* On the Spot

Unlike Western performances after the 1960s that comprised and influenced dance, art and music, Korean performances unfold internationally yet under extremely Korean circumstances.
In collaboration with young curators and artists, <On the Spot> presents the current activities of Korea.
This program is scheduled to take place from June 22nd to August 12th at the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea(Gwacheon) and National Museum of Art, Deoksugung.

Curators: Haeju Kim, Jang un Kim, Ji Yoon Yang, Seewon Hyun, Jeongwon Chae

1. Death of a Salesman

Date: 2012.6.22 / 6.23 16:00
Venue: Gallery 1, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea
Cast: Jin Sung Lee and 6 others

This work is an adaptation of Arthur Miller’s famous play, directed by Hyun-Tak Kim of Theatre Group Seongbukdong Beedoolgee, which received the New Concept Theater Award from the Dong-A Play Awards in 2011. The performance revolves around a running machine placed center stage, and the main character Willy who runs on it unceasingly for 60 minutes. The performance begins from the last scene of the original work where Willy faces death, and progresses like a flashback, showing scenes from past events. As the direction towards death and the direction of the intersecting memory coexist, the actor’s body, becoming more and more tired the more he runs, shows the nature of existence of humans; burning out and collapsing with time.
The performance at On the Spot restructures the work that was performed at Theatre Group Seongbukdong Beedoolgee’s Seongbukdong theater lab basement. This work, which revives the mood of the basement space by using minimal lighting and excluding stage installations, will also be somewhat transformed to fit the spatial characteristics of <On the Spot> at the National Museum of Contemporary Art. Yet the highlight of this show will once again be the occurrence of events and flow of energy when the actor’s body penetrates the minimal installation.

○ Curator: Haeju Kim
A researcher for the National Theatre Company; in charge of curating and production of publications and education programs, including magazine <Theatre>. Co-curated National Theater Company’s performance-exhibition <The Whales - Time Diver> in 2011.

○ Theatre Group Seongbukdong Beedoolgee
Named after a poetry by Kwang-sup Kim, this young theatre group started off in 2005, rehearsing and performing at a space called ‘everyday basement’ of some building in Seongbukdong. Their rehearsals and performances virtually never take a break; the repertory performances carry on for more than 6 months per year. Although it is quite a distance from the theater streets of Daehangno, their experimental use of space and bold physical expressions are attracting audiences to the hills of Seongbukdong.

2. Fiction Walk: National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea

Date: 2012.7.6 16:00 / 7.7 18:00
Venue: Throughout the Permanent galleries, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea
How to Participate: Prior Reservations (Limited to 20 per show)

<Fiction Walk> is a coinage that combines fiction and walk; a walk that traverses between fiction and non-fiction. <Fiction Walk>, already carried out under the title <Fiction Walk: Jung Dong> in 2010, is re-activated at National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea. In this project, the exhibition is built in time and broken down in space, within the barrier between non-fiction and fiction. <Fiction Walk: NMOCA> begins with the journey of a character disguised as a docent. This character drifts around the physical space and institutional contexts of the National Museum of Contemporary Art, facing random events suggested by the artists. The events suggested by the artists react to this journey, and also to the art museum space and system.

○ Curator: Jang un Kim
Jang un Kim is an independent curator and art critic. He has organized various types of exhibition, performance, and lecture programs, and activates the invisible yet mobile institution 'normal type'.

○ Artists : Kang Jungsuck, Wolsik Kim, Siwon Kim, Okin Collective, Lee soosung, Seulgi Lee, Hyun A Cho, Haessen Chung , Part-time Suite

- Kang Jungsuck
Kang Jungsuck usually works with his local out of work friends who have no place in the city.

- Wolsik Kim
Wolsik Kim’s work is based on the time, the generation and the community he belongs to, expressing his interests in what has been marginalized and forgotten in modern totalitarian society.

- Siwon Kim
Siwon Kim walks sluggishly and slowly, perhaps will never stop.

- Okin Collective
Okin Collective is an artists’ group named after Okin-dong, where the first project was held. Their work is based on their interests about the relationships between art and society and the various locations of producers and audience.

- Lee soosung
Lee soosung is interested in installation/sculpture works that use conditions as the material.

- Seulgi Lee
Seulgi Lee’s work is based in Paris since 1992. After realizing that she is being titled so easily as a Korean artist in Paris, and in Korea as an artist based in France, she titles herself as an ‘African artist’.

