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Los Angeles Times
Around the Galleries
January 27, 2006
Following lines that connect us
For decades, maps and mapping have provided conceptual mooring for artists' work. In her solo debut, Da-hee Lim turns to systems of telephone poles, power lines and other tangible signs of social connectivity to create abstract maps. But as representations of complex, often charged relations, the work is too vague and diffuse.
The strongest aspect of the show, which includes three pieces in three small rooms at Kristi Engle Gallery, is its formal inventiveness. One work is painted on a clear, suspended plexi-glass cube. Another is painted on a room's surrounding surfaces (including the floor and windows). The third is a table top of movable tiles, like a child's puzzle. Inside, outside and a space of mental gymnastics are all nicely implied.
Yet the tangle of directional arrows and power poles, painted in dark lines on mostly pale blue and cream backgrounds, seems to meander aimlessly. There may be some hidden, personal route being followed, but there's little incentive for a viewer to pursue it.
-Christopher Knight
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