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Title Page

Abstract

Contents

Introduction 17

Chapter One What is Postmodernism? : Korean Postmodern Art and the Debates on Postmodernism in Korea 42

South Korean Society and the Art World from the Late 1980s to the Early 1990s 45

Postmodernism as an Alternative to the Formalist Modernism 55

Postmodernism as a Form of Critical Resistance 71

Lee Bul as a "Sinsedae [New Generation]'' Artist 87

Chapter Two Is There a Korean Feminist Art? "Yŏsŏng misul [Women's Art]'' and Postmodern Feminist Art 104

"Yŏsŏng misul [Women's Art]'' in the 1980s 108

Postmodern Feminist Art in the 1990s 136

Lee Bul's Feminist Performance: Thinking Difference beyond the framework of the 80s Political Yŏsŏng misul VS the 90s Postmodern Feminist Art 158

Chapter Three How Does the Subaltern Artist Speak? 171

1. Cyborg without Gender, Race, or Class: Cyberfeminism and Postcolonialism 171

2. Globalization, Global feminism, and the Korean Woman Artist 201

Conclusion How to Speak in the Globalized Art World: In-Between Specificity and Universality 231

Bibliography 421

List of Figures

Figure 1.1. Lee Bul, Majestic Splendor, 1997. Fish, sequins, potassium permanganate, Mylar... 270

Figure 1.2. Lee Bul, Majestic Splendor (detail), 1997. 271

Figure 1.3. Lee Bul, Majestic Splendor, 1997. Gold thread, synthetic hair, fish, sequins, lilies,... 272

Figure 1.4. Lee Bul, Cyborg Red and Blue, 1997-1998. Cast silicone, paint pigment, steel pipe... 273

Figure 1.5. Lee Bul, Cyborg W1-W4, 1999. Installation view of the 48th Venice Biennial.[이미지참조] 274

Figure 1.6. Lee Bul, Monster: Black, 1998/2011. Fabric, cotton filling, stainless-steel frame,... 275

Figure 1.7. Lee Bul, Monster: Pink, 1988/2011. Fabric, cotton filling, stainless-steel frame,... 276

Figure 1.8. Lee Bul, Mon Grand Récit: Weep into Stones..., 2005. Polyurethane, foamex,... 277

Figure 1.9. Photograph of the June Democratic Uprising in 1987. 278

Figure 1.10. Photograph of the 1st McDonald's restaurant opened in Apgujeong-dong, South...[이미지참조] 279

Figure 1.11. Photograph of the 24th Seoul Olympics in 1988. 280

Figure 1.12. Exhibition catalogue of "Olympiad of Art" in 1988, cover. 281

Figure 1.13. Exhibition catalogue of "Contemporary Art from New York" (Ho-am Gallery... 282

Figure 1.14. Exhibition catalogue of "American Postmodern Art" (Ho-am Gallery, April 10-... 283

Figure 1.15. Exhibition catalogue of "Whitney Biennale in Seoul" (National Museum of... 284

Figure 1.16. The first issue of Gana Art, 1988. 285

Figure 1.17. The first issue of Wŏlgan misul [Monthly Art], 1989. 286

Figure 1.18. Pak Sŏ-bo (b. 1931), Ecritures No. 10-79-83, 1979. Pencil and oil on hemp cloth,... 287

Figure 1.19. Yun Hyŏng-kŭn (1928-2007), Umber-Blue, 1975. Oil on cotton, 130 x 181.3. cm. 288

Figure 1.20. Ha Chong-hyŏn (b. 1935), Work 77-15, 1977. Mixed media, 129 x 167 cm. 289

Figure 1.21. Ch'oe Myŏng-yŏng (b. 1941), Sign of Equality 75-05, 1975. Oil on canvas, 117 x 91 cm. 290

Figure 1.22. O Yun, Marketing I-Hell Painting, 1980. Mixed media on canvas, 131 x 162 cm... 291

Figure 1.23. Lee Chong-gu (b. 1954, a member of Imsulnyŏn [The Year Imsul]), Jung Soon from... 292

