Gongsan Kim: Thank you for your kind words. I don't think I particularly think much about the viewers when I create my art. For me whether the audience understands the piece or not is not a priority. My primary duty is to instill my message into the artwork and no further. Even if the viewer simply passes on by it cannot be helped. I'm not an activist. As atrocities in North Korea are already widely known it is enough for me as an artist to merely point to the issue. Seeing and understanding the piece is the viewer's share. Just as a poet writes the poem without providing any interpretations, I too simply provide the images like something of a visual poet. I trust that my artworks' poetic sentiments will come across to the audience. You are an established and awarded artist, and over the years your works have been showcased in many international exhibitions, including eight solos: how do you consider the nature of your relationship with your audience? As the move of Art from traditional gallery spaces, to street and especially to online platforms — as Instagram — increases, how would in your opinion change the relationship with a globalized audience? Gongsan Kim: I'm quite introverted personality wise, especially when it comes to conversing and connecting with people online. I simply prefer to do things quietly without notice. Of course it is good to address the multitude, but for now I wish to do so through my artworks only. I have no preference regarding space; if given the opportunity I am willing to display my works any space in and outdoor so long as there is an agreement of vision between us. But for now I have no desire to connect with people online and that's something that I'll have to overcome. Because of my personality it's not easy. We have really appreciated the multifaceted nature of your artistic research and before leaving this stimulating conversation we would like to thank you for chatting with us and for sharing your thoughts, Gongsan. What projects are you currently working on, and what are some of the ideas that you hope to explore in the future? Gongsan Kim: The piece I'm currently working on, which serves a continuation from the piece Firing Line, is a three dimensional piece that incorporates tree branches and manila rope as materials. Of course I intend to continue using the rolling and burning method as well. But I do feel that my work needs to become more developed, I'm still contemplating ways to improve my art. Other subjects that I wish to tackle are the plight of young North Korean girls trafficked and sold into China and the misery of numerous North Korean refugees living as fugitives in China. I am still praying for the day when I will create artworks celebrating the joy of Korea's reunification. Thank you Gongsan Kim scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land An interview by Josh Ryder, curator and Melissa C. Hilborn, curator [email protected]
Hello Yoon and welcome to LandEscape. Before starting to elaborate about your artistic production and we would like to invite our readers to visit https://suokwonyoon.com in order to get a wide idea about your artistic production, and we would start this interview with a couple of questions about your multifaceted background. You have a solid formal training: after having earned your BFA in Photographic Design and a MFA in Photographic Design from the Keimyung University, you nurtured your education with a BA in Fine Art and an MA in Contemporary Arts Practice, from the Coventry University. You also recently completed your Ph.D in Film & Digital Media Design, from the Hong-ik University: how do these formative years influence your evolution as an artist? Moreover, how does your cultural substratum due to your studies abroad address the direction of your current artistic research? Suok Won Yoon: As you said, I have been studying for a long time. It is because I had the I experience detachment in time and space. The fragments of me swirling around in the small old cups, desks, radios, mirrors, etc. placed in front of me are revealed one by one. Substances of the essence encountered in loneliness seem to be indifferent, becoming the reality of life and experiencing accidental loneliness dyed in the form of inevitable loneliness. The moment when I was alone because I lost her mother's hand on a street when I was young, that moment still becomes a cold wind in my memory, making my heart ache. A dark emptiness and fear exist at the end of the memory that comes close at times in the journey of seeing, hearing, and experiencing, going back and forth between illusions and ideals. Darkness binds me. The darkness that I can't see even when I open my eyes, and the darkness that I can't reach even when I stretch out my hand, becomes a weight and weighs me down so I can't take even a single step away. The journey of loneliness begins anew in the dark. I listen to the voice I hear in the midst of despair and silence. Freedom left alone, this journey that I see, hear and experience. The cold bliss of being freed from the bondage of bondage. They are like magic that cannot be seen but captures the essence of my life.. An interview by Josh Ryder, curator and Melissa C. Hilborn, curator [email protected] Land scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW LandEscape meets Suok Won Yoon
