‘Ahn Chang-Hong: noon-mool’ asks us to keep our eyes open in a world increasingly accustomed to looking away
Washington, D.C. — The first U.S. solo exhibition of influential Korean contemporary artist Ahn Chang-Hong opens Sept. 5 at the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center. “Ahn Chang-Hong: noon-mool,” on view through Dec. 6, brings together monumental paintings, photography-based works and three-dimensional installations that explore the sorrow of contemporary life and the enduring possibility of empathy. Ahn’s work is deeply rooted in Korea’s social and political history while addressing questions that transcend geography.
The exhibition will occupy two floors at the museum and showcase the full scope of Ahn’s recent work. At its center is the newest “Taxidermy” series, in which Ahn layers paint over photographs of taxidermized animals. The larger-than-life works pair unsettling images of discarded taxidermized animals with vivid, monochromatic backgrounds. Some feature painted tears on animals including a fawn, badger and langur, confronting viewers with depictions of grief and vulnerability. Other works place a range of animals alongside human mannequins and anatomical figures.
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Image Credit: Ahn Chang-Hong, “Paradise 2024’1,” 2024. Mixed media on photo panel, 300 x 426 cm,
118.1 x 167.7 in.