Installation view of 《A House, Arrived Again》 © Woonkyung Foundation
Kim Donghee’s (b. 1986) solo exhibition 《A House, Arrived Again》 is held at the House of Woonkyung, on view through October 31. Kim
has continued to develop works that intervene in viewers’ movement and lines of
sight by transforming the conditions and structures that constitute space.
The House of Woonkyung, where the exhibition takes place, was
built in the 1930s and is known to occupy the former site of Dojeonggung Palace
from the Joseon period.
From 1953, it served as the residence of politician Woonkyung
Lee Jae-hyung (1914-1992), and since 1993 it has been preserved as a historical
site carrying memories of Korea’s modern and contemporary history while
gradually transforming into a venue for contemporary art.
The layers of time accumulated within the House of Woonkyung
intersect with Kim Donghee’s long-standing questions about space.
Installation view of 《A House, Arrived Again》 © Woonkyung Foundation
In this exhibition, the artist presents new works while also
bringing previous works back into the new context of the House of Woonkyung. By
altering circulation routes, revealing the structure and elevation of the
terrain, reversing parts of the house’s physical form, and repositioning
earlier works, he connects coordinates from different times and spaces.
After passing through an experience in which multiple times and
spaces overlap in 《A House, Arrived Again》, the house
encountered once more is perceived differently from before. When one’s position
and viewpoint change, a familiar place becomes unfamiliar, and the present
itself is newly experienced. For Kim Donghee, space is a field in which
relationships are continually formed.
