Goyoson (b. 1995) creates sculptures where the artist’s inner world and the world we live in organically converge. He discovers new sensory possibilities among everyday objects not traditionally used as sculptural materials and transforms their forms within various spatiotemporal contexts.

His amorphous sculptures reshape space, drawing viewers into the work as part of it, while actively incorporating open-ended, flexible material experiments and elements of happening.

Goyoson challenges audiences to encounter sculpture through unexpected perceptions and sensations. He intentionally distorts conventional expectations of sleek, polished sculptures by incorporating materials that embody change and decay — such as perishable food, styrofoam, urethane, and feathers — or by allowing live snails to move within sculptural settings. Through these gestures, he invites viewers to experience and engage with his works in new and tactile ways. 

Goyoson’s first solo exhibition, 《Michel》 (AlterSide, 2021), was inspired by the idea of bringing the theatrical props used in Michel Gondry's films off the screen and into real space. The sculptures he created, inspired by film set designs, were not presented as complete and static works. Instead, they came to life through an evolving situation in which the artist, the audience, and fifteen performers — each becoming a "Michel" — interacted and engaged within the sculptural space.

Through this exhibition, Goyoson aimed to experiment with "how sculptures can be perceived differently when infused with ordinary human movements." To achieve this, he directed the performers, called "Michels," to eat the sculptures, manipulate them, become playmates for live snails, or even wash together with the works. 

Through these experiments, Goyoson sought to break down the conventional boundaries and rules between sculpture (artwork) and audience. He envisioned pathways that would dissolve the fixed roles and positions between artworks and people, allowing the audience themselves to intervene as part of the moving sculptures, creating a flow where each could permeate the other.

In this way, 《Michel》 became an exhibition that moved and evolved through the daily shifts in performers, the changes these shifts generated in the sculptures' movements, and the constant, fresh interventions of the audience within these ever-changing sculptural situations. 

The unexpected incidents that arose throughout this process aligned with the artist’s intention to “create sculptures that change depending on who experiences them and how,” ultimately enriching and diversifying his work.

In 2021, Goyoson participated in the c-lab Project 《Milky Way》 at the Coreana Museum of Art, transforming his sculptures into star observation devices. 

Based on the responses of eight participating researchers to the question, “When do you feel most at ease?”, he created observational sculptures and brought them into outdoor spaces, inviting participants to engage in tactile experiences—lying on the sculptures or entering into them—as part of the stargazing process.

The participants' responses—such as the scent of soap and freshly baked bread, the feeling of soft blankets, and constellation-shaped holes—were abstracted into sculptural forms through the artist’s sensibility. By installing these sculptures within the context of stargazing, Goyoson allowed participants to freely experience physical immersion through their own bodies.

Building on his practice of creating tactile sculptures that intertwine with the bodies of viewers and participants, Goyoson began producing “edible sculptures” in 2022 that could be digested inside the body. For example, his second solo exhibition, 《6 Ways to Delicately Stack and Sincerely Destroy》, allowed visitors to purchase and physically dismantle sculptures made in collaboration with six dessert shops in Seoul—destroying them with forks and knives before consuming them. 

This body of work stems from the artist’s childhood memories of imagining the destruction of sculptures protected by barriers in museums. By challenging the convention of maintaining a respectful, hands-off distance from artworks, Goyoson invites audiences not only to view but also to own, create, and ultimately dismantle the sculptures, engaging with them through every stage of their existence.

Since then, Goyoson has continued to experiment with the expansion of sensory experiences through sculpture, collaborating with experts from various fields. These collaborative experiences led him to conceptualize theater or performance art through the medium of sculpture. In the 2022 group exhibition 《Sculptural Impulse》 at Buk-Seoul Museum of Art, Goyoson captured theatrical scenes inspired by the appearance and actions of hippies in the 1960s counterculture, and expressed them in sculpture, which he then used as a stage for a performance. 

The work Summer of Love, composed of various sculptures, served as both a pedestal that allowed viewers to physically engage with the sculptures and a stage for a performative enactment. The artist superimposed the beliefs of the ‘hippies,’ who advocated for the restoration of humanity and a return to nature through poses like statues of leaders or lovers in classical sculpture, ultimately subverting established social norms, institutions, and values, and reinterpreting them as sculptures celebrating love.

Additionally, through collaborations with tattoo artists, singers, performers, and others, Goyoson generates new layers of relationships and contexts in his sculptures. This, in turn, creates a narrative between the sculptures themselves, the movements of the performers and the audience, and a set sculpture with the function of a shelter, which leads to an expansion of imagination and sensation in the gap between the stage podium, the sculpture pedestal, the performers, and the figurative sculptures.
 
For example, new sculptures disguised as props appear only during the performative enactments, creating another layer of scenes. Four performers each utilize sculptures on stage in different ways. A performer who is adept at adapting actively engages with the sculpture, bringing it to life, while a performer who seems to show resistance or indifference focuses on the remnants or neglected parts of the sculpture. 

