The Middle Land: When Time Unfolds into Land

Artists: Kyung Hwa Shon, Sungsic Moon, Kimsooja, Kara Walker, Sohyun Moon, Wu Tsang, Dongju Kang, Haneyl Choi, Paul McCarthy, Pauline Boudry & Renate Lorenz, Paul Chan 

ARKO Art Center is pleased to present The Middle Land: When Time Unfolds into Land by the guest curator Zoe Chun, who is selected for this year’s Exhibition for Visual Arts by Arts Council Korea (ARKO).

The Middle Land: When Time Unfolds into Land presents five narratives that formatively interpret the multi-dimensional nature of time and space. Derived from “Middle-earth” as mentioned in the first work of J. R. R. Tolkien, the exhibition title reflects the author’s literary worldview of seeking the meaning of space, and place to ultimately interpret a complex life story comprised of good and evil. The exhibition engages with mental and spiritual narratives that implicate characters and historical events.

The Middle Land as a performance exhibition puts forth the notion of “play as contemporary art.” The Middle Land is a two-part production of a contemporary art exhibition and experimental theatrical play. The adventurous epic performance exhibition personifies each artwork into the format of the theatrical production.

The Middle Land play is a cross-genre theater work consisting of five acts. As an adventure narrative of contemporary art, its five acts are titled “The History of the Middle Land,” “The Lost Tales,” “The Shaping of Middle Land,” “The Lost Road: The Return of the Shadow,” and “The Peoples of Middle Land.” Each act is unwieldy, divided and hybridized into real and spiritual time.

As Tolkien has said in a letter to his readers written before working on the manuscript, although the narrative of Middle-earth may seem like a great hero’s biography, its grandeur means nothing without the trivial and the ordinary. He wanted to emphasize “the preciousness of a peaceful and uninteresting life.”

The Middle Land encourages the audience to question, “What is the story of the moment?” The hope is to record a “small history” of incomplete stories that open different possibilities of completion. By combining art exhibition and theater performance into a single production, The Middle Land presents a stage for imagination that reflects our world but transcends our time. The exhibition personifies formative artworks with a creative worldview.

Curator & Performance Director: Zoe Chun
Associate Curator: Seolhui Lee
Performers: Hyunjun Ji, Setbyeol Lim, Woochi, SEP, Ari Kim
Production by The Great Commission

The Great Commission (directed by Zoe Chun) is a non-profit contemporary art organization that facilitates the production of exhibitions, performances, and publications that explore contemporary values through an eclectic hybrid of artistic genres. TGC collaborates with artists to create the finest experimental artworks and expand the scope of the arts. It promotes creativity and altruism by granting platforms to unique, experimental artists. By presenting the arts in its finest forms, it seeks to stimulate the intellect and nourish the soul.

For further information, please contact Jun Chae.