originally from vancouver, canada, tobias wong creates in new york. after studying art and architecture, he graduated in sculpture from the cooper union. wong treats design as a medium rather than a discipline to show how it embraces the aesthetics traditionally relegated to the fine arts. he’s coined the term “paraconceptual” to describe his dismantling of the hierarchies between “art” and “design.” in wong’s hands, both have similar goals.

not merely conceptual, his work mocks its own consumption. wong literalized this message with a jenny holzer tattoo on his right forearm: “PROTECT ME FROM WHAT I WANT.” this maxim was written on wong’s flesh by holzer herself, then made permanent with injected ink. equally indelible are wong’s readydesigneds (replacing the anonymous readymade objects with well recognized designer pieces) refashioned. these new forms and aesthetic concepts brace against, appreciate, and invite desire. wong’s continuing exploration of this conundrum goes beyond the paraconceptual to projects he now refers to as “postinteresting”…