belief that learning something could be a great asset to me for the rest of my life. As I have studied for a long time, my knowledge of contemporary art has broadened and I have been able to have new perspectives on art. In particular, at Coventry University in UK, I was able to broaden my concepts and academic views on art, and I was able to get a wide range of inspiration for my creative activities. The fact that I was able to develop my own art theory while studying from the bachelor's program to the doctoral program is a great advantage that I have gained from studying for a long time. I went to the UK to study abroad at the age of 30. As an artist, I went to study abroad because I wanted to experience a deeper study while doing creative activities. As a result, despite completing the master's program in South Korea, I transferred back to the undergraduate program because I wanted to directly experiences the British art education environments. I wondered how British people can understood and accepted art. I have a bigger vision as an artist under the influences of the professors who lead me during my study abroad periods. My tutors have told me that the process of studying contemporary arts is like a ‘Journey’. You always said to me, 'How's your Journey?' It's a simple question, but it changed my perspectives on studying arts. Processes of the academic studying of artistic creation activities or art theory is like a journey to me. In the past, I thought that the creative activities of art was an entity that expresses itself through pain of creativity. Even now, I don't think that art is the realm of creativity that tortures and expresses itself. It is an substance to be enjoyed and an area to live. These thoughts of mine have led to deeper reflection as I experience all the processes currently researched in the doctoral program. Also, as I’m a professor, I am teaching students with these educational values. scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
I know that art is not inherently something to be learned through study. As art is a spiritual realm that can only be called a human privilege, I know that this is not something that can be learned in Universities. It begins with observation of life, and represents the value of human existence. The French philosopher Roland Barthes once said that art is like magic. Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
As such, art is not an object that can be learned as a field of study, but an existential value itself. Nevertheless, the reason I have been studying at university for a long time is to have a conceptional and serious attitudes towards art and to reflect through it. The study of art sublimes my point of view on it. scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
For this special edition of LandEscape we have selected The Shape of Soliloguy a stimulating project that our readers have already started to get to know in the introductory pages of this article and has at once captured our attention for the way it explores the dialectics and the tension between our inners life and the outside world. When walking our readers through the genesis of The Shape of Soliloguy, would you tell us something about your usual setup and process? Suok Won Yoon: The “Shape of Soliloguy” work series began when I started observing myself leading my life. Seeing myself living in relationships with objects, people, and other beings, I started taking pictures of beings like myself. The subjects in the photos metaphorically show me living in the real world, and also contain realistic messages about human existence. In the “Shape of Soliloguy” work series, “Soliloguy” refers to human beings living in reality, or “reaction to collision,” that is, life. Human existence is revealed by ‘collision’. The beings in the photos are traces of 'collision' and fragments of my thoughts on myself. There are no special procedures to produce this series of works. I capture all the objects that I relate to in my daily life in an instant. To do this, I usually carry my 35mm film camera and press the shutter when the decisive moment comes. After shooting, the emulsion is thawed by boiling in hot water for several hours before developing the films. After the emulsion is melted, the film is developed to produce an abnormal and ambiguous image from a normal image. However, I do not always carry a camera with myself in our daily life. In order to focus on myself, I leave from the familiar environment and find a new environment. Sometimes I travel alone, taking time to observe, think, and focus on myself. Before working Shape of Solilogue, I had worked Untitled Project. Shape of Soliloguy is Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
the works that connect the contents and context of Untitled Project, and it can be said that the common point is that it wanted to contain the thoughts and philosophical expressions of existence in ordinary everyday stories. As the beings in the Shape of Soliloguy photo are traces of 'collision', the moment you press the shutter is a 'the moment of collision' and a 'the moment of resistance' towards reality. All human beings including myself emerge from, drift through and repeat our life through irresitible encounters. In the new era that I and we have longed for, there remains only traces of the absence. Only the meaning of human nature, which cannot coresspond the the reality, is exposed in a blatant and mean-spritied manner. The time and space we exist in becomes power and start the mightly dictatorship, allowing us to face our very existence. The story of existence revealed through Shape of Soliloguy is not my own. It indicates that humans who are still confronted with reality are still facing and resisting reality, and constantly pursuing the narrative of life. This is because human beings have weaknesses that cannot be matched