At a lavish party in the hills outside of San Francisco, Jin Han meets Lidija Jung and nothing will ever be the same for either woman. A brilliant young photographer, Jin is at a crossroads in her work, in her marriage to her college love Philip, and in who she is and who she wants to be. Lidija is an alluring, injured world-class ballerina on hiatus from her ballet company under mysterious circumstances. Drawn to each other by their intense artistic drives, the two women talk all night.
Cracked open, Jin finds herself telling Lidija about an old familial curse, breaking a lifelong promise. She’s been told that if she doesn’t keep the curse a secret, she risks losing everything; death and ruin could lie ahead. As Jin and Lidija become more entangled, they realize they share more than the ferocity of their ambition, and begin to explore hidden desires. Something is ignited in Jin: her art, her body, and her sense of self irrevocably changed. But can she avoid the specter of the curse? Vital, bold, powerful, and deeply moving, Exhibit asks: how brightly can you burn before you light your life on fire?
In the afterlife I won’t find, I’ll sit with all the people I’ve lost, and we’ll laugh at the prodigals we used to be. Once, long ago, we split apart. No such thing will happen again.
R.O. Kwon novels are like magic. I can’t quite believe it’s been 6 years (!!) since the release of The Incendiaries but here we are, and another R.O. Kwon novel is arriving this Thursday! Say hello to Exhibit!
An exhilarating novel exploring desire, love and artistic expression, Exhibit itself is a work of art that expertly captures what it means to be a woman and an artist. Interspersed throughout the novel is the story of the kisaeng, a woman who followed her desire and as such, has brought a curse upon Jin’s family which dooms the women who choose passion to destruction and death.
The book is quite unconventional and fragmented in its structure, with Kwon favouring clipped, poetic language. I could see how readers could find Kwon’s approach to be pretentious or confusing. At times, it did take some extra effort to decode exactly what was happening, especially when the kisaeng moments kick in. However, there are so many beautiful and evocative moments in this book that it outweighed the somewhat tougher parts. It’s by no means an easy beach read! It’s a real slow burner and certainly requires a level of energy and commitment to stick at it due to its unique style. However, persevering proves fruitful and you’ll soon discover that there is a powerful and thought-provoking experience to be had.
Exhibit is also quite a heavy read in terms of themes. Kwon dives into the weight of parental guilt, religion, the societal expectations placed on Asian women, queer desire and the internal shame of pursuing passion and sexuality. I found Kwon’s depiction of Jin’s ongoing struggle over her choice to remain childless versus her husband’s newfound longing to become a father quite interesting. We also see how both Lidija and Jin experience shame over their artistic passions and personal pleasures and seek relief and freedom through each other. It’s a novel that is packed with raw and haunting moments that linger like the kisaeng long after the story has finished.
It’s a challenging but captivating work of queer fiction that stands as a testament to love, desire and kink. Exhibit is entirely different to The Incendiaries and that’s part of why I’m so enthralled by it months after finishing it. It’s very easy for authors to stick to tried-and-true formulas and narrative styles so I really appreciated that Kwon chose to do something quite different for this novel. Regardless, Kwon’s talent for delivering enigmatic characters and evocative prose continues to shine. I cannot wait to see what Kwon does next!
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