WEBZINE ACC

A few years ago, Professor Kim Yeong-min from the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University, who was known as a “celebrity of the column world,” gained popularity among many people with his column titled “What is Chuseok?” The column suggests responding with a sudden, sarcastic answer to someone who, rather than showing interest in one's identity or essence, engages in a kind of condescendence while asking about current circumstances or behaviors, asking “What is OO?” out of the blue.

In Gwangju, there is a magnificent, beautiful, and massive cultural and arts complex called the Asia Culture Center (ACC), which is a national institution. Dongmyeong-dong, which is directly adjacent to the ACC, has become a vibrant playground for the MZ generation (Millennials + Gen Z). The Hanul Madang at ACC's outdoor courtyard has naturally become a scene of the cultural activities enjoyed by the youth in Dongmyeong-dong. On pleasant evenings, it becomes a lively and energetic festival venue for young people. But if you enter the ACC indoor space underneath the Hanul Madang garden dramatically, that kind of dynamism disappears and transforms into a space filled with silence and static serenity. Sometimes I wonder. Why are artistic spaces have boundaries, so fragmented, and turned into static places? I propose the fundamental question, just like the title of Professor Kim Yeong-min's column, “What is art?”

Even on August 25, during the writing of this article, the ACC is hosting or planning various exhibitions and events. Scenery of the Emptiness, Aesthetic Immersion, Forest of Light, Story of May Buried in the Heart, The Road of MANAS, World Music Festival, Exploring Asian Literature Together, Giselle... And now, the Asia Panorama exhibition, which I will introduce.

The Asia Panorama exhibition is organized in collaboration with Indian and Indonesian artists, as part of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and India this year. Together with Korean artists, a mural spanning a total length of 60 m in the bamboo garden of the ACC has been created. (Indonesia Indie Guerilla (team name), artist Ajay from India, and artist Hwang In-suk from Korea)

Indie Guerilla designs the festival's parade with playful, animation-like simple symbols and patterns. They transform traditional elements into a modern interpretation. The symbols and patterns draw inspiration from traditional shadow puppetry (wayang kulit) and the forms of the human body. The three icons: Gareng, Petruk, and Bagong, which originate from Javanese shadow puppetry, along with the female character who represents the beginning, middle, and end of the parade, as well as the animal and plant patterns that accompany them, all symbolize a global and universal march towards a peaceful and harmonious life without excluding any existence.

Hwang In-suk's work “Future Scape: Supper Connection of Great Minds” appears, at first glance, to be clusters of minimal and geometric shapes reminiscent of multiplying cells. In the artist's imagination, they are beings that each possess their own names and roles. Typically, artworks are confined within the boundaries of a limited canvas, but this artwork extends beyond the wall where the mural is painted, expanding to encompass the entire space, including the floor. The artist's intention is not just to present a simple arrangement of patterns, but rather to convey their passion and determination for contact that transcends time and space. The artwork aims to foster a connection and interaction between the viewer and the exhibition space.

The mural motifs by Indian artist Ajay draw inspiration from the epic poetry of Valmiki, a legendary poet from ancient India, as well as the poetry of Yun Dong-ju. The poet Valmiki narrates the sorrow of witnessing a male crane's death at the hands of a hunter, and in doing so, he traces a historical and human connection between India and Korea through a shared theme of loss. This connection is found in the common echo of grief, as seen in Yun Dong-ju's Korean poem “Sanullim” (Mountain Echo), where he writes:

This echoes Valmiki's theme of loss and sorrow, highlighting a shared human experience across time and space, known as “common echo.”

Within the confines of the ACC lies a space that blurs the lines between inside and outside. A 60-meter mural by artists from three different countries within the Bamboo Garden. This mural can be seen as a form of boundary art, a manifestation of everyday art, so to speak. I dare to say that art, especially visual art, becomes ghettoized¹⁾ when it is confined to the material of canvas and trapped within the gallery space, symbolically but paradoxically.

The exhibition “Asia Panorama” seems to be an artistic attempt to undermine this ghettoization of art, encouraging viewers to stroll through this indoor garden, march together, make contact together, and echo together. It appears to aim for a boundary art museum that lightly but gently nudges viewers. It subtly suggests the idea of a free space where our everyday life becomes art and culture, while breaking down the implicit constraints that define what an art museum should be.

Now, we can simply enjoy that space by roaming around and exploring it together.

Go to Asia PanoramaClick here to visit the page.