with reality. The Shape of Soliloguy seems to be laboriously structured to pursue such unconventional aesthetics and at the same time thoughtful visual impact: what was your working schedule like? Did you carefully plan each shot? Suok Won Yoon: Shape of Soliloguy works are like my diary. I usually carry a 35mm film camera and capture definitve moments in which my existence is projected. Just like a daily diary, I have recorded the moments I collide with reality in our daily lives with the camera. I am living in reality, but the aspects of my life that could not be matched with reality were thought to be the essential entity of human beings. The life of a human being living with a sense of separation scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land from reality is the same as the meaning of the title. The word ‘Soliloguy’ in the title means that I am living in reality, but I do not harmonize with. However, the works are not simply expressions of a sense of detachment from reality, but symbolize the inner reactions of living in conflict
scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition with reality. As the French philosopher Jacques Lacan said, “Opening is closure, closure is opening.” According to his philosophical argument, my work is a ‘reaction of collision’ through opening and closing with reality. The ‘reaction of colliding with reality’ is a reaction that proves my life and means the value of human existence.
The moment of “closure” argued by Jacques Lacan is creative and aesthetic. Meaning is derived and the boundary between perception and cognition has collapsed to form a system of meaning, which is somehow related. Today, I carried a camera and recorded the shape of ‘Solioguy’. After I press the shutter at small, insignificant objects or moments, I melt the film emulsion before developing the film. The traces of the melted emulsion are symbolic expressions that further maximize the ‘reaction of collision’. With its effective verité style, The Shape of Soliloguy communicates sense of loneliness and detachment featuring vibrant and unsparing realism and a keen eye for details: how important is for you to capture realistic elements from ordinary life? And how do your memories and your everyday life's experience fuel your creative process? Suok Won Yoon: My memories and experiences become essential questioning elements towards existence. My creative activity starts with ‘question’. Thinking towards being creates my own point of view towards being. The expression of human existence begins with the exploration and questioning of myself. As my memories and experiences give birth to ideologies that only humans as well as myself, my daily experiences and memories of life will be sympathetic to everyone. In Saint-Exupery's novel 'The Little Prince', the main character, the Little Prince, asks questions to the beings he meets on his endless journey, realizing the meaning of travel. I think that the little prince's 'journey' in his novels means life and the continuation of existence. Therefore, the ‘Shape of Soliloguy’ series of works are not simply works that express the ideology projected into my memories and experiences, but are traces of essential existential questions Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
projected into my life. Your works drawn heavily from the peculiar specifics of the environment and as in the interesting Untitled Project you always capture such insightful resonance between the landscapes and states of mind: how do you select the specific locations and how do they affect your creative process? Suok Won Yoon: The histories of mankind have been made by life’s traces of ancestors for a long time. People in the present day have found their environments and cultures through their life’s traces that these histories present. The reason why history has existed is that their life’s traces reflect parts of being although the generation and ages have already passed. This means that trace is one of the most important factors to organise the history and reflects their life. Like traces have interacted with parts of being, I believe that traces can prove the identity of the existence. As it is defined by traces of life, I considered that traces prove parts of life’s stories. Also, I think that traces of life are the sole tool to reflect parts of being through artistic methods. As Beck Hansen, who is an American musician, mentioned ‘Art is the child of Nature; yes, her darling child, in whom we trace the features of the mother’s face, her aspect and her attitude’. I think that art interacts with life’s traces, as a part of our life’s elements prove the essential substances of life in artworks. Along these lines, I have reflected traces of my life. I am going to live with the relationship with time and space that was given to me. Big and small life stories have been created within this relationship. With the current of time, my emotion and thinking changed as parts of my memories. Also, although I did leave from a certain space, parts of my being still remained as trace in that space. The works were began since I was in UK. In my scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
