Sulki and min, ungmang, 2018 ⓒPark Jiyoun
The exhibition ‘Group Theory’, with the participation of sulki and min (co-principals, Choi Sulki, Choi Sungmin), Shin Shin (co-principals, Shin Hyeok, Shin Donghyeok), and Hong Eunju Kim Hungjae (co-principals, Hong Eunju Kim Hungjae), is on show is held at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) until 27 Feb. The exhibition introduces the graphic designer duos who have built a unique methodology from the mid-late 2000s to the present. ‘Group Theory’ excluded autonomous work as much as possible in order to capture how the shared methodology of the three teams is expressed within certain constraints and limitations. Sulki and min question the customary function of design elements. In the first issue of the performing arts journal Ob.scene (2011), they arranged their text in the same shape as seats in a performance hall, separated the main text, illustrations, and annotations and weaved them into different sections. They intended to read them by connecting separated elements using graphic signs as clues. Shin Shin blurs the boundary between three-dimensional materials and two-dimensional images. On one side of the exhibition space, there is a installation work where they have placed Franz Kafka’s ‘A Dream’ on a weight scale and explained their ideas behind dealing with images. In this regard, posters from the project ‘Gathering Flowers’ (2020) were displayed folded into the shape of a bouquet. Hong Eunju Kim Hungjae uses intuitive visual language. For example, in the banner work of the exhibition ‘Bebe Flaneur’ (2020), a single connected line was drawn to move between texts, symbolising a walk.