- Hyun A Cho
Hyun A Cho focuses on the possibilities of art/creative works of the same period, and strives to search for their various meanings and possibilities.

- Haessen Chung
A visual artist

- Part-time Suite
An art-centered incomplete collective that was founded based on critical discussions between the members on the socioeconomic conditions they were commonly faced with.
www.parttimesuite.org

3. Madame Jeon, Red Carpet

Date: 2012.7.11 / 7.12 / 7.13 / 7.14 / 7.15 15:00
Venue: Ramp Core, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea

Madame Jeon
On both sides of Madame Jeon, who visited the museum to see an exhibition, stand two Mise-en-Scéne men holding a reflecting plate and a fan. Madame Jeon repeats the same movements when walking around or meeting and greeting people she knows. Right beside the dramatically acting Madame Jeon, the light and wind render a scene of ‘created naturalness’

Red Carpet
Once Madame Jeon has seen the exhibition, she goes into the main hall with the red carpet. Madame Jeon disappears at the end of the stairs, and the audiences take the red carpet to go up the stairs. When they reach the end of the red carpet, the audiences realize that the carpet is actually the red dress worn by Madame Jeon.
The color of the red carpet stands for power and honor, and also carries the meaning of heartwarming and respectful welcome. For the people that step through the red carpet, such conditions become an honorary site. At the end of the red carpet, the audiences realize that the carpet that they set foot on is actually the performer’s dress. The audiences experience a twist when their honorary position on the red carpet becomes an embarrassing moment.

○ Curator: Ji Yoon Yang
Independent curator. Worked as a curator at Alternative Space Loop, and participated in the curator program at De Appel Art Center. Since 2007 she has been directing <Seoul International Sound Art Festival> together with Baruch Gottlieb, and her main exhibitions as curator include <Mouth To Mouth To Mouth: Contemporary Art from Korea (Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade, co-curated with Ana Nikitovic)>, <Now What: democracy and contemporary art (Space Hamilton, Insa Art Space)>.

○ Artist: Mirai Jeon

4. Sweet and sour plums will be more than enough to relieve your thirst.

Date: 2012.7.13 / 7.14 19:30
Venue: National Museum of Art Deoksugung

Sweet and sour plums will be more than enough to relieve your thirst.
(If you relieve me from your entire 20th Century, of course.)
A performance between coincidence and inevitability is presented in front of the audience. It is delivered as a story through the narration of one person and drum sounds, and the audience dive into the performance as if reading a set scenario.

O Curator: Jeongwon Chae
Jeongwon Chae is an educator in charge of educational and cultural programs at the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea.

O Artist: Yangachi
A recent artist Yangachi is interested in <the desperately dangerous situation to catch a new text as hostage>, <Individual>, <White people laugh like white people>, <Really, will I find out later why all this has happened?>, <not knowing what oneself is doing>, <new joke, new stage>.

5. Closing Hours

Date:  2012.7.20 16:00 / 7.21 19:00
Venue: National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea

Artworks move around all the time in art museums. The ‘position’ and ‘location’ of the artwork is set by the artist and curator.
‘closing hour’ is a performance that intervenes with the empty time and space in art museums. The artist residing in Berlin Germany is not present at the venue, but the performance goes on.
The artist, who researched the space of the National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea in the Spring of 2012, compiles several long and short instructions that take NMOCA as the motif. Simple movements are ‘installed’ as artworks by the artist and move(sail) around various different time zones.
The artist designates the ‘date’ for several days and directs the performer to carry out a certain ‘movement’ in a certain ‘time and place’.
Through this a certain empty wall of a museum becomes a performance installation and stage setting.

O Curator: Seewon Hyun
Independent curator. Completed her graduate studies in Art Theory with a thesis on contemporary Korean art, and worked as a reporter for the weekend section esc team at Hankyoreh Newspaper. Organized 《Andromeda Andromeda》(2009, Ga Gellery), 《A Bridge Too Far》(2010, Space Hamilton), 《Cheonsoo Mart 2nd Floor》(2011/2012, National Theatre Company of Korea/Festival b:om). Created an independent culture magazine ‘Walking Magazine(www.walking-magazine.com) with colleagues in the spring of 2006, collaborated with various artists on paper, and then published several small books. Wrote the book 『Design Vice Versa』(Hakgojae, 2010) for his interest in visual images, and now prepares to refreshingly write another book 『Meaning of You』

