SPACE December 2023 (No. 673)
What are the criteria when determining examples of cultural heritage? How is it categorised and managed? Gala Porras-Kim’s solo exhibition at Leeum Museum of Art focuses on the ways in which the intangible inheritances of history, language, and culture are defined by political and social contexts. This exhibition features three works that explore the relationship between artifacts and the institutions of the nation, art museum, and legislation. Interestingly, the three works are juxtaposed with ten national treasures from Leeum Museum of Art’s collection, prompting the viewer to question about the dynamic relationships established between them.
Upon entering the second floor of M1, where the permanent exhibition of the antique collections is held, 530 National Treasures (2023), a dense painting depicting artifacts from North and South Korea, covers the wall between artifacts displayed in showcases. The work, which lists the national treasures of North and South Korea across a single canvas, reconsiders the meaning of national treasures by bringing together the history of Joseon’s cultural heritage, which was divided into two after the country’s liberation, and was classified and managed under different systems. 37 Korean objects uprooted during the Japanese occupation (2023) are exhibited alongside a Goryeo painting named Amitabha Buddha Triad Painting (14th century), which was imported from Japan by the Leeum Museum of Art. It depicts 37 artifacts presumed to have been shipped abroad during the period around the Japanese occupation, leaving implications not only for Korea and but also for other countries that had been colonised, raising the issue of cultural property export and repatriation. Lastly, the Gourd-shaped Ewer Decorated with Lotus Petals Display Shadow (2023) focused on the way a museum displays ceramics. Placing pieces of paper on a pedestal instead of an artifact, the work reveals the way museums present antiquities and artefacts and asks us to reflect upon how such means of display impacts the interpretation of such objects. The exhibition is on view until Mar. 31, 2024.
Installation view of 530 National Treasures / Image courtesy of Leeum Museum of Art