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life in the UK, I have felt loneliness from my new environment. Whenever I felt extreme loneliness in the UK, I presented numerous emotions as the traces of life. I tried to find the traces of life from the space where I stayed. In order to reflect it on daily lives in the UK, I have worked with photography. I believe that photography is the medium to express intrinsic substance by recording about something in reality. Henri Cartier Bresson, wrote: “It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera……they are made with the eye, heart and head…..A photograph is neither taken nor seized by force. It offers itself up. It is the photo that takes you. One must not take photos”. As he mentioned, it means that a photo has to be presented at the decisive moment. The decisive moment that he emphasised means the coincidence with the moment and a photographer’s intention. That is, it means that the decisive moment means inner world. I had strong motivation from his lesson, and I found the way of how to see and express about inner world in dealing with photography. I tried to demonstrate my decisive moments that I found. My traces have existed in time and space. The traces that have remained in time are demonstrated as ‘memory, and the traces that have remained in the space present as redefined place by an existence. In the interview with Julio Galeote, a Spanish photographer, he said that “people are going to have the relationships with spaces in their life. And the space is defined by humans”. As he mentioned when I interviewed him, a space in which I stayed is defined again by me. I had found parts of my being on re-defined space through works. Although I have recorded by camera lens about life’s traces that have cause on my daily life, I believe that it is like my selfportrait, as I expressed my inner-world through reflecting the traces. I had the inspiration from artists such as Rinko scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Suok Won Yoon Land
Kawauchi, Marcy Robinson, and Tim Barber; especially, Rinko Kawauchi, who is a Japanese photographer, and who took pictures with a film camera for capturing the definitive moments of her routine diaries. Her photographs look like the stories of surrealistic moments. However, she recorded the moments in her realistic time and space as her life. She mentioned in the interview with L’immagine precaria “I love that moment when I feel something and press that shutter”. As her camera captured the most intricate details of everyday life, transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary and revealing a lyrical rhythm to her diary and surroundings, the way and motivation of her works have given very important aspects to my photographic works. I tried to present the idea of life in the spaces through reflecting the definitive moment and spaces. I focused on metaphor for expression in photographic works. I didn’t want to show the object or space through a straightforward recording with a photograph. I strongly wanted to reveal the substances of my inner-world through reflecting traces of the time and spaces that I stayed and experienced. I had impressive inspiration from her philosophy for work about using mechanism for photographic works. She worked with a film camera since the features of camera lens and traditional colours that each film gets are the only way to reveal her intention on a photograph. She asserted on the interview with L’immagine precaria“….My Favourite camera is the Rolleiflex. The reason why I like the Rolleiflex so much is because every aspect of it, the soft quality of the lens, the feeling of it in my hand, the clicking of the shutter, feels just right. But I also use normal compact cameras as well because some things can only be taken with a compact camera………”. Her philosophy about using mechanism influenced me. I dealt with a digital camera for the project at the scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
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beginning point of the work process. This is because I was able to save things such as time and money. Thereby, I was able to get images easily, without too much prolonged observation towards an object. I realised that this was not a good work process for my photographic work. With the development of the work process, dealing with mechanism for my project has changed from using a digital camera to using an analogue camera. Although I had to spend a lot of money and time in the process with observation and film development, I was able to get a more contemplative attitude to taking pictures with an analogue camera, as I spent the time to get the images. Through having enough observation via the viewfinder, I was able to express a particular perspective on the subject with an exact understanding of the mechanism that I used. Rinko Kawauchi’s works influenced the conception and the attitude for mechanism for my photographic works. Also, photographs of Marcy Robinson gave me huge motivation for the project. She showed the meaning of life that she believes through photographs. Her photographs were like a diary that reflects her inner world in life. Norman Locks, who is a Professor of Art at the University of California, Santa Cruz, said about her photographs: “The photographs are real and familiar and of important things – not of things normally identified as important, but important nonetheless. The subject matter, for most of us, is a part of our lives – things we see every day. The images cause us to reflect on our daily lives, our own memories and pasts”. As Norman Locks said, I think that her works are about parts of her own life, as well as the essential parts of human life. This is because I consider that her perspective is towards communication with factors of her life. I feel that she tried to have the particular relationship with the space and object, as she scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Suok Won Yoon Land
