2016 Young Artist Exhibition
CONCRETOPIA
April 23rd - June 18th
at The Museum of Photography, Seoul 20th floor Gallery 3

As a strong supporter of Korean photography's next generation, starting from early 2015 The Museum of Photography, Seoul has openly received and reviewed portfolios by Korea photographers in their 30~40s. Works of talented artists were chosen and exhibited in the two exhibitions last year, and this year the project continues with the group exhibition of Hyewon GEUM, Hyong-Ryol PAK and Sanghyuk YOON.

Unexpectedly a number of applicants have concentrated on the urban environment that they are living in, or to be more precise the urban breakdowns induced by putting development before everything else. Most of them are born and raised in an apartment building. The fact that they are noticing such urban environment they are already accustomed to and are voicing out their thoughts in their own ways demonstrates that today's urban environment is greatly influencing the contemporary visual culture.

The exhibition title ‘CONCRETOPIA’ comes from the words 'concrete' and 'utopia'. British scholar John Grindrod had described the 'timely urban planning' represented by the 'high-rise tower blocks built from concrete' in the post-war Britain, when the city had to be rebuilt in a short period of time. In no time Korean society has graduated from the age of growth Concretopia that once indicated a ‘timely, and finally completed city of ideal' is no longer true in Korean society and rather it came to indicate the 'distorted fantasy' causing a wide variety of social issues in reality. It also holds the bitterness of urban residents who have coveted in the past on concrete as their partner.

In their work, Hyewon GEUM, Hyong-Ryol PAK and Sanghyuk YOON search for the reason behind why the utopia we wished for can only be a fantasy, and ask the audience the same question. They select and observe unanticipated locations or objects because they have become too familiar or were hidden away. Then they emphasize through their photographs how distant reality is from the city's utopia we have imagined. In such ways, the photographic projects of these three artists present overall looks of the city where the city they remember is mixed with reality, thus by no means perfect nor ideal.