Dialogue
August 30–December 16, 2018
Architecture, architectural sculptures and installations emerged alongside minimalism on the global art scene during the 1960s. The collision of art and architecture is one example of the opening up of the traditional artistic disciplines and has evolved to create integrative collaborations using diverse media, supports and materials. Kim Chung-up Dialogue ruminates over the hybridization of art and architecture in Korean society. The focus is on the works and activities of architect Kim Chung-up (1922–1988) whose artistic legacy has not previously been studied in depth. Rather than seeing his work as part of a global trend, this exhibition focuses in examining the Korean context within which Kim Chung-up’s work was produced..
Kim Chung-up Dialogue is an exhibition co-hosted by National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea and Kim Chung-up Architecture Museum to celebrate the architect on the 30th anniversary of his death. Kim Chung-up is renowned as a master of Korean modern architecture who is best known for designing the Samil Building and the French Embassy to Korea, both in Seoul. He is known for his unique architectural style that combines modernism based on the architectural formality of Le Corbusier—who he served a three-year apprenticeship under—and the Korean traditional architectural sentiment and form.
This exhibition aims to fill in the gaps left by previous research on Kim Chung-up as well as chronicling his career in order to explore his work in more depth. It looks back to when he launched Kim Chung-up Architecture Studio after his time in France and studies what forces shaped the artistic and architectural vision he ultimately realized. The following concepts guided how the exhibition examined Kim Chung-up and the political, economic, social and cultural context he existed in: globalism and localism; artistic thinking and practice; city and desire (city and production); and memory and regeneration. By using these guidelines we hope to gain a better understanding of Kim Chung-up’s legacy.
