A glass riot shield, splattered, and silvered to a reflective surface: a tool of social control, and a symbol for the demarcation of social values, transformed into a delicate vehicle for introspection. The physical form of Untitled (9.27.13) (2013) can't help but remind us of resistance and battle, yet Joo would like us to imagine that the meanings and purposes of physical reality need not be fixed; nor must our relationships to science, nature, and each other.

Why do we perceive as we perceive? Michael Joo (b. 1966, USA) has a non-linear, almost cyclical approach to his practice. Together with his combination of scientific language and research, this results in work that is a documentation of process.

Whether chemically treated, silver-coated or photo-based, Joo’s artwork combines a range of techniques associated with sculpture, painting, photography and print-making. He continues to blur the boundaries between art and science through his investigation into ontology, epistemology and entropy; creating a cross-disciplinary and multi-dimensional dialogue to engage, question, meditate and explore.

Michael Joo received his MFA from the Yale School of Art, Yale University, New Haven, in 1991, after graduating with a BFA from Washington University, St Louis, 1989.