O Artist: Hwayeon Nam
Participated in exhibitions including <Annual Report>(Gwangju Biennale, 2008), <I have nothing to say but I am saying it>(Platform Seoul 2008), <Now Jump>(Nam June Paik Art Center), <Grammar of the world>(CASCO: office for art, design, theory), <Hermes Korea Art Award>(Atelier Hermes), <Oblique Strategies>(Kukje Gallery 2010) <Labour of love>(Arko Art Gallery 2011)

6. Love Spring

Date: 2012.7.10 - 8.12
Venue: Gallery 1, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea

On the LED facing the three trampolines, a video of heartman jumping and a music video House Rulz Soro's Sentimental♥ produced by the artist is played in turns. The heart, Youngmean Kang's trademark, is the one and only symbol that represents humans, and the oldest symbol of mankind. The heart signifies the physical organ called heart, and at the same time signifies the psychological side of humans such as love and emotions. As the audience themselves go and jump on the trampolines, they will literally experience a heart-fluttering work.

○ Curator: Ji Yoon Yang
○ Artist: Youngmean Kang
Well-known for his various expression-filled heart characters, ever since his painting days at Hongik University pop artist Youngmean Kang has not limited his workspace inside the canvas, and has been productive in various fields, expanding into curating exhibitions, producing animations, art directing etc. Along with his wall painting works at Seoul’s Euljiro 3-ga subway station, he has participated in several major exhibitions including Media City Seoul, Gwangju Biennale, New York Dumbo Art Festival etc.

7. writing band

Date: 7.10 – 8.12
(Writing Period: 6.26 - 7.1, One writer per day records about the museum)
Venue: Gallery 1, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea & website: www.writingband.net 

The writers, who have never gathered together, will move around the art museum and record what they have seen. It is unknown when they will visit the museum in the last week of June to see what, which work they will stop in front of and for how long. But the six writers will leave little pieces of writings about the space that they stopped at, or about the museum’s conditions that go beyond the physical space. Some writers will penetrate the artworks with sharp hawk eyes; some, like owls with half-closed eyes during daytime, will seek after objects that are sparsely placed in the museum such as fire extinguishers or lockers. The writers, who was and who will become one of the many people that look at the white walls of the museum, will build and stack up another puzzle with their own writings on top of the flat blueprint. On the website ‘Writing Band’(www.writingband.net) designed by Hong Eun-Joo and Kim Hyung-Jae, their writings are constructed on top of the flat blueprint of the museum. What will we see through the writings that replace events, objects, and perhaps everything. The completion of this museum, designed with writings, will only be known by writing, and will become a peculiar diagram of the actual National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea.

O Curator: Seewon Hyun

O Writer: Haeju Kim, Harry Kim, Jayong Park, Wonhwa Yoon, Hyun Jeong, Kyoung-Yun Ho, Seewon Hyun

- Haeju Kim
Worked with Busan Biennale, Anyang Public Art Project, and Nam June Paik Art Center. Currently is in charge of curating and producing publications & education programs as a researcher at the National Theatre Company of Korea.

- Harry Kim
Reporter at Cine21. published <Shadow Shadow>, <Addiction to Truth>.

- Jayong Park
Usually involved with various works related to art from the same period, or contemporary art. Currently is translating works and every now and then secretly making music without lyrics as a one-man band. Has 9 e-mail addresses registered to his computer, and tweets with 6 IDs. Active as “@workonwork”, together with Hye Jin Jang.

- Wonhwa Yoon
Translator. Writer. Translated [Control Revolution](2009), [The Audible Past](2010), [Optische Medien](2011). Interested in the contemporary Korean language.

- Hyun Jeong
Active as an exhibition curator and art critic.

- Kyoung-yun Ho.
Sophomore in curator major at Dong Duk Women’s University. Started off with a part-time job at the monthly Art in Culture by coincidence, proceeded as an organizer, webzine reporter, intern reporter, main reporter, and currently is the senior reporter.

- Seewon Hyun
Independent Curator. Loves writing in various methods.

O Design: Hong Eun-Joo, Kim Hyung-Jae
Graphic Designers Hong Eun-Joo and Kim Hyung-Jae first met around 2005 and have worked together till now. Their graphic design works have been for various fields, and since 2007 they have been publishing <gazzazapzi> together.