About Korea Tomorrow 2015

KOREA TOMORROW

Korea Tomorrow, with its unique structure and all-inclusive nature, has been inviting innovative artists and their ideas not only presenting them to the public but also inventing new ways of interaction between art experience and the audience. Overcoming traditional limitation by questioning its direction every year, Korea Tomorrow grows as one of the most flexible and beloved platform for artists to showcase their new ideas. Korea Tomorrow, in its seventh installment, presents new works by critically acclaimed artists who lead new trends in contemporary visual art.

The Philosophy
The purpose of Korea Tomorrow is simple. What questions ought to be asked, what network should be established, and what market should be pioneered? In 2009, questions were asked about the interaction between art, design, and architecture, with discussions on the importance of forming convergence possibilities among each genre. A goal was set to create a market to provide experience rather than selling object through art.

The Vision
These tangible achievements shine even brighter as they were not results of an art gallery exhibition nor of satisfactory financial support. It was possible due to the best efforts of all the participating artists who put faith in Korea Tomorrow and its determination to pioneer overseas markets. As much as cooperation between different areas such as critics, curators, dealers, auctioneers, art fairs, galleries, and publishing is crucial, so is the international cooperation across borders and regions. Overseas touring exhibition for Korean artists is bound to incur large costs, and Korea Tomorrow understands the limitations of only having “proven artists” on the rotation roster for such tours. Our vision is to expand new heroes of Korean contemporary art into more global stages.

The Directions
Korea Tomorrow changed the rules of the game by inviting them to critical discourse; interviewing the artists and ruminating on a structure that would allow criticism, gallery, magazine and such other exhibition related areas, and 2012 has seen liaise for the foreign market to contact Korean artists. Until now, the visitations to Korea Tomorrow have been professionals in curating, invitations for foreign artist, such as from Indonesia and the US. This was to overcome limits of a network of curators and to build a platform that can support an interchange of exhibition opportunities, information sharing, and communication among artists themselves. Art should be questioned every moment. That is the essence. Our mission is fixed but the future of Korea Tomorrow will be in constant flux.

GREETINGS
Today, for Tomorrow

KIM GeumHee
President of Korea Tomorrow

I remember reciting “The Charter of National Education” during my childhood, without even thinking about what it means. It has been decades since I last recited it in whole, so most of the phrases are now vague in my memory. Yet, I still recall one specific part of the Charter and find myself repeating it from time to time. It goes like this: “…developing our innate faculties and overcoming the obstacles to the rapid progress of the nation, we will cultivate a creative power and pioneer spirit.”

Looking back on the past few years, “obstacles” that Korea Tomorrow faced in its early stages were rather unfortunate and harsh. But perhaps those obstacles served as our steppingstone to success because we are announcing the 7th edition of Korea Tomorrow exhibition. There are regrets for some mistakes that we made on the way in trying to cultivate a creative power and pioneer spirit. However, our determination and efforts to settle in the Korean art community as a strong counterpart, with the lessons we learned and our growing experiences, remain unchanged.

Korea Tomorrow takes the form of an art exhibition to introduce Korea’s current art trends to our audience and suggest future direction for Korean contemporary art. Moreover, we wish to show the power of Korean art, not by ourselves but with the help of influential leaders in this field. The ultimate goal of Korea Tomorrow is to demonstrate this competitive power more effectively and clearly at the international stage. Korean artists stand with much more respect and recognition than before and their various achievements are highlighted in the global art community, thanks to the efforts given by many Korean art professionals. Nonetheless, Korean art and its potentials are still undervalued. It is thus our desire to make meaningful contributions to advancing and expanding the realm of Korean contemporary art in the international art scene.

There are a number of reasons why Korean art has not been able to fully exercise its potential at the international level. I believe one of the reasons is the lack of systems management framework. Take for example the Korean Wave (Hallyu) and K-POP. It is certainly true that celebrities’ competence and talent bring popularity, but Hallyu’s key momentum lies in supportive, professional management. To that end, Korea Tomorrow will not only continue to find talented artists and support them, but also work to open up more opportunities for communication with curators and art critics. We hope that Korean artists will contribute with their creative expertise and perspective in understanding their artworks. We also expect to pass on their perceptivity, insight and theories to the public, and stimulate artists to progress further. Such communications must be continued in a more systematic and international level fit for the global art market.

This autumn is particularly pleasant and beautiful, perhaps due to the scorching heat of this past summer. It is an honor for us to be presenting Korea Tomorrow 2015 this fall at the Sungkok Art Museum, rich in history and reputation. We express our sincere gratitude to the Museum staff for recognizing our efforts and helping us make the exhibition possible. Our sincere thanks also go to all participating artists who have made our exhibition a better one this year.

Lastly, we thank our audience for making the time to visit the exhibition and hope that you enjoy every bit of it. We leave you with the promise that Korea Tomorrow will continue to grow, advance and strive to do better.