Figure 1.24. Durŏn [Levee], We Will Be One on One Way in the End, 1983. Ink and danchŏng... 293

Figure 1.25. Yun Myong-jae (a member of Nanjido), Forest, 1988. Ink, wood, 520 x 310 cm. 294

Figure 1.26. O Sang-gil, Untitled, 1989. Branches and roots of a tree, 180×310×270cm. View... 295

Figure 1.27. Mun Chu (a member of Logos and Pathos), Object-in-itself, 1988. Mixed media,... 296

Figure 1.28. Exhibition view of Sunday Seoul's "Museum" (Sonamu Gallery, August 10-20, 1990). 297

Figure 1.29. Exhibition view of Sunday Seoul's "Museum" (Sonamu Gallery, August 10-20, 1990). 298

Figure 1.30. Exhibition view of Sub Club's "Sub Document" (Tot'al Gallery, May 22-31, 1992). 299

Figure 1.31. Exhibition view of Sub Club's "Sub Document" (Tot'al Gallery, May 22-31, 1992). 300

Figure 1.32. Hyŏnsil munhwa yŏngu [Study of Reality and Culture], Apgujeong-dong: Utopia... 301

Figure 1.33. Ttohanaŭimunhwa [Another Culture], Ttohanaŭimunhwa No. 7: A Newly Written Love... 302

Figure 1.34. Hyŏnsil munhwa yŏngu, Sinsedae: Do Whatever You Want, 1993. Book cover. 303

Figure 1.35. Participants of "Ch'ŏngnyŏn chakka yŏllipjŏn [Young Artists Coalition Exhibition]"... 304

Figure 1.36. Exhibition view of Mu dongin [Nothing Artist Coterie] (Central Information... 305

Figure 1.37. Exhibition view of Sinjŏn dongin [Artist Coterie Temple] in "Ch'ŏngnyŏn chakka yŏllipjŏn." 306

Figure 1.38. Yi Sŭng-taek (a member of AG [Hanguk abanggarŭdŭ hŏphoe, Korean Avant-Guard... 307

Figure 1.39. Sŏng Nŭng-kyŏng (a member of ST [Space & Time]), An Eight-page... 308

Figure 1.40. Photograph of the collapsed Seongsu Bridge. 309

Figure 1.41. Photograph of the collapsed Sajnp'ng department store. 310

Figure 1.42. Poster of "Tosi taejung munhwa" [City, the Public, and Culture]. 311

Figure 1.43. Pogosŏ [A Report] 5, 1990. Book cover. 312

Figure 1.44. Lee Bul, My Room Has Been Closed for Centuries, 1987. Catalogue page for the... 313

Figure 1.45. Exhibition view of "Museum" (Su Gallery, August 18-24, 1987). 314

Figure 1.46. Exhibition view of "U.A.O [Unidentified Art Object]'' (Kumkang Renoire Art... 315

Figure 1.47. Lee Bul, Abortion (Dongsun Art Center, October 26-30, 1989). 316

Figure 1.48. Lee Bul, Untitled Performance, from "Art and Performance, and Human, and... 317

Figure 1.49. Sŏng Nŭng-kyŏng, An Insult to the Author, from "Art and Performance, and... 318

Figure 1.50. Lee Bul, Cravings, from "'89 The Korean Young Artists Biennial'' (National... 319

Figure 1.51. Lee Bul, Sorry for Suffering: You Think I'm a Puppy on a Picnic?, 12-day performance,... 320

Figure 1.52. Lee Bul, Fingers There! Peel That Shit off, from "Dish Washing" (Kumho Museum,... 321

Figure 2.1. Catalogue of "From a Half toward the One" (Kŭrimmadang Min, October 24-30,... 322

Figure 2.2. Yun Sŏk-nam, Even If I Have Ten Hands, 1986. Acrylic on paper, 104 x 74 cm. 323