emphasised that space and object can replace her emotion and inner world. According to Norman Locks, she mentioned that “The photographs express a sense of humour, sadness and nostalgia that leaves the viewer with the confusion of contradictory emotions……….The space and objects in these photographs are rapidly disappearing from our world. Marcy is empathetic with these things and is trying to hold on to them a little longer…..”. As Norman Locks mentioned, I think that Marcy Robinson tried to capture the moments that were a reflection of her inner self on the space and objects. And, it shows new meaning by her record and expression. Through researching the philosophical viewpoint of her works, I had strong ideas about my attitude for the work process. I realised how to build up my stories through reflecting existing traces from space and objects, and, I learnt how to show my intention through metaphorical expression. However, my photographic works have a few different points from the feature of Marcy Robinson’s photographs. While her photographs are like a diary that records her daily life, my photographs are like evidence to prove that I have an intrinsic existence. Although I obtained the resources for the work process from records of diaries, the tool to reflect my existence is by photographs. I strongly believe that photography is like a mirror for reflecting my inner-world. I considered that photography is not for just recording something in reality. I realised that photography is the realisable medium for proving the inner-world of humans and for reflecting the essence of our lives. I was able to observe myself through work processing for my work. I was reminded about my emotions, thinking, life-style and relationships with others. During the development of my working process for the photographic works, I have asked myself repeatedly who I am. Whenever I found scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
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traces that were able to prove parts of my life, I was able to have meaningful time to analyse my being through these traces. Although these photographic works don’t give me any answers to the question of human essence, I was able to experience that I found parts of my being on traces of life in the UK. Traces that are presented in these works will be the principle evidence to demonstrate me as I am in an existence that is going to make relationships with others in the environment I am in. With their unique almost dreamlike atmosphere, Knocking Days reminded us of the idea of non lieu elaborated by French anthropologist Marc Augé. As a visual artist whose work is focussed on real enviromental images, how do you consider the relationship between reality and imagination playing within your process? Are you particularly interested in arousing emotions that goes beyond the realm of visual perception? Suok Won Yoon: I think that photography is an ambiguous existence itself that exists as a very rational and multiple space that transcends reality and space. The closer you get, the more difficult it will feel. What is clear, however, is that the photograph records, defends, and alludes to the traces of spirit and body. I believe that photography proves that human beings are inner beings. If my point of view was acted upon by emotions, the reason why emotional images are reproduced is because of the specificity of photography, which shows the existence of things as they are. So, I feel grateful that I can prove my existence through photography whenever I do Knocking Days and other photographic works. Knocking Days works are very particular as the works reflect my personal moments. The works apprear emotional and memorial moments at the boundary between separation and encounter. scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Suok Won Yoon Land
While I was working, I experienced the pouring of paper on the inside of me. At the same time, I felt that photography had to discover and create an intrinsic meaning beyond the record of reality. Whether you set the target or take the picture as it is, the moment the latent image is printed on the film, you see a new and wide world that you have never experienced before. Therefore, photography is a medium that recreates reality and reality, and has an intrinsic form that goes back and forth between truth and lies. As Roland Barthes said, photography is no longer art, it is magic. A photograph that reproduces reality beyond its original recording ability can distort or capture the meaning of an object as it is. But it is undoubtedly a medium that faithfully deals with immanence. The picture in my mind became so candid that it became a conduit to an identity of meaning and a vague feeling. The photography in my mind has become too honest a passage leading to identity of meaning and dim emotion. With their unique black and white aesthetics, your works — more especially The Devices of Redemption — are able to orchestrating realism with intimate visionary quality: what were your aesthetic decisions when shooting? In particular, how do you decide to shoot in black and white or color? Suok Won Yoon: I actually don't have a great 'Aesthetic Decision'. I think that ‘photography’ is the aesthetic realm of reality. It is a mysterious realm that proves the visible world by reproducing the invisible world that clearly exists. I believe that every time I take a picture, my inner world is reflected in it. The inner reaction to the world seen through the viewfinder is expressed as a ringing and scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
