The human body is a complex system and yet Korea-based artist Yeong-Deok Seo’s figurative sculptures manage to capture its intricacies. His realistic models are comprised of bicycle chains and industrial steel links carefully sculpted and welded together to mimic the human body.
The figures have a definite, recognizable silhouette from a distance. However, up close, the sculptures have a cold, textured surface because of the chains are completely hollowed out. Seo purposely constructed them this way to make a poignant message. His work is in response to the growing obsession with the mechanical world. According to Seo, everyone is consumed with their arbitrary devices and themselves, resulting in a race of incomplete humans that lack emotion. It’s a dark interpretation of the modern day human.