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The exhibition <Walking, Wandering>,
which reflects on the meaning of walking,
delves deep into the process of urban formation.

From the perspective of walking as a fundamental human act,
the modern city can be seen as a massive and intricate machine.
The urban landscape that cannot be connected through walking
becomes barren and lifeless.

Factories, as the essential components of cities,
not only shape the urban environment but also produce various goods that impact the entire planet.
However, we often remain unaware of the birth process of those goods
and lack access to the factories where they are produced.

Vanishing factories

Photographs by Jo Choon-man, IK151527-Petrochemical, Asia Cultural Museum Archive Collection

Industrial specialist photographer Jo Choon-man
"shows" us factories that have not been within our line of sight until now.

In Jo Choon-man's photographs,
Korean heavy industries factories emit sharp light,
revealing artificial beauty,
and their complex structures resemble human anatomical body parts.
Machine critic Lee Yeong-joon recalls the enigmatic Angkor Wat,
where complex structures of ruins and trees intertwined,
emitting a sense of mystery, when looking at these photographs.

Jo Choon-man, who aimed to perceive factories,
which had become like a second nature to us, as living organisms,
now mourns the factories that have vanished.

Clean products

Gemini Kim, <Invisible Factory Run Project - Rayon Plant Run>, from the exhibition <Walking, Wandering>

However, the factories have not disappeared.
Factories have traveled across borders,
from Japan to Korea, and from Korea to China.

Rayon, which is used for various textiles,
began production in 1927 in Japan by Toray Industries.
In 1964, production facilities were introduced to Korea
and manufactured in Namyangju.
However, in 1993, it was sold to a chemical fiber company in China
and eventually faded from the scene in the early 2000s.

The rayon production factories, which were causing carbon bisulfide poisoning,
now hide their faces and bring in “environmentally friendly” products.

Other side of things

We live surrounded by various goods and products.
However, superficially consumed goods,
while shining brightly on the outside,
become walls that isolate me from myself and the world on the inside.

The gaze that deeply examines objects
and the footsteps that venture into their depths connect
and expand our world beyond mere possessions.