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trembling over a single photograph. Therefore, I think that ‘Aesthetic Decision’ is ‘reaction to the aesthetics of reality’ and aspiration to reveal the invisible world. When I take pictures, I think that ‘identity’ is important. It is important that the identity of my inner being is revealed in the world that unfolds over a single photograph. I believe that my own artistry can only be expressed when I express a clear identity for the world I want to express. As if there is a style of clothing that suits everyone, the expressions and reproducibility reflected in my photographic world mean the identity of my own art philosophy. In this context, the choice of black and white and color is based on the concept of what I want to express myself, and it can be said that it is an aesthetic response to the world projected from my point of view. I think that Black and white is mainly used to represent the unreal world. However, it can also be seen as representing the reality of the world as we see it from a conceptual point of view. I think the first thing to do is to think about what kind of color the realistic look I have, rather than worrying about how to express a photo in black and white or a color image. I don't think that the 'reality' shown in photos means only the visible world. The reality that photography pursues is a mark of praise for the invisible world. It is firm and true. In a controversial quote, German photographer Thomas Ruff stated that ''nowadays you don't have to paint to be an artist: you can photography in a realistic way". Provocatively, the German photographer highlighted the short circuit between the act of looking and that of thinking critically about images: how do you consider the role of photography in our contemporary age, scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Suok Won Yoon Land
constantly saturated by ubiquitous images? Suok Won Yoon: From the birth of photography to the present day, images have symbolized the ideology of the times. Just as I can understand the environment and life of the time by looking at photo works, images have proven the ideology of existence, not simply the products of records. Photography was powerful in the 20th century as ages of war, conflicts and poverty. A photo stopped the war, freed us from pain, and enabled us to dream of our ideals in reality. A photo of a prisoner of war being shot in the head was an opportunity to inform the world of the horrors of war, and people around the world realized the uncomfortable truth about war. Today, ‘photography’ is communicative. People can easily take pictures or videos. And we live in an era where we share our stories with others anytime, anywhere. We have been treating communication as a more important value due to images that serve as language and messages. However, the roles of photography in the past and today have something in common. The fact is that photography represents the value of existence. The value of the world projected in the viewfinder, the existence of looking through the viewfinder can only be revealed by photography. What I think of as the ‘reality’ that photography reproduces is that the invisible human inner world can be unfolded on a single sheet of paper as a visible world. It is an area that expresses the world of ‘reality’ that expresses the value of existence whether a photograph is powerful or communicative. Therefore, I believe that the essential role of photography is to reveal its 'identity'. This is because I believe that photography is the only thing that can express my own value of existence by expressing my own world and expressing my own story as the entities of reality. This is the unchanging truth and essence, scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
even as times change. You are an established artist and over the years you participated to many exhibitions, both in South Korea and abroad, including twelve solos: how do you consider the nature of your relationship with your audience? By the way, as the move of Art from traditional gallery spaces, to street and especially to online platforms — as Instagram https://www.instagram.com/suokwon — increases, how would in your opinion change Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
the relationship with a globalised audience? Suok Won Yoon: These questions are the biggest issues for me in these days. I have been had exhibitions almost every year since my first solo exhibition at a photography gallery in Seoul in my third year of university. The reason I exhibit my works through exhibitions without stopping my creative activities is to discover myself existence. Before forming a relationship with the audience in the exhibition, I want to be scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition
