Do Ho Suh’s earliest memory of art is a Chinese-style scroll his father read to him during his upbringing in Seoul. When unfurled, the scroll contained ancient mythological tales through drawing and text. ‘I’ve always been very interested in the idea of transportable art and different modes of storytelling, so the scroll has really stayed with me,’ says Do Ho.

This vibrant notion of a transportable home and memorable forms of storytelling recur in Do Ho’s art which comes to Edinburgh with his Tracing Time exhibition. Throughout his career, he has become an expert in sculpture, installations and drawing, especially using fabrics. ‘I see my practice as very much a single holistic pursuit, expressed through different materials,’ he adds. ‘I’m always thinking about porosity, transference and memory. Fabric and paper are well suited to these themes because of their relative permeability. I also work everything out through drawing in little sketchbooks, some of which I’m showing at Modern One.’

Do Ho takes a contextual and conceptual approach to materials. For instance, his decision to use rice paper was once tied to his memory of the material being used in traditional Korean windows and door frames. ‘So it perfectly expresses a very different idea about the relationship between the body, architecture and the environment,’ he clarifies. His previous use of dog tags is related to military conscription in South Korea, allowing him to explore collective identity. More recently, an interest in technology has compelled him to incorporate robotics into his art.

‘It’s largely about personal space, by which I mean the space that we carry with us,’ says Do Ho of the themes he enjoys inspecting. His journey from Korea to America in the 90s prompted this fascination further. ‘I’m interested in the idea that “home” is something that has the potential to be transported, which feels important for displaced people.’

Do Ho Suh: Tracing Time, National Galleries Of Scotland: Modern One, Edinburgh, Saturday 17 February–Sunday 1 September; main picture: Gautier Deblonde.