Exhibitions
《Asynchronous Singing》, 2024.04.05 – 2024.06.30, ARKO Art Center
April 05, 2024
ARKO Art Center
Installation
view of 《Asynchronous Singing》 ©
ARKO Art Center
Hyehwa station and Marronnier
Park, adjacent to ARKO Art Center, are frequently populated by individuals with
disabilities advocating for their visibility and rights. Their voices, which
may seem divergent from “norms,” reach us as songs or a chorus in the museum or
wherever we are now.
Inspired by their songs,
the 《Asynchronous Singing》
exhibition encourages collaborative contemplation on how
individuals can listen to, observe, and articulate the voices that belong to
different physical entities. Without hastily committing to being inclusive of
everyone, the exhibition strives to acknowledge and respect each person’s
unique sense of time and pace.
This exhibition refrains from
categorizing individuals into two distinct groups, such as people with and
without disabilities, and it does not seek to elicit sympathy or grant
privilege to bodies perceived as “different.”
Rather than leaning on terms like
“disability art” or “barrier-free,” Asynchronous Singing introduces
and explores works that nurture their unique and diverse languages. It aspires
to serve as a space where participants recognize each individual’s different
rhythms and flows, along with the potential intersections therein.
Installation
view of 《Asynchronous Singing》 ©
ARKO Art Center
《Asynchronous Singing》 reveals
concerns regarding how a museum addresses accessibility and translates its
ideas into action, along with the conflicts that arose during the process of
realization. It also avoids drawing a well-polished conclusion. Using this
exhibition as a starting point, we anticipate transforming it into an
opportunity for a paradigm shift—listening with the eyes and seeing with the
ears.
Furthermore, the exhibition will
feature programs that invite those who voice themselves through singing and
dancing at Marronnier Park as participants of the public museum and autonomous
creators. ARKO Art Center aims to integrate wide-ranging voices and expressions
through these initiatives.
In an era where hatred and
criticism towards “differences” prevail, fostering a commitment to enhancing
accessibility for collective well-being necessitates reflecting on one’s
willingness to embrace the intersectionality of each individual’s pace and temporal
reality. Thus, 《Asynchronous
Singing》 is far from the traditional, neatly packaged
presentation often expected from museum exhibits and does not present
definitive resolutions that precisely encapsulate both the theme and the
artworks.
Instead, the exhibition delves into the artists’ independent and
distinctive languages, even when they may sound unrefined and discordant. It
also sheds light on those who care for and facilitate connections between these
artists and the world. Ultimately, the exhibition argues that embracing and
understanding diverse lives must precede efforts to promote acceptance of
everyone’s differences.