October 9, 2025
Written and recorded by Gallery & Curatorial Fellow Eva Llopiz
Throughout a big portion of the exhibit, Yun dabbles in this idea of rage through several different portraits of an amalgamation of women we commonly know as “Karen”. Pulling images from real life viral clips and videos, the artist works to come face-to-face with these women and make the viewer understand their anger and pain. It puts the observer in a position to feel an odd and unsettling mix between sympathy and judgment. What caused these women to unleash so much rage? Would I react the same way? Am I a bad person for enjoying the woeful misery of a woman I have never seen before? Should I feel bad for these women, or am I allowed to laugh? Yun describes her depictions of these “Karens” to be a bit petty, as she feels that she would never be able to get away with the same thing these women do. However, they are put forth to be a spectacle for entire masses to watch, replay, repost, and spread, which is very cathartic and humorous for many. The aim of these is to allow the outsider to look within themselves, and possibly allow oneself to fall into the same rage that these women so freely express on a day to day basis.
In Super Saiyan Karen, Yun wanted to compare the anger of the white woman to that of anger portrayed in Anime, specifically Dragon Ball. She mentioned that as a child, she was never too interested in this show, but there were certain aspects of it that stuck with her into adulthood. When animated, these characters drastically change their demeanor, and typically, their hair dramatically spikes up to show their pronounced anger. Similarly, these “Karens” also drastically change their demeanors by contorting their faces and using their voices to yell. By mixing the two, Yun accurately shows the cartoonish rage with a portrait of a real woman yelling at a basketball game. Whatever caused this rage is evoking such an intense feeling, to the point where she goes “Super Saiyan”. She could destroy everything in her path if she very well wanted to, though many aren’t afraid of this rage. Rather, we view it as something humorous, something we don’t take super seriously, because these women are in such a privileged position of power.