ABOUT

Yeonhee Cheong is a Madison, WI-based visual artist who explores the visual language of human bodies in society through various media, including printmaking, painting, and fiber art. Born in South Korea, she studied fashion design at Seoul National University and the Fashion Institute of Technology. Cheong initially worked as a fashion designer before pursuing an MFA in Design Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Cheong has been invited to participate in national and international exhibitions such as those organized by the Surface Design Association, International Textile Apparel Association, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art, Overture Center for the Arts, Arts + Literature Laboratory, Indiana Art Center and Inko Centre in Chennai, India. She has received several honors, including being named a finalist for the Forward Art Prize from the Women Artists Forward Fund and winning the Best of Show award at the Indianapolis Art Center. Additionally, she recently secured a juried public art commission and successfully installed her work at the Pinney branch of the Madison Public Library.

Artist Statement

When I moved to Madison sixteen years ago, I encountered the Wisconsin prairie for the first time and fell in love with it. The beauty offered me a deep sense of solace, different from the joy found in meticulously manicured gardens. The prairie told me that I am inherently valuable just as I am. Before this revelation, I had navigated my life in the U.S. with a constant awareness of being a foreigner and non-native speaker. This self-consciousness added layers of tension and anxiety to my daily experiences. However, the prairie and the gardening ventures in Wisconsin prompted me to reflect on who judges me and whether I am merely a ‘weed’ or ‘invasive species’ to be pulled off. This realization sparked an awareness that I am already a part of the Wisconsin phenomenon and an integral member of this community. It empowered me to speak up and assert myself in various aspects of my life. Wisconsin embraces me and I enrich Wisconsin. The visual vocabulary rooted in botany became the cornerstone of my artistic expression, particularly in addressing the experience of women, in various media from painting to fiber art which had been dominantly known as women’s area.