Figure 2.3. Kim In-sun, A. Wise Mother and Good Wife, 1986. Oil on canvas, 91 x 110 cm. 324

Figure 2.4. Kim Chin-suk, Wild Chrysanthemum, 1986. Oil and pigment on canvas, 88 x 128 cm. 325

Figure 2.5. Banner of the 1st exhibition of "Woman and Reality, What Do You See?"...[이미지참조] 326

Figure 2.6. Poster of the 2nd exhibition, "Women, the Mother of the Nation! The New Era of...[이미지참조] 327

Figure 2.7. Tungji, Toward Equality, 1987. Acrylic on cloth, 400 x 250 cm. 328

Figure 2.8. Tungji, Women Workers at Maxtech (aka. The Democratic Trade Union of Maxtech), 1988.... 329

Figure 2.9. Tungji Hooray for Women Workers, 1988. Acrylic on cloth, 300 x 500 cm. 330

Figure 2.10. Tungji, Mother Worker 1, poem written by Hong Sŏng-ae 1989. Acrylic on cloth,... 331

Figure 2.11. Tungji Mother Worker 10, 1989. Acrylic on cloth, 100 x 120 cm. 331

Figure 2.12. Exhibition catalogue of "15 Years of Minjung misul" (National Museum of... 332

Figure 2.13. Women laborers from Y.H. Trading Company holding a sit-in demonstration at... 333

Figure 2.14. Leaflet of "Let's Open the Floodgate: A Meeting of Women's Liberation Poems... 334

Figure 2.15. Yun Sŏk-nam, Ko Chŏng-hŭis poem "Let's Form a Deep and Far Liver," 1987. Acrylic... 335

Figure 2.16. Pak Yŏng-suk, Rose (Based on Kang Ŭn-kyo's poem "A Nameless Flower"),... 336

Figure 2.17. Chŏng Chŏng-youp, Pak No-hae's poem "Sewing up a Duvet," 1988. Woodcut, 57 x 40 cm. 337

Figure 2.18. Ttohanaŭimunhwa [Another Culture] No. 8: Saero ssŭnŭn sŏng iyagi [A New Story of... 338

Figure 2.19. Sŏ Suk-jin, He-She, 1994. Paper, cloth, and mixed media, 87 x 120 cm. 339

Figure 2.20. Cho Kyŏng-suk, Part of Book Project, 1993. Computer graphic on sensitive paper,... 340

Figure 2.21. Ha Min-su (a member of the 30 Carat), The Wing-confined Flight II, 1994.... 341

Figure 2.22. Yi Su-kyŏng, Painting for Out of Body Travel, 1999. Acrylic on canvas, locker (life... 342

Figure 2.23. Ium, Exhibition view of the artist's solo exhibition "Red Blouse" (Boda Gallery, 1995). 343

Figure 2.24. Yun Sŏk-nam and Pak Yŏng-suk, Design for the wallpaper for As the Great... 344

Figure 2.25. Exhibition catalogue of "Women's Art Festival 99: Patjis on Parade," 1999, cover. 345

Figure 2.26. Ryu Chun-hwa, And the Rest..., 1993. Color photograph. 346

Figure 2.27. Yun Sŏk-nam, Partial drawing for the 4-person group work As the Great Mother... 347

Figure 2.28. Yu Yŏn-hi, In Thoughts, 1994. Acrylic on paper relief, 115 cm diameter. 348

Figure 2.29. Kim Wŏn-suk, On a Cliff and Under, 1993. Oil on canvas, 121 x 167 cm. 349

Figure 2.30. Kim sooja, Deductive Object, 1993. Cloth. 350

Figure 2.31. Yang Chu-hye, Untitled, 1994. Acrylic on embossed sponge, 130 x 160 cm. 351

Figure 2.32. An P'il-yŏn, The Swallowed Moon, 1994. Scissors and acryl plate, 350 x220 x 70 cm. 352

Figure 2.33. Hong Mi-sŏn, Icon (detail), 1992-1993. Mixed media. 353

Figure 2.34. O Kyŏng-hwa, Secrete, 1993. Video and computer animation, 2' 30", video... 354

