Mimi O Chun: It's all cake
September 4, 2021 – January 23, 2022
Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art
Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art
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New York-based artist Mimi O Chun’s soft sculptures recontextualize images and ideas from popular culture to reflect on the values we collectively adopt, perpetuate, and create. Chun, a self-proclaimed media junkie, informs her artwork by visually and critically reinterpreting the news and internet memes, as well as pulling from theories of late capitalism and art history.
Mimi O Chun: It’s all cake presents new works made by the artist during the COVID-19 pandemic, adding yet another layer to the artist’s practice of social and political commentary in the form of sculpture. The title, It’s all cake, speaks to the absurdity of online consumption, where fun gimmicks distract from deeper issues such as the ongoing pandemic and socio-political divides. Specifically, it refers to memes of illusion cakes that look like everyday objects. The title also suggests moments in history when political leaders distanced their ideologies from the reality of their constituents. For example, Marie Antoinette’s famous phrase “let them eat cake” during times of famine and political unrest in 18th century France. Today, one might proclaim “let them watch illusion cake memes” diverting attention from the crucial topics of our time. Organized by Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art (SMoCA) and curated by Lauren R. O’Connell, curator of contemporary art. Mimi O Chun is an artist and designer based in New York. Her work has been published in Fast Company, Bon Appétit, White Zinfandel, Gather Journal, and Makeshift magazine. Chun is a frequent lecturer and critic at various universities, such as Parsons School of Design at The New School and The Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP) at Columbia University. She earned her bachelor of fine arts from Carnegie Mellon University and master of Fine Arts from Yale School of Art.
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