On Jihye Park’s Solo Exhibition 《An Ordinary Failure》
Jintaek Jang (Independent Curator)
Through her work, Jihye Park has consistently confronted without hesitation the social systems that are accepted without question, raising fundamental doubts about so-called “rational” “understanding” and “standards” that run through them.
What is the truth behind the so-called objective frameworks demanded by the world—such as rationality, satisfaction, happiness, and success? Do they hold any meaning beyond the intentions of the majority who seek consensus for collective peace? In fact, although the society we live (and must live) in has already proven through the record of history that “absoluteness” does not exist, it has also become accustomed to flexibly blocking the possibility of any radical change or resistance that might arise from such a simple truth. Individuals form groups for their own interests, and these groups construct a massive structure to protect themselves.
When someone attempts to confront this head-on, we have often witnessed cases in which the group structure swiftly eliminates or expels such heretical existence. Nevertheless, individuals still have the freedom to pursue their own choices, and the basis for those choices will arise from a “balance” between objectivity and subjectivity.
In addition to the aforementioned rationality, satisfaction, happiness, and success, so-called correct or positive indicators—such as normality, completion, and generality—may immediately entice us, but they can never persist eternally as fixed definitions. Therefore, it is evident that attempts must sometimes be made to establish the phenomenological value of opposing terms such as irrationality, dissatisfaction, unhappiness, failure, abnormality, incompletion, and exception—concepts perceived as negative or incorrect.
By illuminating the many layers of reality that bridge these uncomfortable or unnecessary domains and the general value system of society, Park’s work seems to liberate our internal systems from rigid binary thinking. Moreover, this attempt leads to the artist’s logical conclusion by shedding light on “contradictory situations,” such as the irrationality that inevitably emerges from the pursuit of rationality or the ambiguous outcomes that always follow such pursuits. This attitude can also be detected in the titles of her works and exhibitions.
Through the exhibition 《An Ordinary Failure》(Gallery Chosun, 2018), Jihye Park sows new seeds of rational doubt—collected from such paradoxical lives—onto the given surface of standards. In this exhibition, the artist questions the possibility of blind trust, challenges absolute fairness, creates cracks in the various self-defense mechanisms established by social structures, and paradoxically asserts that completion does not exist. Furthermore, she does not simply express doubts about the ordinary conditions and standards she encounters, but clearly articulates her own position at that point. This appears as an attitude of seeking new generalizations through her accumulated experiences, and also as a movement to actively share her critical awareness with others.
Of course, Park’s work does not seek to completely overturn such rigid and sometimes coercive systems, nor does it attempt to incite another form of discourse. Rather, her gaze gently invites you to truly observe the contemporary condition stranded at the two extreme ends of unconditional obedience and outright rejection. Through the artist, we may perhaps gain a rare opportunity to acknowledge the natural drifting of our lives—sometimes being swept along, sometimes resisting.
