Eunkang Koh, a local printmaker, multimedia artist, and professor, let us visit her studio and get a glimpse of her practice and latest inspirations. In February 2024, Koh’s work was also showcased as part of the HP Billboard Gallery, her piece A Bevy of Quail, 2023 was on view at Kietzke Lane & Gentry Way.
Koh’s latest body of work revolves around themes of the Nevada Desert and her newfound relationship with it thanks, in part, to her dog Cookie. “I didn’t think too much about nature, especially nature in Nevada. I think she (Cookie) opened up this whole world that I didn’t see. Honestly, I just looked at the desert and I didn’t know how beautiful it was. Before, it looked just brown, but once you start walking, every season different flowers are blooming.”
Eunkang and Cookie’s walks through the desert inspired her through the wildlife they would interact with. She found much inspiration from the covey of quails and packs of coyotes that roam through the hills behind their neighborhood.
Koh’s work has a strong theme of hybrid animals and humans. “This is like an animal I see, but I try to see human in it. And it’s very much my perspective.”
As a professor and an artist, Koh tries to balance her practice with teaching by finding time wherever she can to work on her art. On Fridays, Koh opens up the print-making studio to students to work in the space. “I tell them (the students), like I would love to hang out with you in the studio. Just I don’t want to feel like a teacher and I don’t want you to feel like a student, we are just artists and we print together as a community.” Eunkang enjoys providing a space for artists to come together as equals. She has even been hosting Fiber Fridays in the print lab to give a home for the Tight Knit artist group to work, collaborate, and organize events.
2023 was an eventful year for Koh with a solo show at Western Nevada College and a collaborative show with Matt Weidman in South Korea. “So I was thinking, if I can do all that, I can do anything. Right? I didn’t think I could do another show to be honest. I was so exhausted. It’s so funny once you start, like you want to keep doing it.”
She is continuing the momentum with a couple more shows and residencies coming up. Koh recently reconnected with an old friend from her time in Long Beach, and was offered a three-week residency to show her work for an upcoming exhibition in Billings, Montana in the Northcutt Steele Gallery at Montana State University. She will also be exhibiting work in Korea later this year.
So much gratitude to Eunkang for giving us a glimpse into her studio and practice. Follow her on instagram @eunkangkohart and check out her website www.eunkangkoh.net for more works and upcoming projects.