101 . Introduction
Back to the Future — An Exploration of Contemporaneity of Korean Contemporary Art is an exhibition organized with the intention of sharing artwork from the collection of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) with the public. Covering artworks acquired by the museum over a five-year period, from 2018 to 2022, the exhibition thoroughly examines the characteristics of noteworthy acquisitions from this time. In accordance with MMCA acquisition policies and directions, the artwork acquired each year has shown an even distribution in terms of era, genre, and theme with pieces acquired over the recent five-years being no exception. One of the most important characteristics observed in these particular acquisitions is that a large number of works are from the artists who demonstrate the contemporaneity of Korean contemporary art, based on the transitional historical period of the 1990s, including figures such as Kong Sunghun, Kim Beom, and Bahc Yiso.
While the chronological emphasis may be on the 1990s, the exhibition includes works ranging from the late 1980s to 2010 in its scope of influence; in doing so, it hopes to highlight the time in which many of the featured artists were establishing their artistic identity—between the late 1980s and early 1990s—along with some of their more recent artistic activities. Also presented among the museum’s acquisitions are works by artists who grew up amid a climate, in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, that saw the intersection and coexistence of analog and digital. Later emerging in the scene, they have since established themselves as important presences in the Korean contemporary art world. Furthermore, the exhibition seeks to provide viewers with the opportunity to observe works by artists who, back then, contributed notably to the creation of the context behind the contemporaneity of Korean contemporary art; this is evident in works created by currently practicing artists in the present day. Major artworks from this period are still being added to the museum’s collection, and while it is impossible to show all previously acquired works here, the exhibition, through the selected artists and artworks, offers a chance to reexamine Korean art during a period that, while belonging to the not-too-distant past, still warrants being historicized.