Figure 2.35. "A Brief History of 30 Years of Modem Women's Art, "Part 1: Historical... 355

Figure 2.36. Chang Yŏng-mi, Yŏng-mi's Photo Studio, 1999. Photographs, mirrors, and clothes,... 356

Figure 2.37. Kim In-sun, '99 Roots, 1999. Acrylic on cloth, 245 x 234 cm. 357

Figure 2.38. Kim Nan-yŏng, Do You Want to Take a Look?, 1995. Mixed media, 54 x 64 x 39 cm. 358

Figure 2.39. Chŏng Pok-saeng, Faceless Wings, 1999. Barbie dolls, cloth, feather, etc. 359

Figure 2.40. Ham Kyŏng-a, Furniture for Dizziness, 1999. Devised glasses, sound speaker, table, etc. 360

Figure 2.41. The New Art History, Korean translation, book cover. 361

Figure 2.42. "The Feminist critique of art history," Korean translation, book cover. 362

Figure 2.43. Old Mistresses: Women, Art and Ideology, Korean translation, book cover. 363

Figure 2.44. Women, Art, and Power, Korean translation, book cover. 364

Figure 2.45. Munhwagwahak [Culture Science] No. 3 and No. 4, book cover. 365

Figure 2.46. Kyŏlhon iranŭn ideologi [The Ideology of Marriage], book cover. 366

Figure 2.47. Pak Yŏng-suk, "The Traces of Marriage on the Body," in Kyŏlhon iranŭn ideologi... 367

Figure 2.48. Yun Sŏk-nam, "Marriages in the Photo Album," in Kyŏlhon iranŭn ideologi [The... 368

Figure 2.49. Chŏng Kang-ja, Kiss Me, 1967. 369

Figure 2.50. Chŏng Kang-ja, The Murderer, 1967. Chŏng Kang-ja shaking hands with a... 370

Figure 2.51. Hangukch'ŏngnyŏnjakkayŏnhaphoe, Transparent Balloons and a Nude, 1968. 371

Figure 2.52. Sim Sŏn-hŭi, Mini 2, 1967.[이미지참조] 372

Figure 2.53. Photograph of Lee Bul's performance, The Kyŏnghyang Sinmun July 7, 1989, sec. 14. 373

Figure 2.54. Lee Bul, Artoilet II (Space Theater, 1990). Performance still. 374

Figure 2.55. Lee Bul, Diet: Diagraming III (Sagak Gallery, 1992). Performance still. 375

Figure 2.56. Photograph of Lee Bul's performance for "Woman: The Difference and the... 376

Figure 2.57. Lee Bul, Plexus, 1997-1998. Leather, sequins, beads, wire, 95 x 80 x 35 cm. 377

Figure 3.1.1. Lee Bul, Gravity Greater than Velocity, 1999 / 2000. Polycarbonate panels on... 378

Figure 3.1.2. Lee Bul, Amateurs, 1999. Video, 7' 28". 379

Figure 3.1.3. Lee Bul, Anthem, 2000. Video, 6'. 380

Figure 3.1.4. Lee Bul, Live Forever, 2001. Video 5' 15". 381

Figure 3.1.5. Lee Bul, Live Forever I, 2001. Fiberglass capsule with acoustic foam, leather... 382

Figure 3.1.6. Lee Bul, Live Forever II, 2001. Fiberglass capsule with acoustic foam, leather... 383

Figure 3.1.7. Lee Bul, Live Forever III, 2001. Fiberglass capsule with acoustic foam, leather... 384

Figure 3.1.8. Lee Bul, Amaryllis, 1999. Hand-cut polyurethane panels on aluminum armature,... 385

Figure 3.1.9. Lee Bul, Chrysalis, 2000. Hand-cut polyurethane panels on aluminum armature,... 386

Figure 3.1.10. Ghost in the Shell (1995). 387

Figure 3.1.11. Pierre Huyghe, One Million Kingdoms, part of No Ghost Just a Shell, 2001.... 388

