ARKO Art Center, Seoul, South Korea
May 19, 2022 - July 17, 2022
ARKO Art Center is pleased to present the 2022 Invitational Exhibition, All About Love: Young Joon Kwak & Sara Sejin Chang (Sara van der Heide). The exhibition invites Korean-American artist Young Joon Kwak and Korean-Dutch artist Sara Sejin Chang (Sara van der Heide), two internationally active artists of Korean descent. It is the first museum exhibition in Korea by the artists who focus on themes of the deconstruction of binary system of looking into one’s identity, Western-centric history writing, and patriarchal authority. The exhibition examines the ways in which the artists engage with their work to overcome and heal collective traumas, and the practices that develop a sense of community and collective responsibility.
In Kwak’s work, unruly movements and a swirl of queer gestures embody a form of resistance against the patriarchal gaze and the violence of objectification. These aesthetic strategies are grounded in Kwak’s desire to uncover different ways of understanding our bodies and discovering new forms of intimacy across social differences. Kwak also focuses on the multiplicity and hybridity of identities, helping audiences explore and question their own identities and have a new understanding in the bodies of queers and transgender people. Their work explores otherness in their self and embraces their community in collective action.
All About Love: Young Joon Kwak & Sara Sejin Chang (Sara van der Heide) intends to reveal how this transformative love has the potential to unravel social problems and resonate with its powerful potential. The two artists, seemingly unrelated and independent, are connected to the society in which we depend on each other to build a community through empathy and solidarity. Their works correspond to the belief in love that builds a better society and community, and the belief in courage that battles against a wide-spread systemic discrimination.
Interview of the Two Artists
Online Exhibition Tour
Download Exhibition Brochure
