The Landscape of Collected Things

| Seong Eun AN (Curator, Seongbuk Dowon)

Um Along collects things. The artist collects things from different corners of the city, from islands and forests, and from the sea. The things that have been picked up and collected from different places become artworks after the artist ‘reads’ and ‘rewrites’ the places. Um’s work upcycles objects that have been abandoned or lost their use, turning them into things with another context. In this sense, his artworks generate a landscape with collected things, which is not only linked to his personal emotions but also the places where the things are collected. Time of Comfort is the artist’s fourth solo exhibition. In the exhibition, the artist invites the viewers to a ‘certain landscape.’ The exhibition is held as part of the program for Peach Pitch Party, a CAMP for Convergence & Creative, organized by Seongbuk Dowon.

The artist does not emphasize the comfort provided by our time. Rather, he takes a look at the need for spaces and places where each individual can feel comfortable. With this in mind, the artist created an imaginary ‘park’ where the viewers can also spend their time with comfort. The park introduces a selection of artworks, conveying the artist’s memories of comfort – the color of green, the trembling of wind, and animals or occasions that gave the artist a feeling of comfort. As a kind of medium to express the emotions that lie in the foundation of the artist’s self, the objects selected by the artist take different shapes to encounter their viewers. Thus, the objects, piled up in layers or arranged in order, are the expression of emotions as they fill the entire space. At the same time, UM wishes that each of his artworks finds its meaning in different ways by being placed in a park. He says, “I sometimes feel that my artworks evaporate after a one-off exhibition or exhibited just for a few times.”

Walking through the park of things collected by UM A Long, one can encounter not only the animals that the artist has spent his time with but also plants in different shapes. However, with a closer look, one can also discover that the plants growing on Um’s artworks do not have developed roots. What replaces the root of each plant is a rearranged object that has been collected by an artist or something that the artist purchased as an object, ranging from chairs, tables, and plastic boxes to mobile stands. The plants without developed roots stand on the objects selected by the artist, or they glow through old television monitors that contain the memories of collected plants or analog projectors that show them in each frame of a film.

The plants, embedded with movements in suspended time, are selected by the intervention of their viewers to manifest themselves. This provides a moment where the artist’s personal memories projected to the park are transferred to individual experiences of the viewers, turning the park into a place of comfort. To provide an occasion for more active participation, the artist will give a tour of Seongbuk-dong area during the exhibition period. The artist will collect plants with the participants of the tour, rearranged the collected materials, and exhibit them as part of the exhibition.

Stepping into the path towards the deep summer, this exhibition reminds me of some paths and walks that I took with the artist during the preparation period. They were old and aged, and thus they felt familiar. Looking at the familiar yet nostalgic scenery I encountered, I thought about the kind of time that is awakened by the bodily memories than spoken words. I assume that this is how things of no use works and how UM A Long’s plants – standing on the present although they have not yet developed their roots – and the objects he selected influence their viewers. I propose that we respond to the artist’s invitation and walk through the landscape of collected things. I dearly wish that it will provide you with a proper degree of warmth and time of comfort.