Exploring the power dynamics at play in relationships between individuals, institutions and the state
January 26–March 16, 2019
1-3 Strand, London, WC2N 5BW. Main Entrance: Northumberland Avenue
29/31 Catherine Place, London, SW1E 6DY
Delfina Foundation and the Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK) are pleased to present Power play, an exhibition across both venues featuring solo and newly-commissioned collaborative works which expose, trace and interrogate power dynamics through humour, subversion and provocation.
Curated by Aaron Cezar, Director of Delfina Foundation, Power play takes its cue from Jacques Derrida’s The Politics of Friendship (1994), in which the philosopher approaches the notion of friendship as a way to rethink the political, drawing connections between friendship, citizenship and democracy. Such ideas are particularly pertinent to the activities of the exhibition’s partners: Delfina Foundation, as an international artist residency based in London; KCCUK, which seeks to promote understanding of and relations with Korea in the UK through cultural and educational activities; and SongEun ArtSpace in Seoul, a long-time residency partner with Delfina Foundation, which pioneered the project and staged an iteration of the exhibition in late 2018.
The exhibition includes 11 former resident artists of Delfina Foundation: Jungju An (South Korea), Fayçal Baghriche (Algeria/France), Jungki Beak (South Korea), Soyoung Chung (South Korea), Zuza Golinska (Poland), Jeremy Hutchison (UK), Jaebum Kim (South Korea), Bona Park (South Korea), Oscar Santillan (Ecuador/The Netherlands), Jasmijn Visser (The Netherlands/Germany), and Lantian Xie (UAE).
Spanning a wide variety of media, the artworks address relationships between people and the environment, artists and audiences, guests and hosts, individuals and states, and between states themselves. In addition to solo works by all participating artists, the exhibition features specially-commissioned collaborative works by artists who first met whilst in residence at Delfina Foundation exploring the nature of their friendship and the relationship between their respective practices.
Opening hours
Delfina Foundation: Monday-Friday, 11am-6pm; Saturday, 12-6pm
Korean Cultural Centre UK: Monday-Friday, 10am-6pm; Saturday, 11am-5pm
Credits
Power play is co-presented by Delfina Foundation and the Korean Cultural Centre UK. The exhibition was originally developed in partnership with SongEun Artspace, Korea, which presented Delfina in SongEun: Power play in Seoul in late 2018. The exhibition has been adapted for London with additional contributions.
With thanks to the Mondriaan Fund and the Netherlands Embassy in Seoul for their support towards Jasmijn Visser and Oscar Santillan.
The exhibition in London is receiving support from the Korea Art Management Service (KAMS) in collaboration with Laurence Geoffrey’s, with additional assistance from Delfina Foundation’s Network of Asia-Pacific Patrons and the Goethe Institute, London.
Commissioning partners