recognized for the value of my existence as an artist by presenting my work through having the exhibition. I think that it takes a lot of creative pain to be called as the title of 'artist'. An ‘artist’ is a lonely being, but an artist is also a noble and glorious being. The name can be called directly through the process of being recognized as an artist by the audience, not by oneself. We often see people who easily call themselves 'artists'. To be called an 'artist', I have to prove my existence in front of the audience from the pain and sincerity of creation. I have participated in about 70 exhibitions, including 12 solo exhibitions, and I only wanted to be recognized as an ‘artist’. There is one thing I still believe in. It is a fact that “the artist exists from the work”. For that reason, the relationship between the artist and the audience is inevitable. The artist reveals his existence from the audience. This is why artists constantly present their work to the audience. Artists cannot satisfy artistic sympathy for all audiences. Also, I don't have to. Artists should strive to present authentic works, and the fact that the audience is moved by the sincerity is what we call ‘the power of art’. Authentic works created by artists transcend time and break boundaries. This is probably the reason why the works of artists such as Salvador Dali and Van Gogh, known in decades, still come to us as a moving substance. So I will not stop working. Today's audiences can access art contents through using various platforms. Art museums and galleries have also been using SNS platforms to share various art contents to communicate with the audience. I also upload my exhibition news and artwork images through social media platforms such as Instagram to share them with my friends, and enjoy elements that can only be experienced at art galleries and galleries anytime, anywhere. As SNS platforms play a major role in sharing and empathy, they offer a variety of ways to enjoy art. In the age we live in today, 'communication' and 'empathy' have been regarded as important values. SNS platforms have been used as a major means of scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Suok Won Yoon Land
communication in modern society. SNS platforms are no longer used only for sharing information, but are used as a major symbolic meaning of communication and empathy. As such, I believe that the reason people enjoy art not only in art galleries and galleries but also on social media platforms is because they perceive works of art as objects of communication and empathy. The boundaries of recognition are expanding as an object that can be enjoyed through advanced media, breaking away from the stereotype that works of art should be enjoyed in a specific environment or condition. There is no right answer to how to enjoy art and experience the world of work. However, I still strongly believe that the impression of a work of art is only possible when you come face to face with it. The works displayed on the platform are only photos or images of the works, not the works themselves. A work is a substance created by the emotion of the artist. People can experience that emotion when it exists as a substance. There are many images or contents of works of art that are difficult to see on social media platforms. People enjoy and experience art in various ways through social media platforms. However, the emotion of art can be experienced when you encounter the work in an art museum. It is the privilege of the spectator facing the work of art. Despite the fact that various art contents are still overflowing on social media platforms, people from all over the world travel to experience world-class art works such as Van Gogh's firsthand. The anticipation of the moment we encounter the work further exalts the notion of art. These experiences are of incomparable value, even if there are a lot of scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition artistic contents on platforms such as Instagram. Therefore, even if the technology develops like the platform, the emotion and the aura of arts will be only experienced when the audience and the work meet. The Instagram has to be to record
and share the moment of emotion. We have really appreciated the multifaceted nature of your artistic research and before leaving this stimulating conversation we would like to thank you for chatting with us and for sharing your thoughts, Yoon. What projects are you currently working on, and what are some of the ideas that you hope to explore in the future? Suok Won Yoon: I was happy to be able to Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land
scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition interview you this time. I think it's very special to be able to share stories about my works and values about art. In particular, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to introduce my interview here. I am still working on ‘The Shape of Solilogue’ series. The difference is that we are currently working on video performance works. In the past, I used to express my own creative expression by taking pictures and melting film emulsion, but recently I have been expressing myself in everyday moments by appearing in
Suok Won Yoon scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land front of the camera as a performance. I have been trying to metaphorically express the existence that does not fit into reality in everyday and ordinary moments. I have a plan to focus more on creative activities this year. In particular, I am making great efforts to improve the perfection of the ‘The Shape of Solilogue’ series works. Next year, it is my plan to present new works. I am very interested in the relationship between the change in perception of art and the flow of art due to the development of media. I plan to conduct in-depth academic research on how art can exist and communicate in an era in which new media as well as social media platforms are rapidly changing. In particular, while working on video performance these days, I will develop my own research area by theoretically examining whether video art works can be viewed as works that are reproduced on all platforms. In particular, I will write a thesis and get my research verified through a conference, and it will be reflected in my world of work, and I will continue to be grew. Lastly, I am currently working as an independent curator. I have been curating photo exhibitions on an international fields, including the Seoul New York Photo Festival, the Korea International Photo Festival, and the Singapore International Photo Festival. Last year, I was in charge of exhibition curating for ‘Encounter 6’ of the ‘Daegu Photo Biennale’, the largest photo biennale in East Asia, and it was able to attract tens of thousands of visitors. Recently, I am working as a curator of a special exhibition for the Daegu Photo Biennale, and the exhibition I have curated will be held in Daegu from August 23rd to September 25th in the year. As an artist, as an independent curator, and as an educator, I will go to develop the abilities of an artist in various ways. An interview by Josh Ryder, curator and Melissa C. Hilborn, curator [email protected]
