Rachel Youn


Rachel Youn. Courtesy of the artist.
Rachel Youn. Fixus (detail), 2022, Shiatsu massager, artificial flower, steel, 109 x 40.5 x 46 cm (42.9 x 15.9 x 18.1 in). Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of the artist and PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Rachel Youn. Fixus (detail), 2022, Shiatsu massager, artificial flower, steel, 109 x 40.5 x 46 cm (42.9 x 15.9 x 18.1 in). Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of the artist and PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Rachel Youn. Dutiful, 2024, Fake flora, shiatsu back massager, foam rollers, steel, drum stand, dog boots, 61 x 45.7 x 76.2 cm (24 x 18 x 30 in). Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of the artist and PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Rachel Youn. Dutiful (detail), 2024, Fake flora, shiatsu back massager, foam rollers, steel, drum stand, dog boots, 61 x 45.7 x 76.2 cm (24 x 18 x 30 in). Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of the artist and PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Rachel Youn. Gape, 2024, Fake flora, stainless steel, shiatsu neck massager, tv wall mount, found parasol, 55.9 x 63.5 x 35.6 cm (22 x 25 x 14 in). Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of the artist and PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Rachel Youn. Gape (detail), 2024, Fake flora, stainless steel, shiatsu neck massager, tv wall mount, found parasol, 55.9 x 63.5 x 35.6 cm (22 x 25 x 14 in). Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of the artist and PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Installation view of ‘The Last Laugh’ at PODIUM, Hong Kong, 18 May—06 July 2024. Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Installation view of ‘The Last Laugh’ at PODIUM, Hong Kong, 18 May—06 July 2024. Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of PODIUM, Hong Kong.
Installation view of ‘The Last Laugh’ at PODIUM, Hong Kong, 18 May—06 July 2024. Photo: Lok Hang Wu. Courtesy of PODIUM, Hong Kong.

Biography
Rachel Youn (b. 1994, lives and works in St. Louis) works across sculpture and installation through sourcing materials with a history of aspiration and failure through online second-hand shopping. Youn rescues electric massagers from suburban limbo, fastening artificial plants to the machines to create clumsy, erotic, and absurd kinetic sculptures. Haunted by their immigrant father’s pursuit of the American dream, their work identifies with the replica that earnestly desires to be real, and the failed object that simulates care and intimacy. Their solo recent exhibitions have taken place at Night Gallery, Los Angeles (2023), Sargent’s Daughters, New York (2022), Soy Capitán, Berlin (2022), Bruno David Gallery, Clayton (2021), and Great Rivers Biennial, Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis (2020). They have participated in group exhibitions at Aranya Art Centre, Beidaihe (2023), Brutus, Rotterdam (2023), Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Rome (2022), Galerie du Monde, Central, Hong Kong (2022), Wassaic Project, Wassaic, New York (2021), and HAIR + Nails, Minneapolis (2020). They received their BFA from the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis. Youn is currently an MFA candidate at the Yale School of Art, New Haven.

View CV


Works
Rachel Youn
Fixus
2022
Shiatsu massager, artificial flower, steel
109 x 40.5 x 46 cm | 42.9 x 15.9 x 18.1 in

INQUIRE
Rachel Youn
Dutiful
2024
Fake flora, shiatsu back massager, foam rollers, steel, drum stand, dog boots
61 x 45.7 x 76.2 cm | 24 x 18 x 30 in



INQUIRE
Rachel Youn
Gape
2024
Fake flora, stainless steel, shiatsu neck massager, tv wall mount, found parasol
55.9 x 63.5 x 35.6 cm | 22 x 25 x 14 in



INQUIRE

Exhibitions
The Last Laugh
Artists: Sarah Fripon, Adéla Janská, Min Jia, Alicja Pakosz, Rachel Youn
Hong Kong
18 May—06 July 2024
PODIUM

Unit 9D, E Tat Factory Building,
4 Heung Yip Road,
Wong Chuk Hang, Hong Kong

Tuesday – Saturday
11:00 AM – 7:00 PM

Closed on public holidays

Instagram Facebook YouTube WeChat