www.asia.si.edu/events/exhibiting-asia/default.asp
Exhibiting Asia in the 21st Century
Grass and Honey: Continuity and Contingency in Seoul
Heejin Kim, Director of Art Space Pool, Seoul, Korea
Thursday, April 5, 7 pm EST
Meyer Auditorium, Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art, Washington DC
How do independent art initiatives constitute and sustain themselves within the particular context of Seoul? Heejin Kim, director of Art Space Pool, introduces the unique institutional character of this alternative art space, including its ongoing dedication to self-organized collective activities. Focusing on Pool’s most radical venture, a complex cultural space called Honey, she discusses alternative efforts to support critical engagement in contemporary art and how artists navigate Korea’s official cultural policy system.
Several of the artists involved in the Honey project have work currently on view in the Freer|Sackler, as seen in Perspectives: Minouk Lim and in Moving Perspectives, a series of video screenings presented in conjunction with Korean Film Festival DC 2012.
About the Series
Exhibiting Asia in the 21st Century is an occasional lecture series inaugurated in 2012 to honor the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, dedicated to exploring the pressing questions that challenge curators exhibiting Asian art.
About the Speaker
Heejin Kim is curator and director of Art Space Pool in Seoul (2010–present), one of the most prominent and active alternative art spaces in Korea. Through exhibitions, collectively organized research labs, workshops, and publications, Kim has presented diverse projects that engage artists, local communities, and the public. As the former curator of Insa Art Space (IAS), Arts Council Korea (2006–2009), she has brought a number of Korean artists to global audiences, curating exhibitions at the New Museum in New York and Museo Tamayo in Mexico City, among other cities. Examples of her projects include Dongducheon: A Walk to Remember, A Walk to Envision (2007-2008, New Museum and IAS); John Bock: 2 Handbags in a Pickle (2008, Arko Art Center and IAS); Unconquered: Critical Visions from South Korea (2009, Museo Tamayo); Tongue, Liberated! (2008, IAS).
This lecture is presented with the generous support of the Korea Foundation.
