Korea
Contemporary Art Now
Issue 35:4 | December 2015
This bilingual edition on Korean art surveys the response of artists to ultra-rapid modernisation, the north–south division, dissent, gender, performance and the legacies of occupation layered upon timeless cultural traditions. Conceived as an introduction to contemporary Korean art, this edition supports Australia’s cultural relationships with Korea, nurtured through residencies and reciprocal exhibitions.
Lee Sang Hyun, Lady Gaga's Teadong River North Korea – US Friendship Concert, 2014, digital C-print diasec. Courtesy and © the artist
In this issue
The rogue aesthetic practice of crossing the DMZ
Gim Jong-gil on the seditious seed that is the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea
Ecology and new border paradigms: The Real DMZ Project 2015
Lee Sun Young on practices that shed light on the division and possibilities for reunification of North and South Korea
Filling the holes of history with the present: Cho Duck Hyun, Noh Suntag and Jo Haejun
Jung Hyun on three Korean artists who deal with history in strikingly different ways
Art–science convergence: High-tech/media/robotics/post-human
Hye Jin Mun on the intersection between the arts and sciences in Korean art
The world of Dansaekhwa: Spirit, tactility and performance
Yoon Jin Sup, the acknowledged authority on the 20th-century movement of Dansaekhwa, traces its resurgence today as an expression of the enduring presence of ancient culture in this outwardly most material of societies
Video and performance art in Korea: A force majeure
Yoo Jin Sang on the evolving forms of performative practice in contemporary Korean art
We are Korean: Cultural agency is power
David Pledger looks at the role of arts and culture in globalising national economies and contrasts Korean and Australian strategic thinking
Art that embraces the village and its residents
Kim Hae-gon on the Maeulmisul Art Project supporting regional renewal
Korean heat at the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane
Alison Carroll on the legacy of the Asia Pacific Triennial as the place to see Korean art in Australia
The public good of private museums in Korea
Chang Seung-yeon on the the conspicuous activity of the private art museum run by corporations and individuals
Art museums rule: State support for grand visions
Kim Inhye on Seoul’s evolving infrastructure of museums, independent artists’ spaces and residency programs
Are we engaged or just hanging out? Korea–Australia arts exchange
Sarah Bond on the act of giving and taking as cultural exchange
Cultural conversations: An oral history project
Paul McGillick on an online archive generating a unique cultural exchange between Australia and South Korea
An interview with BG Muhn on the art of North Korea
Yvonne Boag interviews BG Muhn about his forthcoming book on the Passion, Propaganda and Paradox of North Korean Art to be published by Seoul Selections, and an exhibition at the American University Museum in Washington in 2016
Three Korean artists at the 8th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art
Yeon Shim Chung on artists Choi Jeong-Hwa, Haegue Yang, and Siren eun young jung
Related issues
Indonesia Focus
Issue 43:1 | Parnati–Kudlila / Autumn–Winter 2023