Long Tail Halo: CTCS #2

Long Tail Halo: CTCS #2, a humanoid figure in a contrapposto stance, recalls bodily, mechanical, and architectural archetypes in art history, from Greek and Roman Classical statuary to Cubist and Futurist art. One of four sculptures created for The Met’s fifth installment of the Facade Commission (newly named The Genesis Façade Commission in 2024), Long Tail Halo: CTCS #2 marks a new chapter in Korean artist Lee Bul’s playful engagement with global art history, popular culture, and technology to address the practice of sculpture and the human condition. Made of a stainless-steel armature underneath layers of industrial plastic and coating that create its disjointed shape and volume, the headless, armless sculpture is all assembled by hand. The muted sheen of its surface, with traces of black paint underneath a greenish white, mimic patinated metal or porcelain. While its surface appearance and flightless state suggest distress, the figure’s posture and elegant color signal hope and defiance. At once classical and futuristic, forthcoming and elusive, Long Tail Halo: CTCS #2 employs Lee Bul’s signature language of ambiguity to reveal lessons from histories past while facing toward the future.