As a child, I often found bedtime challenging. Naturally anxious and imaginative, coupled with siblings who enjoyed scary movies, I was frequently haunted by fears once the lights were out. To help, my mother appointed a stuffed bear as my nighttime protector, infusing it with her comforting “power” before she left me to sleep. This plush companion offered reassurance, allowing me to rest.
Artist Sungho Bae, who hails from Seoul and resides in Chicago, explores a different perspective on the emotional value we place on childhood items. Bae collects toys that were once cherished, sourced from stores and disposal sites, and then dismantles and reassembles them into a new form. The result is a series of striking sculptures and reliefs that resemble a vivid patchwork of organs, tissue, and muscle.
Bae’s exhibition, titled Apotropaia, features a collection of works that emulate charms, amulets, and other mystical artifacts believed to ward off evil. This title draws from ancient Greek concepts of mystical powers, reflecting humanity’s enduring quest for meaning in objects and rituals. The exhibition prompts questions about why these toys, once treasured, were discarded and how their meanings can be transformed.
Among the less abstract pieces is “Dansu,” depicting a head and neck with taxidermy eyes and feathers as hair. This work references a precarious moment in the Korean game of Go, where only one move remains before capture. Set on a worn game board, the sculpture captures the conflict between nature and artifice and between life and death, with its lifelike glass eyes cast in an empty gaze.
Additional pieces, each named “Gut,” are more abstract and fluid. These wall works, adorned with wispy hair and embedded clay, celebrate their enigmatic quality, inviting viewers to explore their textures and colors up close.
Apotropaia is available for viewing until September 6 at 4th Ward Project Space. Follow Bae’s work on Instagram.
