Poster image of “KOO JEONG A - ODORAMA CITIES” ©ARKO Art Center

ARKO Art Center is holding the homecoming exhibition of “KOO JEONG A - ODORAMA CITIES” presented at the Korean Pavilion, the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, until March 23 next year.

“KOO JEONG A - ODORAMA CITIES” is curated by the artistic director duo Seolhui Lee (Chief Curator, Kunsthal Aarhus, Denmark) and Jacob Fabricius (Director, Art Hub Copenhagen, Denmark). This homecoming exhibition is a solo show that offers a more multidimensional perspective on KOO JEONG A's presentation at the Korean Pavilion.

The exhibition title ‘Odorama’ is a word that combines ‘odor,’ which means scent, and ‘-rama’ of drama. KOO uses the sense of smell and sight as a synesthetic medium to explore the delicate balance between visibility and invisibility, the imaginary and actuality, and existence and nonexistence, thus providing possibilities beyond their boundaries. It also focuses on communication, serendipity, and the energetic connections between space and visitors through stories collected via an open call.

Featuring 600 scents memories and 17 different scents, “KOO JEONG A – ODORAMA CITIES” delves into the nuances of our spatial encounters, investigating how we perceive and recollect spaces, what trickers our memory, with a particular emphasis on how scents, smells, and odors contribute to these memories.

Ji Yeon Lee has been working as an editor for the media art and culture channel AliceOn since 2021 and worked as an exhibition coordinator at samuso (now Space for Contemporary Art) from 2021 to 2023.