Virtual reality, K-pop stars BTS, Oscar-winner Parasite and Korea’s digital artists are connecting the country’s past, present and future in Korea: Cubically Imagined
- The ‘Korea: Cubically Imagined’ travelling exhibit mixes pop-culture phenomena with reimagined museum works to highlight the dichotomy in 2020s Korean culture
- Visitors can attend a BTS concert in VR, watch an animated ancient royal procession, see tradition and technology combine in augmented reality, and much more
Currently on tour across the world, the “Korea: Cubically Imagined” exhibit aims to explore connections between South Korea’s past, present and future through pop-culture phenomena such as K-pop superstars BTS and the multiple-Oscar-winning 2019 film Parasite, as well as works created by up-and-coming digital artists and content reimagined from the collection of the National Museum of Korea.
Presented by The Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) and South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the exhibit, which visited other cities including Paris and Hong Kong in 2021, opened in New York on May 2.
Virtual reality devices and immersive cubicle spaces full of projected artworks and videos help bring audiences closer to the dichotomy of South Korea’s culture and art in the 2020s: modernity laced with history, technological advancement built on traditional crafts.
Reality and fantasy also blend, depending on where you stand: attendees can see fast-paced Seoul from a bird’s-eye view; attend a BTS concert (either surrounded on all sides while watching the band perform singles DNA and Dope, or more intimately via a VR headset); stroll around the sets of Parasite in VR; or watch an animated royal procession from the Joseon dynasty.
Some even explore the future, like the dystopian-feeling In the Gray: a VR experience by media artist Roomtone that questions what it means to be part of the natural and human world in a time when we are increasingly reliant on machines.