When The New York Times named Lotus L. Kang one of ten "breakout stars" of 2024, they were merely confirming what visitors to the Whitney Biennial already knew. Her installation "In Cascades" (2023) – unfixed photo film draped over industrial steel scaffolding – created an experience of rare beauty and conceptual rigor.
The Artist: Material Philosopher
Born in 1985 in Canada with Korean heritage, Kang approaches materials as philosophical propositions. Her use of unfixed photographic film – emulsion that continues to change with exposure to light – transforms the gallery into a site of ongoing transformation. Nothing is stable; everything is becoming something else.
The Work: Monuments to Impermanence
"In Cascades" featured translucent film in warm amber and cool blue tones suspended from metal structures, creating an environment that shifts with lighting conditions and the passage of time. The work is simultaneously monumental and ephemeral – present enough to fill a room, vulnerable enough to change before your eyes.
The Breakthrough: Guggenheim Fellowship
A Guggenheim Fellowship preceded her Whitney triumph. Representation by Esther Schipper, Commonwealth and Council, Catriona Jeffries, and James Cohan ensures her work reaches global audiences. Art Basel declared her one of the "alchemies" reshaping contemporary art.
Why Now? The Beauty of Change
In a culture obsessed with permanence and preservation, Kang's embrace of transformation feels radical. Her work acknowledges that we, too, are unfixed – constantly developing, light-sensitive, subject to time.
Conclusion: Embracing Ephemerality
Lotus L. Kang's practice offers a meditation on impermanence that feels deeply necessary. Her rising profile suggests audiences are hungry for art that acknowledges the beauty of change.