Installation view of 《Asia, The Apparatus》 Photo: Song Min-seop. ©Maeil Business Newspaper
The
National Asian Culture Center (ACC) presents a special exhibition 《Asia, The Apparatus》, organized
to mark its 10th anniversary, on view through September 27.
Since
its opening in 2015, the ACC has collected experimental films and video art
from across Asia. One of the ACC’s ongoing commitments has been to introduce
works by artists who maintain their artistic visions within an increasingly
commercialized environment.
《Asia, The Apparatus》 presents selected
experimental films and video artworks researched and collected by the center
over the years. Through moving images—a term now widely used to describe the
convergence of these two genres—the exhibition reactivates the memories and
communal narratives of multiple Asias within a shared space, acknowledging
their distinct identities and histories.
HAN Okhi, Untitled 77-A, 1977 ©ACC
Asia’s
modern and contemporary history has unfolded through cycles of colonization and
division, revolution and development, censorship and resistance, and
discrimination and exclusion. These histories have been recorded through the
apparatuses of media and technology, while also being repeatedly reduced,
erased, or rearranged through the apparatuses of institutions.
In the
context of this exhibition, the term “apparatus” extends beyond cinematic
tools—such as cameras, film, projectors, and screens—to encompass the
underlying structures that capture events, edit time, and reorganize memory.
This dual meaning reveals the tension between what we have been allowed to see
and what remains hidden.
The
works in this exhibition unfold through three interrelated processes:
Dictation–Representation–Rewriting. “Dictation” refers to histories written by
external forces rather than in one’s own voice; “representation” is the act of
calling those histories back into view; and “rewriting” involves interpreting
and reconfiguring them anew.
KIM Dong-ryung x PARK Kyoung-tae, Don’t Leave Me, 2016 ©ACC
On the first
floor of the circular, panopticon-like structure, the presentation consists
entirely of women’s narratives. This curatorial choice positions women’s
histories—long defined by external gazes—as the starting point of “dictation,”
ultimately opening the exhibition to active, self-determined voices.
As visitors
walk through these layered voices of Asia, they encounter spaces familiar
across the region: movie theaters, train stations, dormitories, and convenience
stores. These everyday sites function not merely as backdrops but as profound
intersections of different times and memories.
Formed by the
various apparatuses that structure the world we inhabit and traverse, 《Asia, The
Apparatus》 functions as a collective workshop of communities illuminating
diverse lives. It serves as a cinematic village where we can envision a better
future alongside the audience.
Participating
Artists: Theresa Hak kyung CHA, NGUYEN Trinh Thi, HAN Okhi, KIM
Soyoung, Maryam TAFAKORY, IM Go-eun, Women with Disabilities Empathy, KIM
Dong-ryungxPARK Kyoung-tae, ITO Takashi, CINEMA GWANGJU, Ming WONG, SEO
Won-tae, Your Bros. Filmmaking Group, Listen to the City, Tomotosi, YOON
Choong-geun, BONG Joon ho, PAN Lu, Taiki SAKPISIT, KIM Kyungmook, Alexander
UGAY, Tiffany SIA, ADACHI Masao, HIRASAWA Go, JUNG Jae-hoon, LEE Kai Chung,
HONG Jin-hwon. Aprilsnow, DJ Soulscape, JANG Minseung, MHTL
