Gourd / Skull (2026)
Gourd / Skull is an immersive audiovisual work proposing a slower, meditative engagement with technology. The work features a looped animation fading between a gourd and a skull, serving as an allegory for the Korean monk Wonhyo's realization that truth and reality are constructed by the mind. Visually, the piece utilizes custom shader code in p5.js to create the aesthetic of a glitchy, corrupted CRT monitor. The unstable synchronization and chromatic aberration represent the unreliable nature of human perception and illustrate how metaphysical truths are transmitted, albeit imperfectly, through the lens of modern digital media.
Empty Network (2024, rev. 2026)
Empty Network explores the intersection of Zen Buddhist metaphysics and the inherent opacity of artificial intelligence. The visual component features a 3D model of the “Iron Seated Buddha” from the National Museum of Korea. The audio and visuals are manipulated through control signals derived from machine learning analysis of the Heart Sutra, where the text is converted into numerical embeddings. This technical process was developed in collaboration with machine learning engineer Sohyun Shin. While traditional sonification aims to make data perceivable, this work operationalizes the “black box” problem of deep learning. By treating these inherently opaque text embeddings as a source of aesthetic noise rather than extractable meaning, the piece subverts the algorithm's intended function and turns its lack of interpretability into a feature.
The 108 Defilements of the Mind (2024, rev. 2025)
The 108 Defilements of the Mind is a nonsectarian digital meditation on the ubiquity of short-form content. Programmed in TouchDesigner, the visuals depict traditional Korean Buddhist prayer beads (yeomju), referencing the 108 defilements that obstruct enlightenment. To create the complementary video effects, AI models (Claude and Gemini) were invited to propose visual processes responding to the work's contemplative framework. The piece uses identical audiovisual elements but expands temporally from a five-second duration to nine minutes, examining how time fundamentally alters meaning and perception. By directly interrogating our contemporary relationship with attention, the work proposes slowness as both a form of resistance and a revelation within an increasingly compressed media ecology.