness as a form of empowerment, self-exploration, and as a tool to create space. They are currently researching possibilities of fluidity between digital and analogue painting’s performative energy. Yoon wishes to create and occupy secure spaces, framed by broken narratives, through which they can communicate with their audience via theatrical performance and paintings.