Figure 3.1.12. Lee Bul, Theatrum orbis terrarium, 2003. Work in production at the artist's studio. 389

Figure 3.1.13. Murakami Takashi, Second Mission Project KO2, 2000. mixed media figurine... 390

Figure 3.1.14. Lee Bul, Cyborg W4, 1998. Cast silicone, polyurethane filling, paint pigment,... 391

Figure 3.1.15. Lee Bul, Supernova, 2000. Hand-cut polyurethane panels on aluminum... 392

Figure 3.1.16. VNX Matrix, "Cyberfeminist Manifesto for the 21st Century," 1991. Digital...[이미지참조] 393

Figure 3.2.1. Exhibition catalogue of "Global Feminisms: New Directions in Contemporary Art." 394

Figure 3.2.2. Exhibition catalogue of "WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution." 395

Figure 3.2.3. Timeline of Modern and Contemporary Art, Tate Modern, London, 2010. 396

Figure 3.2.4. Lee Bul, Monster Drawings: No.2, 1998. Indian ink on semi-tanslucent paper,... 397

Figure 3.2.5. Lee Bul, Ein Hungerkünstler (A Hungry Artist), 2004. Hand-cut polyurethane... 398

Figure 3.2.6. Jenny Saville, Untitled (Study), 2004. Oil on watercolor paper, 152 x 121.5. cm. 399

Figure 3.2.7. Cass Bird, I Look Just Like My Daddy, 2004. Chromogenic print, 101.6. x 76. 2 cm. 400

Figure 3.2.8. Dayanita Singh, Mona with Baby Ayesha, 1990. Gelatin silver print, 30.5 x 46 cm. 401

Figure 4.1. Lee Bul, Mekamelencolia (Entropy and Velleity No. 1), 2004. Mother-of-pearl inlay on... 402

Figure 4.2. Lee Bul, Alibi, 1994. Silicone, butterflies, hairpins, acrylic box series of 5, each 30... 403

Figure 4.3. Lee Bul, I Need you (Monument), 1996. Photo print on vinyl, air pumps, toy... 404

Figure 4.4. Lee Bul, Hydra (Monument), 1998. Photo print on vinyl air pumps, 600 cm height x... 405

Figure 4.5. Lee Bul, Hydra II (Monument), 1999. Photo print on vinyl, air pumps, 1200 x 700 x 600 cm. 406

Figure 4.6. Lee Bul, Maquette for Mon Grand Récit: Because Everything..., 2005. Foamex, plaster,... 407

Figure 4.7. Lee Bul, Thaw (Takaki Masao), 2007. Fiberglass, acrylic paint, black crystal and... 408

Figure 4.8. Lee Bul, Thaw (Takaki Masao) (detail), 2007. 409

Figure 4.9. Lee Bul, Mon Grand Récit: Weep into Stones... (detail), 2005. 410

Figure 4.10. (Left) Lee Bul, Stembau No. 3, 2007. Crystal, glass and acrylic beads on nickel... 411

Figure 4.11. Cinders $$ Embers, Stembau Nos. 3, 4, 2 above Heaven and Earth. Lee Bul, Heaven...[이미지참조] 412

Figure 4.12. Bruno Taut, The Cathedral Star, from Alpine Architecture: A Utopia, 1919. 413

Figure 4.13. Lee Bul, After Bruno Taut (Beware the Sweetness of Things), 2007. Crystal, glass and... 414

Figure 4.14. Bruno Taut, The Crystal Mountain, from Alpine Architecture: A Utopia, 1919. 415

Figure 4.15. Lee Bul, Aubade. 2007. Aluminum structure, LED lights, electrical wiring, crystal... 416

Figure 4.16. Bruno Taut, Monument des Neuen Gesetzes [Monument to the New Law], 1919. 417

Figure 4.17. Exhibition view of "Lee Bul: On Every New Shadow" at Fondation Cartier pour... 418

Figure 4.18. Bruno Taut, Glass Pavilion, 1914. 419

Figure 4.19. Lee Bul, Bunker (M. Bakhtin), 2007. Cast fiberglass on stainless steel frame,... 420

초록보기

This dissertation serves two purposes: first, to examine how a non-Western woman artist can speak in a globalized art world; second, to analyze the critical discourses of Korean contemporary art starting from the late 1980s - postmodernism, feminism, and globalization.

