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Yoosamu: Confucius Institute Presentation

Yoo Samu Sculpture

On Wednesday, March 16, Stamps MFA candidate Yoosamu will present Guanyin Reboot: The Culture of Remakes and the Transformation of Tradition, a talk on infusing contemporary aesthetics into the traditional Guanyin sculpture. 

Traditional Buddha sculptures represent a certain kind of idealized form, which embodies the idea of compassion in certain times of the past. Mahayana Buddhism syncretized with Confucianism, Taoism, Korean Shamanism and Japanese Shinto as Buddhism spread to the East. Each syncretization gave birth to unique Buddhist art aesthetics. The transformation of Buddhist sculpture stopped as the religion reached Far East. How does an artist reboot the transformation? This lecture will discuss Yoosamu’s journey to Jingdezhen, China to infuse contemporary aesthetics into the traditional Guanyin sculpture.

Yoosamu is a contemporary Korean artist. His current research includes exploring secret government documents and investigating remake” culture. Having a multidisciplinary background in visual art as both an artist and an art director, Yoosamu utilizes painting, sculpture, installation, film and K‑POP music video in creating his works. His works were included in the 2015 Animamix Biennial at Daegu Art Museum in South Korea. He has received recognitions from Cannes Lions in France and The One Show in New York. Yoosamu is currently an MFA student at the Stamps School of Art & Design, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. To learn more about Yoosamu’s work, visit yoosamu​.com.


Guanyin Reboot: The Culture of Remakes and the Transformation of Tradition
Yoosamu, Contemporary Korean Artist 
12 PM Wednesday, March 162016
@Henderson Room, Michigan League (3rd floor) 
For more information, please visit http://​con​fu​cius​.umich​.edu.