Hello Ali and welcome to LandEscape. Before starting to elaborate about your artistic production we would start this interview with a couple of questions about your background. You have a solid formal training you studied graphic design at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Tehran, and you are your currently a lecturer at the University of Art in Tehran: how do these formative years influence your evolution as an artist? Moreover, how does your cultural substratum due to your Persian roots address the direction of your current artistic research? Ali Khorshidpour: Hello and thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to do this interview. First of all, I must say that since the beginning of 2020, at the same time as the covid-19 pandemic, I have not been teaching at the University of Art in Tehran. The fact is that my artistic background goes back to before studying at the Faculty of Fine Nature is always attractive and very inspiring to me, and for this reason, many of my paintings and drawings feature different views of nature. For example, my previous works have included such landscapes: vast meadows, green hills, a forest in the distance, some green trees on the horizon, single trees or a bush of grass in a cold and gray atmosphere, and other such landscapes, all of which are minimalistic in terms of form and color. In continuation of the same naturalist and minimalist approach, the collection of my recent works that you can see here, have reached the maximum extent of brevity in terms of form and color. So that the forms, which are inspired by leaves, stems and grass in nature, are very geometric and abstract, and the color is limited to black and white only, because my goal in creating these works is to show simplicity, purity and visual harmony that relationships and interactions between the components of the work evoke a musical feeling. An interview by Josh Ryder, curator and Melissa C. Hilborn, curator [email protected] Land scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW LandEscape meets Ali Khorshidpour @khorshidpour.ali
Untitled 40 x 60 cm 2010 Black acrylic on canvas board
Arts because I have been painting since childhood and when I entered the faculty, I had experiences in drawing, painting and working with different art materials such as oil color, acrylic, gouache, watercolors, inks, color pencils, pastels, charcoal, and technical pens. But quite serious and academic training began in the Faculty of Fine Arts. It was there that I got to know the visual values of visual elements through exercises and workshops and specialized courses. Workshops such as the basics of visual arts, logo and logotype design, poster design, book cover design and magazine design. It was through these workshops that I learned to use only the most essential visual elements to achieve an effective graphic design. This kind of attitude continued throughout my years of professional work as a graphic designer and I gradually realized that each visual element has different effects depending on its shape, size, color and placement on the page. For this reason, composition is very important to me in graphic design, drawing and painting, and I have tried to convey the great importance of composition and paying Ali Khorshidpour scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Untitled 30 x 40 cm 2010 Black acrylic on canvas board Untitled 34.5 x 44.9 cm 2010 Black acrylic on white cardboard
attention to the values of visual elements to my students at university. Regarding the cultural roots, I must say that I was born and raised in Iran, a country that has a long cultural and historical background in mystical literature and Sufism. The mystic and Sufi view reflected in the literary works of a poet like Rumi, and I was familiar with his literary works and studied them since my youth. One of the basic concepts in Sufi mysticism is piety, that a person by giving up unnecessary things in his life and mentalities, reaches mental and spiritual peace, which is a prelude to understanding the truth. Therefore, I think that the sensitivity towards the values of visual elements and the precision in choosing and using them that I explained before, along with this spiritual point of view, have caused my tendency to create spaces that can be seen in my works. The body of works that we have selected for this special edition of LandEscape —and that our readers have already started to get to know in the introductory pages of this article — has at once captured our attention for the way your essential Black and White style scape CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW Land Special Edition Untitled 15.3 x 19.9 cm 2019 Black ink on white paper Untitled 15.3 x 19.9 cm 2019 Black ink on white paper