Soyoung Shin’s Residency Art Presentation
From November to December 2024, Soyoung Shin, an artist born in the United States in 1988, was in residence at the TESA Creative Center. Her early performance works were rooted in the memories of growing up as the daughter of Korean immigrants in the U.S. Her artistic creations include a reality TV dating show, a ten-act play performed in an inflatable castle, and wigs made from her own hair.
Since 2019, Soyoung had dedicated most of her time to a career transition, leaving little time for artistic pursuits. In the winter of 2024, she decided to take a break from work to restart her art practice in Taiwan.
During her first visit to Taiwan, Soyoung moved away from her previous approaches—using performance art, handmade crafts, and costumes to communicate heavy themes in accessible ways. At the TESA Creative Center, she experimented with plaster as her medium, weaving bamboo, carving miniature models, and employing the concept of plaster casting. She responded to the environment and space by incorporating her bodily perception and relationship with nature.
Over the 45-day residency at the TESA Creative Center, Soyoung created 24 works. The residency culminated in a showcase that combined an exhibition of the works with an open studio session. During the event, the artist shared her creative process and insights from the residency with the audience.
In Search of Silent Thoughts:
Nessim Cohen Residency Art Presentation
Sessions: 2024 July 26, July 27, July 28
Ceremony process:
14:30-14:50 Guest check-in
15:00-16:00 Tea ceremony sessions
16:00-17:30 Exchange tea party
For this exhibition and performances, Nessim explores the theme of the subconscious and its desires. What makes us move, what is created inside of us, beyond our consciousness? Nessim Cohen is a Paris-based performance and mixed-media artist with a background in philosophy, ceramics, calligraphy, and the Japanese tea ceremony. He studied in Japan for over 2 years with ceramists such as Sasaki Kyoshitsu Shouraku IV and several tea artists. Since returning to Europe 7 years ago, his artistic journey has been fueled by a desire to develop his own aesthetic and rituals. Quietness lies at the heart of Nessim's work. This tranquility can only be born through a reconnection with our natural world and inner self. In recent years, he has sought to express the beauty of what is already there, perhaps of what is not there for long anymore. While the tea ceremony served as his canvas for many years, he is now exploring new kinds of mediums such as painting with clay and collage, to channel this.
