Korea Artist Prize is an award system and support program jointly presented by the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) and the SBS Foundation. Each year since its inception in 2012 it has shown the potential of Korean contemporary art by selecting four artists to receive support and exhibition opportunities for new artistic creations as well as ongoing assistance with their international activities. For the 10th edition, institutional improvements were introduced with a goal of adding greater depth and meaning to the program by providing a condensed glimpse of each artist’s views and sharing these through multiple channels to create ripples throughout the art world.



The four participating artists in the Korea Artist Prize 2024 exhibition are Hayoun Kwon, Yang Jung-uk, Jiyoung Yoon, and Jane Jin Kaisen. Jiyoung Yoon uses the language of sculpture to focus on the unseen psychology and attitudes of people facing particular situations and events. Infused with stories, her sculptures portray the dynamism of diverse internal states ranging from irreversible sacrifice to earnest prayer. Hayoun Kwon creates shared experiences of memory by applying virtual reality to realize hitherto unexperienced worlds beyond the constraints of reality. As they expand into the realm of actual viewer experience, her stories cause us to reexamine the concepts of recording and memory. Yang Jung-uk creates moving sculptures connected to the people’s stories that he wishes to see. The repeating movements in his works portray the lives of individuals constantly striving between hardship and hope, causing us to reexamine our ordinary everyday lives. Jane Jin Kaisen depicts the vibrant life of an island based on her wide-ranging research into Jeju Island’s nature, culture, and history and years of collaboration with its local communities. As the movements of different people are connected, new possibilities are explored for the discovery of alternative lineages and formation of new relationships.



The exhibition offers an opportunity to test our ability to understand and respond to the world. Working with different themes and methods, these artists all share the same in that telling stories that capture aspects of the contemporary. To share these stories with the world, artists have devised unique ways of visual expression. Here, we can ask the following questions: How deeply are we able to look inside ourselves? What are we capable of attempting in order to avoid forgetting? Are we unable to abandon our dreams of a “beautiful life”? How do we connect with our world? Could their perspectives be drawn upon to adopt a different view of the mind, of memory, of our neighbors, or of the world? It is in the hope of achieving something like this that the exhibition initiates its dialogue.



The Guardians of Jade Mountain VR Artwork Reservation



● Date: October 25, 2024 (Thu) – March 23, 2025 (Mon)

● Location: National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA), Seoul, Gallery 1, Hayoun Kwon’s The Guardians of Jade Mountain

● Eligibility: Visitors to the Korea Artist Prize 2024 exhibition who have reserved or registered on-site for the VR artwork viewing.

● Program: Approximately 20 minutes viewing of Hayoun Kwon’s The Guardians of Jade Mountain VR artwork

● Capacity: 1 person per session

● Reservation Link: https://booking.naver.com/booking/12/bizes/1247692

● Fee: Free

● Inquiries: +82-2-3424-5831



Notes



● Reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis.

● Reservation Closing Times: Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays at 5:00 PM; Wednesdays and Saturdays at 8:00 PM.

● Viewing times for the VR artwork vary for each individual, so waiting times may occur even for those with reservations.

● Reservation is available to January 26, 2025. (Further availability will be announced on the MMCA website.)

● Please arrive on time; late arrivals may be restricted.

● Show your reservation confirmation to the staff and follow their guidance.

● If there are vacancies among those with prior reservations, on-site registration will be available on a first-come, first-served basis for the remaining spots. (Please understand that wait times may occur for on-site registration.)

● Participation is limited to exhibition ticket holders (paid). (Get exhibition tickets here)

● Note that the VR experience may cause dizziness or nausea. Please keep this in mind when reserving.