Betty Sungwon Yoon

About

Betty Sungwon Yoon is a textile designer and researcher specialising in printed textiles. Her creative process aims to explore the boundaries between nature and humanity, a boundary revealed in her dedication to fostering meaningful communication through sensory experiences.

As a printer, she is deeply concerned about using numerous dyes and print pastes, striving to raise awareness about the environmental pollution and harm these chemicals cause to nature. Therefore, she explores the relationship between nature and chemicals and transcends traditional surface-based printed textiles by applying devoré to create texture and form. By drawing viewers into the tactile realm of exploration and discovery, she seeks to provoke a deeper connection with the natural world.

Her project, “Will You Ever Listen?” (2024) reframes the perception of nature from static matter to an ever-changing entity and sentient being. Inspired by the survival strategies of red plants, she aims to criticise human attitudes towards the invasion and indiscriminate consumption of nature through chemical substances. This project originated from her profound self-reflective question, “If I were a plant, what visual narrative would I use to assert and protect myself?”

Her textile pieces exhibit vivid colours in solitude, yet they harmoniously blend with natural elements in a broader social context, mirroring the symbiosis between plants and their environment. Her works express individuality while seamlessly assimilating into society. Thus, her work reconsiders the relationship between nature and humanity, prompting deep reflection on how we interact with the environment.