Exhibition poster © The Trinity

As part of its corporate cultural program, The Export-Import Bank of Korea organizes exhibitions at the SAFE Gallery, located in the lobby of its headquarters, selecting outstanding emerging artists recognized through programs such as the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art’s 《Young Korean Artists》 and the Seoul Museum of Art’s support initiatives.

This exhibition highlights the work of Rahm Parc, an artist who has already gained recognition from leading institutions including the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, the Seoul Museum of Art, the Ilmin Museum of Art, and the Asia Culture Center. Rahm Parc translates the digital language that underpins contemporary society into the language of art, offering insight into how contemporary modes of thinking operate. Just as spoken or written language reveals the structure of thought, her work visualizes the operational mechanisms of digital media tools, allowing viewers to contemplate fragmented signs within our linguistic systems that often go unnoticed.

Many contemporary artists approach digital media from humanities or sociological perspectives. Within this broader context, Rahm Parc takes a sculptural approach to reinterpret how digital media analyzes and stores real-world data. She converts the quantitative, computational processes of software programs like Google Sheets or Excel into works composed of color and form. In her work, the concept of an "index" transforms into "colors," and formulas are reinterpreted as lines or planes indicating arbitrary vectors or quantities. Much like how we input data to predict the weather or analyze DNA methylation to estimate lifespan, the formal structures and color data embedded in her paintings offer glimpses into an image that extends beyond the canvas, suggesting a space yet to be depicted.

Rahm Parc compares this predictive system to perspective drawing. Perspective, developed during the Renaissance as a scientific approach rooted in geometry, produces the illusion of depth within a two-dimensional space. Although converging lines directed toward a vanishing point allow viewers to perceive space, this is ultimately a pictorial illusion. Parc reconstructs the computational logic of digital space through painterly techniques, envisioning a new form of spatial representation that reflects how contemporary society produces space and imagery.

Her works prompt viewers to reflect on the rapid speed of transformation within contemporary life, where we are compelled to adapt to constant technological change regardless of individual will. Her AUTO series captures this reality through the imagery of cars speeding through the night, symbolizing the delegation of control (autonomy) to machines, akin to autonomous vehicles. The proliferating units within her compositions expand across black-painted gallery walls, integrating the exhibition space itself into the artwork. Through this dynamic spatial arrangement, Parc playfully unpacks contemporary modes of image production.

New media has reshaped how we perceive reality. In an era where the metaverse is celebrated and the boundaries between virtuality and reality blur, what does it mean to believe in "reality"? We check daily statistics on weather, time, or COVID-19 cases and gauge popularity or attention through the number of likes on social media. Spaces filled with these numerical indicators, when combined with the dimension of time, begin to suggest directionality, transforming our conventional understanding of time and space. Within this context, the new spatial landscapes Rahm Parc presents serve as markers, inviting reflection on how we comprehend and navigate the world today.

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