Mirae kh Rhee Hand-me-down

What do we see in museums? Displayed in glass cases and behind barriers, these objects appear, above all, static. Mirae kh Rhee explores how these objects came to be in their current locations. The artist questions who collects (or collected) what and why, and what messages are conveyed through collections of all kinds. Not least due to the mobility of people, collection objects – just like those who created, noticed, preserved and passed them on – have a turbulent history behind them!

Mirae kh Rhee is an interdisciplinary and research-based artist working in Germany, California and South Korea. Drawing on her own diasporic identity, she explores themes such as collecting practices and histories, forced migration and cultural appropriation in her artistic work, and tells autoethnographic stories.

The current presentation is part of a long-term project that examines the concept of cabinets of curiosities from the perspective of transnational feminism and through decolonial approaches. In it, Mirae kh Rhee sheds light on established collection narratives and takes a critical look at collecting practices between Europe and Asia. She analyses elitist collection concepts that serve to demonstrate power and construct identity. Visitors to the exhibition are invited to reflect on their own practices of collecting.

Exhibition publication

A brochure will be published following the exhibition opening and will also be available to download on this page.

Curator

The exhibition is curated by Uta Rahman Steinert of the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, in collaboration with the artist.