▲ 'Inside Dream' ⓒ Roomtone

Korean media art will be showcased in Paris this July, coinciding with the 2024 Summer Olympics, and featuring works by video art pioneer Paik Nam-june and other prominent contemporary Korean media artists.

The exhibition, titled "Decoding Korea, La Corée Décodée," will run from July 26 to August 25 at the Grand Palais Immersif, an art center dedicated to digital art in Paris. It is hosted by the South Korean Culture Ministry and organized by the Korea Arts Management Service. 

▲ Crow’s Eye View ⓒ Jung Yeon-Doo

A total of 18 media artworks by 11 artists will be displayed at the art center. Among these is "Double Poser" by Kim Hee-cheon, which explores philosophical questions about our understanding of time. Kim recently won the 20th Hermes Foundation Missulsang in 2023.

The exhibition will also feature a special section dedicated to Paik Nam-june, showcasing his half-hour video "Global Groove" from 1973, a video collage that blends elements from various cultures. Another notable work by Paik, "Wrap Around the World," unveiled a week before the 1988 Seoul Summer Olympics, includes a mix of pop singers and avant-garde artists and was a collaborative effort involving eleven global broadcasting stations as the Cold War was ending. 

▲ 'Wrap Around the World' by Paik Nam-june ⓒ Electronic Arts Intermix, New YorkIn addition, a VR artwork by Roomtone titled "Inside Dream" will digitally reconstruct and share the artist’s personal dreams with the audience.

Other participating artists include Lee Lee-nam, Park June-bum, Lee Yong-baek, Kwon Ha-youn, Kang Yi-yun, Jeong Yeon-doo, and Ram Han.

This exhibition is part of the ministry’s Korea Season 2024 project, which aims to promote Korean culture globally, with a particular focus on Paris, the host city of the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Sayart / Maria Kim, sayart2022@gmail.com