From the late 1980s to the early 1990s, the Korean art world encountered a significant paradigm shift. The end of the Cold War, the fall of the military dictatorship and the inauguration of a civilian government, and the advent of consumer capitalism opened a new era of cultural and artistic pluralism. At this point, postmodernism and feminism were introduced to the Korean art world from the Western art world. However, postmodernism and feminism in Korean art were also specific, distinct discursive formations and practices. When a Korean woman artist spoke, it was at the intersection of Korean and international (specifically Western) discourses on art.

This dissertation provides a case study of a Korean woman artist, Lee Bul (b. 1964), who has been considered an exemplary postmodern feminist artist. Chapters 1 and 2 examine the state of the discourses on postmodernism and feminist art in Korea and how such lines of thought intersected with, categorized and represented Lee's art. Chapter 1 discusses the debates over postmodernism and postmodernity between Korean modernist critics and Minjung misul [people's art] critics. By mapping this controversy, the chapter examines how discourses of Korean postmodernism defined Lee's art and what such discourses missed in the process of selecting and classifying the artist as a "new generation postmodernist." Chapter 2 examines the development of Korean feminist art and how Lee's practice was placed within the discourses of Korean feminist art. While Lee has been regarded as a new generation or postmodern feminist artist, the artist herself has refused multiple times to be named a feminist. This chapter searches for the causes of her refusal.

Chapter 3 consists of two sections. The first section examines essays on Lee's art in international journals and catalogues, in order to grasp how the artist's works have been classified and defined outside Korea. Lee's interviews are also examined to see what differences can be found between the artist's own interpretation of her practice and interpretations by critics in Korea and abroad. The focus here is on the artist's Cyborgs, Monsters, and Anagrams - combinations of cyborgs and monsters - in relation to Donna Haraway's "A Manifesto for Cyborgs" and debates in cyberfeminism. The second section focuses on the mechanisms of art institutions in the global era, which have created the international brand name "Lee Bul." With reference to Julian Stallabrass's Art Incorporated: The Story of Contemporary Art and David Harvey's concept of "time-space compression" as elaborated in The Condition of Postmodernity: An Enquiry into the Origins of Cultural Change, this section questions the utopian promotion of globalization, showing that even recent exhibitions that have attempted to escape a Euro-American narrative of feminist art have fallen into a dubious uniformity. This section also discusses the trend of internationalization in the Korean art scene since the end of the 1980s - the starting point of Korean biennales, international art fairs, and the growth of the art market.

Drawing on Homi Bhabha's postcolonialist concept of "mimicry," the final chapter attempts to answer the question, how can a Korean woman artist speak in the globalized art world? This section looks at Lee's dystopian architectural models, which, starting from 2005, incorporated symbols of Korean modern history, as well as utopian Western symbols of modernist development. How can a non-Western woman artist have her say while both appealing to the interests of the globalized art world and challenging the Western malecentered art world with a different voice?

이 논문의 목적은 두 가지이다. 비서구권 여성 미술가가 세계화된 미술계에서 어떻게 발언할 수 있는가를 모색하는 한편, 1980년대 말부터 시작된 한국 현대 미술의 몇 가지 주요 담론들—포스트모더니즘, 페미니즘, 세계화—을 분석하는 것이다.

