‘Hiro is Everywhere’ by Taewon Ahn: The Eschewed Portrayal of Animals on the Internet
South Korean artist Taewon Ahn has been gaining fame with a series of sculptures and paintings of his cat Hiro. The series of works, titled Hiro is Everywhere, was inspired by meme culture and humorous anime, which he grew up with. Depictions of Hiro in his sculptures and paintings have been distorted and stretched out of shape as if seen through mirrors at a fun house. These sculptures also have a low-poly appearance to them. Low-poly is a digital 3D modelling technique where a small number of polygons are used to create a piece. This means the sculptures and paintings mimic the aesthetics of video game characters from the early 2000s, allowing people to immediately recognize them as digital creations and not real-life beings.
In an interview with Puss Puss Magazine, Ahn shared that for him, these sculptures emulate his close relations with Hiro. After growing up without pets, Hiro has taught him that human-animal connections exceed his expectations which were set by popular media. His relationship with Hiro reaches depths that no anime nor movie can portray, as animals and humans are more alike than most people can imagine.
Yet, on the other side of the coin, the low-poly quality of the sculptures and paintings recall aesthetics that are now often found online, especially in memes. When put into context with Ahn’s allusion that the sculptures and paintings are about human-animal connections, the artworks become a tool to ask audiences to think critically about the distorted narratives of human-animal connections found on the internet. For example, digital content creators worldwide have been found mistreating animals for the sake of profit. This is why Hiro is Flexible by Taewon Ahn is relevant to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure and Life on Land.
The World Animal Protection (WAP) has found that one of the most adverse effects of animal content on social media is that it has been driving the demand for exotic pets, especially endangered animals such as lions and tigers. The Asia for Animals Social Media Animal Cruelty Coalition (SMACC) also documented that in one year, 5,480 individual links containing animal cruelty were found across YouTube, Facebook and TikTok, with views totalling 5.3 billion. All these numbers show a need for social media literacy to include animal welfare and the ethical treatment of animals, as Hiro is Everywhere promotes.
Therefore, Taewon Ahn’s Hiro is Everywhere series is a thought-provoking exploration of the human-animal bond in the digital age. By blending the aesthetics of early 2000s video game graphics with the playful distortions of meme culture, Ahn challenges viewers to rethink their perceptions of animals in art and online spaces. His work not only celebrates the deep, authentic connection he shares with his cat Hiro but also critiques the distorted narratives perpetuated by the internet, where animals are often misrepresented or exploited for entertainment and profit.
Find out more about Hiro is Everywhere and other pieces by Taewon Ahn on his P TWO ONE Gallery page or Instagram @ppuri_.