CONCRETE OASIS: Beyond The Sunrise

APRIL 24 AND MAY 1, 2025, THE GRAND LA, 8 P.M. TO 10 P.M. IMMERSIVE INSTALLATION

As part of the group exhibition CONCRETE OASIS: Beyond The Sunrise presents a temporary, site-specific installation that confronts the mirage of the American Dream and the false promises embedded within neoliberal urban culture. By projecting the image of an oasis onto concrete, the piece embodies the contradiction of seeking paradise within the very structures that entrap us.

Using the architecture of the Grand LA, the installation reconstructs the building’s windows into a single oversized frame—an exaggerated portal through which a glowing sunset appears, suspended just out of reach. In front of this illusion stands a hyperreal beach scene: artificial sand, chairs, and staged calm. As visitors pass by, their silhouettes merge with those projected within the scene, blurring the line between physical presence and digital fantasy. This merging points to the desire to enter the oasis, to integrate with its aesthetic and promise. But the separation remains—the window divides, and the projection cannot be touched.

Through this encounter, Beyond The Sunrise reflects on the human yearning to escape the relentless pace and pressure of city life. It questions whether fulfillment, rest, and serenity can ever be more than projections—aesthetic surfaces that ultimately dissolve when approached. The work speaks to a personal and collective sense of disillusionment, revealing the oasis not as a destination, but as a fleeting image slipping off concrete walls.