SPACE March 2025 (No. 688)
Still cut of The alarm that won't stop ringing (2023) by An Seongseok ©An Seongseok
Still cut of La Sombra (2017) by Regina José Galindo ©Michael Nast
The exhibition ‘Weaponocene’ is currently on show at the Seoul National University Museum of Art (SNUMoA). The exhibition reflects on our present era through the lens of weaponry. The title ‘Weaponocene’ emerges from critical discussions concerning the concept of the Anthropocene, which is closely linked to climate crisis. The notion of the Anthropocene was first introduced by Paul Crutzen, who argues that human greed has led to the destruction of the Earth’s environment and therefore demands accountability on a species-wide level. However, critics argue that this discourse unfairly shifts the responsibility for environmental and social crises onto humanity as a whole, rather than pinpointing the system upheld by industrialist capitalism and its main agents. In response, the term ‘Capitalocene’ was proposed, suggesting that the root causes of these crises lie within the entrenched structural dynamics of capitalism. Expanding on this critique, the exhibition introduces the concept of the ‘Weaponocene’, building upon the Anthropocene- Capitalocene framework to incorporate a vision of a militarised civilisation entangled within industrial capitalism. It highlights the need to recognise the global influence of the military-industrial complex relating to weapon production, defense industries, and warfare on our global environment and quality of life.
The exhibition is comprised of three sections. It moves beyond the perspective of viewing weapons as mere tools to capturing how they operate within our daily lives, in the media, and across our environment. The first section ‘Weaponized Daily Life’ reveals how deeply weapons have infiltrated our daily existence through artworks that depict everyday objects in the form of weapons. An Sungseok combines the background of first-person shooter (FPS) games with the sound of an alarm clock, simultaneously commemorating soldiers who have been sacrificed in warfare while allowing viewers to experience the tensions of war in everyday life. Paul Shambroom captures images of retired weapons displayed in public spaces across the United States, exposing the irony of how these objects symbolising death are preserved in such peaceful and familiar environments. The second section, ‘Weapons as Spectacle’ looks to the projects of different artists to address how the imagery of weapons spreads across media platforms and the deeper implications behind this. Bang Byoungsang presents the landscapes of military training exercises and the surreal aesthetics of real-life weapons, while Noh Younghoon warns of the dangers of weapons by incorporating familiar, friendly figures like Mickey Mouse into his work. By focusing on the visual aspects of weapons, these works prompt viewers to consider the real-world consequences of their destructive power. The third section, ‘Weapons, a Familiar Future’, focuses on the destruction of the environment and of the suffering caused by weapons. Regina José Galindo visualises the influence of arms exports from developed nations on conflicts across the third world through a performance video demonstrating the act of fleeing from German Leopard tanks. Oh Jeseong symbolically represents Korea’s historical struggles and intergenerational trauma, from war to dictatorship to democratisation, through figures walking single file and balancing their burdens on their heads. Other projects include the following: Ha Taebaum depicts scenes of war, disasters, and violence in bleached white tones, questioning the true purpose of weapons and military technology and their relationship to peace, while Park Jinyoung and Bang Jeongah exhibit images that warn of the violence and dangers of nuclear technology.
Weapons do not only operate during a specific situation of war but are a latent force that shape our world. The exhibition unfolds these themes into the language of art, prompting viewers to reflect on the world order created by weapons, the violence they unleash, and the future we must choose. The exhibition will be open until May 4.