1980년대 말부터 1990년대 초, 한국 미술계는 중요한 패러다임의 전환을 맞았다. 냉전 시대의 종식, 군부 독재의 몰락과 문민정부의 출범, 그리고 소비 자본주의의 도래와 함께 문화 예술 다원주의의 새 시대가 시작된 것이다. 이 시기에 포스트모더니즘과 페미니즘이 서구 미술계로부터 한국 미술계에 유입되었다. 그러나 한국 미술에서 포스트모더니즘과 페미니즘은 서구의 것과는 차별화된 특정한 담론으로 형성되었고 실천되었다. 한국 여성 미술가가 발언했다면, 그것은 분명 한국과 국제 (특히, 서양) 미술 담론들이 교차하는 지점에서 이루어진 것이다.

본 논문은 포스트모던 페미니즘 미술의 대표적인 예로 일컬어졌던 한국 여성 작가 이불 (1964~)을 사례로 연구한다. 1장과 2장은 한국 포스트모더니즘과 페미니즘 미술 담론의 상황과 어떻게 그 두 담론이 교차하면서 이불의 예술을 범주화하고 해석했는지를 분석한다. 1장에서는 모더니스트 평론가들과 민중미술 평론가들 사이에 벌어진 포스트모더니즘 논쟁의 지형을 살펴봄으로써, 포스트모더니즘 담론이 이불의 예술을 규정하고 '신세대 포스트모더니즘' 예술가로 선택하고 분류하는 과정에서 각 진영이 어떤 점에 주목하고 무엇을 간과했는지를 논한다. 2장에서는 한국 페미니즘 미술의 전개를 살펴보며 이불의 작업이 페미니즘 미술 담론 속에서 어떻게 배치되었는지를 검토한다. 이불이 신세대 또는 포스트모던 페미니즘 미술가로 간주된 반면에 그 자신은 수차례 페미니스트라는 호칭을 거부했다는 점은 주목할 만한데, 이 장에서는 그 이유를 찾아본다.

3장은 두 부분으로 나뉘는데, 첫 번째는 이불의 작업을 다룬 국제 학술지, 미술 잡지와 전시 도록에 수록된 글을 분석하여 이불의 예술이 해외에서 어떻게 분류되고 정의되었는지를 알아본다. 인터뷰 글도 검토하여 작가 자신의 작업에 대한 해석과 한국과 해외 각각의 비평이 어떤 차이를 보이는지도 살펴본다. 특히, 이불의 작품 중, 사이보그, 몬스터, 그리고 아나그램—사이보그와 몬스터의 조합— 시리즈에 집중하며 다나 해러웨이(Dona Haraway)의 「사이보그 선언문」과 사이버 페미니즘의 논의와 관련하여 이 문제를 다룬다. 두 번째는 '이불'이라는 국제적인 브랜드를 탄생시킨 세계화 시대의 미술 제도와 기관에 주목한다. 여기서는 유럽과 북미 중심의 페미니즘 미술에서 벗어나보려 했던 최근의 몇몇 전시들조차도 의심스러운 획일성을 드러냈음을 지적하며, 줄리안 스탈라브라스 (Julian Stallabrass)의 저서 『자본화된 미술』, 그리고 데이비드 하비 (David Harvey)의 『포스트모더니티의 조건』에 등장하는 '시공간 압축' 개념을 참조하여 세계화에 수반되리라 기대하는 유토피아적 비전에 의문을 제기한다. 또한 비엔날레, 아트 페어, 미술 시장의 성장이 시작된 1980년대 말 이후 한국 미술계에서의 국제화 경향에 대해서도 논한다.

마지막 장은 호미 바바(Homi Bhabha)의 '미미크리(mimicry)' 개념을 참조하며 '한국 여성 미술가가 어떻게 세계화된 미술계에서 말할 수 있는가'라는 질문에 하나의 답을 제시한다. 이를 위해, 한국현대사뿐 아니라 서구 모더니즘이 추구한 발전의 상징물을 포함하여 2005년부터 제작한 이불의 디스토피아적인 건축적 작업을 살펴본다. 세계화된 미술계의 관심을 끌며, 동시에 서구 남성 중심의 미술계에서 다른 목소리로, 어떻게 비서구권 여성 예술가는 말 할 수 있을까?