Taehyun Bang
he/him
Bucheon-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
Taehyun Bang is a native Korean metalsmith and currently working in South Korea. Bang received his MFA for Metalsmithing & Jewelry from The University of Kansas and received BFA for Metalwork & Jewelry from Kookmin University, South Korea.
“I create my own artwork using my metalsmithing technique as a native visual language. I call myself ‘a contemporary metalsmith’ and my projects are often collaged with other areas of art, including an installation and a performance.
The main message that I am going to convey is ‘relativity of use.’. I believe the meaning of the ‘utilitarian function’ can be different for each individual, so the functions of my objects are becoming a medium of expression often.
My works are about the making itself and the attitude toward it. I challenge the prejudice and boundaries of the craft with them.”
"These objects are fucking functional", 14k copper gold (rose gold), silver, 14k gold plated on sheet of brass, various, 2024What does being queer mean to you in relation to your material choices? Is it something you consider?
“Gold, Silver, and Copper are representative materials to show a hierarchy or ranking. I intentionally used those materials as a metaphor to talk about the invisible social class among human beings."
"These objects are fucking functional", 14k copper gold (rose gold), 5" x 2.5" x 2.5", 2024
Is the work queer because the maker is queer, or is it queer because the subject matter is queer?
“My subject of matter started from the consideration for the minority of humans and metaphorically expressed it by using sexually functional objects. Like human beings, there is also an invisible hierarchy among the mundane objects. As an example, people regard a silver teapot as something elegant and boastful to show, but sexual props are treated as something they want to hide and uncomfortable to reveal who the user is. However, the Goliath size of the anal plug is much more utilitarian and has a more important function for some people. It is just a matter of preference, but uncommon.”
"These objects are fucking functional", Silver, 6" x 2.7" x 2.7", 2024
Anything else you would like to share about this work? This can be an important part of the process, sourcing materials, or research.
“I satirically expressed the idea that ‘the meaning or importance of utilitarian function can be different by individuals’ by suggesting luxury and hand-crafted sexual objects.
The material that I have used to make the main form is a sheet of brass. Each of the anal plugs is made of raised and chased sheet metals and combined together with bolts and nuts. As the anal plugs have a hollow form and separable structure, they have proper weight to ‘wear’ and can be cleaned conveniently. The metals that I have plated on them (14K copper gold, Silver, and 14K gold) are safe for the human body, even inside of the anal. They are literally ‘fucking functional’ as I engraved on the bottom of each work.
The faces on the Goliath anal plugs are showing an expression of ‘ahegao’, which is used to depict a person having an orgasm in Japanese Anime. It helps to stimulate the inside of the wear’s body and gives bigger pleasure when their size is also getting bigger. I intended to expand the boundary of metalsmithing or craft like the wearers are expanding their size of anal. It will work slowly, but definitely."
"These objects are fucking functional", 14k gold plated on sheet of brass, 7" x 3" x 3", 2024