Thus, the four distinct characters bring to life Goyoson’s usual interest and experimentation with sculptures that are perceived differently depending on who interacts with them – in other words, sculptures with a ‘user.’

In the solo exhibition 《Alongside》 (2024) at the Kimsechoong Museum, Goyoson presented a series of sculptures that encapsulate commemorative narratives about various individuals who exist in everyday life in our society.  

The works, created through collaborations with five individuals—including the artist’s father Son Jungho, independent curator Moon Hyunjeoung, musician Lee Minhwi, and artists Koesy and Jang Jonghoon—were designed to allow the audience to freely observe, touch, and experience the pieces while listening to music.

For example, the piece Lee Minhwi (2024), created in collaboration with musician Lee Minhwi, was designed for the audience to lie on a chair, wear headphones, and listen to a lullaby composed by Lee Minhwi while gazing at the black sculpture made by Goyoson.  

Goyoson’s black sculpture, with its blend of improvisation and surrealism, engages with the audience, leaving room for varying interpretations depending on the process of listening to the music.

Meanwhile, in the solo exhibition 《Blue Ginkgo》 (2024) at Laheen Gallery, the artist brought a precious memory from the past and unfolded it in the present moment and space. Through this exhibition, the artist experimented with how the visualized objects of a specific past moment, which often appear unclear, merge with the vivid inner emotions that remain clearly in the mind.
 
The artist explored the nonlinear structure of time—past, present, and future—by using the entire exhibition space to present it in three dimensions. Sculptures inspired by the artist’s mother’s hands greet the audience outdoors, followed by the sudden appearance of the "Dead Bird" work, evoking a strangely detached and surreal sensation from reality. 

The works that continue as the audience ascends the stairs blend reality and illusion in various spots, drawing the audience into the boundary between the artist’s subconscious and conscious.

In this way, Goyoson understands his sculptures through relational interactions with their surrounding entities and actively embraces the changes that arise in this process. His sculptures, which freely engage with their environment, continuously expand their boundaries and suggest new possibilities for sculpture.

 "When I approach, expand, and wish to convey a sensation, I think of it as the process of planting a seed inside the body of the person who encounters that sensation. So, I don’t think there’s an immediate massive expansion or transformation of sensation when people experience, see, or feel my work, and that’s okay. (…)
 
I hope that when they return to their individual lives, the seed I’ve planted will eventually sprout somewhere. Over time, it may grow into a sprout, bear fruit, and gradually break the habits that were deeply embedded in their bodies, one by one. I hope to slowly create a space where even a small sensation can be felt in the space that breaks those habits.” (Goyoson, Interview for the *c-lab 5.0 Project at Coreana Museum of Art)

Goyoson, who majored in Oriental painting, has ventured beyond painting to present various forms of sculptural installations incorporating poetry, performance, and other mediums. His solo exhibitions include 《Blue Ginkgo》 (Laheen Gallery, Seoul, 2024), 《Alongside》 (Kimsechoong Museum, Seoul, 2024), 《6 Ways to Delicately Stack and Sincerely Destroy》 (Six Dessert Stores (Wonhyeongdeul, Seomgwang Bar, Munumi, Tove, Simdelung, Sous le gui), Seoul, 2022), and 《Michel》 (AlterSide, Seoul, 2021). 

He has also participated in numerous group exhibitions, such as 《Random Access Project 4.0》 (Nam June Paik Art Center, Yongin, 2025), 《DOOSAN Art Lab Exhibition 2025》 (DOOSAN Gallery, Seoul, 2025), 《MaTEriDeLIA》 (Mirae Building, Seoul, 2024), 《END vs AND》 (PS CENTER, Seoul, 2024), 《Three Yesterday Nights》 (Perigee Gallery, Seoul, 2023), 《Postmodern Children》 (Busan Museum of Contemporary Art, Busan, 2023), and 《Sculptural Impulse》 (Buk-Seoul Museum of Art, Seoul, 2022).

References

• 고요손, Goyoson (Artist’s Instagram) :
• 아트렉쳐, 고요손: 그가 아닌 그들 그리고 <미셸> :
• PS CENTER, 제일 뒤가 가장 앞이다 (PS CENTER, End vs And) :
• 디자인프레스, 조각가 고요손이 깎아낸 감각의 세계, 2021.07.13:
• 코리아나미술관, *c-lab 5.0 프로젝트 X 고요손 《Milky Way》 (Coreana Museum of Art, *c-lab 5.0 Project X Goyoson 《Milky Way》) :
• 북서울미술관, 조각 충동 (Buk-Seoul Museum of Art, Sculptural Impulse) :
• 김세중미술관, 곁 (Kimsechoong Museum, Alongside) :
• 라흰갤러리, 푸른 은행잎 (Laheen Gallery, Blue Ginkgo) :
• 두산아트센터, 두산아트랩 전시 2025 (DOOSAN Art Center, DOOSAN Art Lab Exhibition 2025) :