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ISSN 1460-8537 KIM SOUN-GUI by Olivia Sand
Biennales make a point not only to showcase young and up-and-coming artists, but also to highlight established artists who may have been overlooked so far. Te latter is unquestionably the case for Korean artist Kim Soun-Gui (b 1946), who has only recently come to public attention with a major retrospective at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (NMMCA) in Seoul. Tis exhibition is now on view at the ZKM in Karlsruhe, Germany. Considering the importance of Kim Soun-Gui’s oeuvre, it is no surprise to see her work also featured in such important exhibitions as the Carnegie International. Her work is a gift to any curator, as it is so diverse and challenging. Kim Soun-Gui is a free spirit, which applies as much to her personal life as to her art. Brilliant, creative and innovative, she has gradually opened up her practice, based initially on calligraphy and painting, to photography, installation, participatory performance, sculpture, video, multi-media art, poetry, language, literature and philosophy – and is constantly taking it a step further. A pioneer in many disciplines, Kim Soun-Gui has always been and continues to be eager to take up the challenge to discuss art, society and politics with fellow artists, intellectuals, and philosophers. In the interview below, we revisit some key moments that led her to become the artist she is today.
Asian Art Newspaper: The exhibition at the ZKM begins with highlights from your first years in France, back in the early 1970s. Surprisingly, it provides very thorough footage of a time when it was neither customary nor easy to film such undertakings. Do you agree? Kim Soun-Gui: Yes, indeed. A lot is documented, but a great deal also has got lost, which I deeply regret.
AAN: The exhibition was organised as a collaboration between the ZKM in Karlsruhe and the NMMCA where it was first shown in 2019. Is the present exhibition the same as in Seoul? KSG: Te exhibition in Karlsruhe is a little different. In Seoul, the show was even larger, featuring more works, but it was not possible to ship everything to Germany. It was just too complicated and we decided to leave the most fragile pieces behind. Ten, with Covid, the project had to be postponed, shipping became even more expensive, and in the meantime, certain pieces had been acquired by institutions or collectors. We therefore decided to focus on a lesser amount of works.
AAN: In your case, it seems essential for institutions to grasp the full dimension of your work in order to collaborate towards an exhibition, as your practice is so diverse. KSG: Yes, a good understanding of my
Kim Soun-Gui © Kim Soun-Gui Continued on page 4
NEWS IN BRIEF
the island in October this year. Benesse Art Site Naoshima, which manages the art site, organised the replacement process that was overseen by Kusama herself. A new pumpkin was unveiled, bearing the same colour, size, and materials as its predecessor, but with a tougher structure to enable it to survive extreme weather conditions. Te original work was located at an old pier on the art island of Naoshima in the Seto Inland Sea since 1994 and the bright yellow pumpkin has become a landmark in the area.
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GWANGJU BIENNALE, KOREA Te 14th Gwangju Biennale in South Korea, Soft and Weak Like Water, has announced the first participating artists and preliminary details on its curatorial themes, artist selection, artworks, venues and public program. Bringing together around 80 artists from different corners of the globe, the biennale will present over 40 commissioned projects and new works. Te biennale is curated by artistic director Sook-Kyung Lee, alongside associate curator Kerryn Greenberg, and assistant curators Sooyoung Leam and Harry C H Choi. Te title takes its inspiration from a
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chapter of Dao De Jing, a fundamental Daoist text, which speaks of water’s capacity to embrace contradictions and paradoxes. Te Biennale proposes to imagine our shared planet as a site of resistance, coexistence, solidarity, and care, by
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thinking through the transformative and restorative potential of water as a metaphor, a force, and a method. It invites artists to engage with an alternative model of power that brings forth change, not with an immediate effect but with an endurance and pervasive gentleness that flows across structural divisions and differences. A list of the artists and further information can be found
ongwangjubiennale.org.
BHUTAN REOPENS FOR TOURISM Te Tourism Council of Bhutan launched a new website in September to help Bhutan’s tourism sector recover from pandemic. Te new website,
bhutan.travel, will mainly act as an information portal for visitors to Bhutan, where cultural institutions and the 20 dzongkha (regions) can post information, including information on visa fees and monument and sacred site fees. A second website,
services.tourism.
bt, will offer information on cultural and tourist sites in the country.
TOKYO NATIONAL MUSEUM Tokyo National Museum’s (TNM) 150th anniversary plans are underway with a newly developped show – TNM is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. Te exhibition Tokyo National Museum: Its History and National Treasures introduces the museum through its collections of masterpieces and historical records, including all 89
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National Treasures that it looks after. Approximately 150 artworks and other objects are exhibited in two parts. Tis type of show has never been attempted before in the museum’s 150-year history and promises to be a historic event worthy of their anniversary year. Part One is called Te National
Treasures of Tokyo National Museum and is devoted to the National Treasures, with a rotation midway through the term of the exhibition. Part Two: 150 Years at Tokyo National Museum presents the museum’s history, which is synonymous with museum history in Japan, through artworks, records, reproduction of exhibitions, and videos from the past. Tis show will have two rotations midway. In addition to displaying culturally
important artworks, the exhibition aims to introduce the museum to the wider public by using multiple angles, such as its efforts to conserve and programme of exhibiting tangible cultural heritage. Te exhibition runs until 11 December.
ASIAN ART CONFERENCE, LISBON From 24 to 26 November, Asian Art in the World: Historical Influences on Culture and Society will be held at three museums in Lisbon: Museu Calouste Gulbenkian, Museu do Oriente, and Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga. Te principal aim of this three-day conference is to highlight the important contribution made by Asia to world art and universal civilisation, from the
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remote ages of the Silk Road and its land and sea routes, to the modern age of globalisation and the huge prestige afforded to the many artistic cultures of Asia in the Western world. More information on
aawconference.com.
TOLEDO MUSEUM OF ART, OHIO Te museum has named Christine D Starkman consulting curator of Asian art. As Toledo Museum of Art (TMA) continues its efforts to broaden the narrative of art history, Starkman will integrate Asian art into the expansive and global stories the museum seeks to tell. After assessing TMA’s holdings, Starkman will focus on new acquisitions of Asian art to draw on collection strengths and complement existing holdings and will contribute to the museum’s thinking about its upcoming reinstallation.
DHAKA ART SUMMIT, BANGLADESH Te Dhaka Art Summit (DAS), a triennial event for art and architecture related to South Asia, will return to the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, from 3 to 11 February, 2023. Directed by chief curator Diana Campbell, the sixth edition is called Bonna, which is the Bengali word for ‘flood’, and explores the influences of climate in forming history, culture, and identity. To this end, DAS has invited over 120 local and international artists, architects, and writers to explore these relationships.
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