20th SongEun Art Award Grand Prize Winner: Artist Jo Youngju

The 20th Song Eun Art Award Grand Prize Winner, Artist Jo Young-joo
[Photo by Song Eun Cultural Foundation]

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] Artist Jo Youngju has been selected as the winner of the 20th Song Eun Art Award.

Jo Youngju recently presented works dealing with realistic concerns that encompass both the role of the artist and the societal expectations of women, reflecting changes in life experienced through childbirth and childcare. At the 20th Song Eun Art Award, she showcased works titled "Three Breaths," "Feather on the Lips," and "Imperfect Life."

"Feather on the Lips (2020)" is a video that quietly yet powerfully depicts the movements of four women against a white background. The performers in the work grip and rub each other's bodies, engaging in physical confrontations. The piece is composed of their rough breathing, shouts, and sounds generated by body-to-body contact. Their movements are inspired by postures and techniques from combat sports such as wrestling and jiu-jitsu, relating to the unavoidable physical contact involved in the process of childcare. Gestures that seem to caress during the confrontation reveal intimate and private sensations experienced through contact with a baby.

"Three Breaths (2020)" is a three-movement wind quartet based on a childcare diary the artist recorded over the past 30 months. To save time and energy, the artist symbolized the baby's bowel movements, sleep, and feeding in the diary, and after long-term collaboration with a composer, transformed it into music performed by four instruments producing low-pitched sounds: bass clarinet, alto saxophone, tuba, and percussion. The keyword "breath" in the work signifies the wondrous and heavy responsibility that the baby's breath depends on the mother's hands, as well as the caregiver's existence. The duct ventilation pipe, symbolizing the passage through which breath flows and the body, was used as both an instrument and stage in the work.

"Imperfect Life (2019~)" captures fleeting moments of life reclaimed amid the busy daily routine of childcare and work, reflecting the artist's identity and realistic concerns.

Jo Young-joo 'Three Breaths' 2020
[Photo by Song Eun Cultural Foundation]

Jo Youngju has presented works in performance, installation, photography, video, sound, and dance through various exhibitions and projects. She has held solo exhibitions such as "Cotton Era" (Alternative Space Loop, Seoul, 2020), "Mrs. Jellybee's Magnifying Glass" (Placemak, Seoul, 2019), and "Watery Madam" (Korean Cultural Center in India, India, 2016).

The Song Eun Cultural Foundation was established in 1989 with the private funds of the late Song Eun Yoo Seong-yeon (1917?1999), honorary chairman of ST International Corporation (formerly Samtan), to discover and support young and talented artists. The Song Eun Art Award was established in 2001 by Yoo Sang-duk, chairman of the Song Eun Cultural Foundation, to honor the late honorary chairman Yoo Seong-yeon's deep affection and efforts for the development of Korean art and culture.

This year, a total of 251 applicants applied, and Shin I-pi, Oh Jong, Jeon Hyun-sun, and Jo Youngju were selected as the final four candidates for the Song Eun Art Award. These four artists participated in the final exhibition of the 20th Song Eun Art Award for the final judging to select the grand prize winner. As a result, Jo Youngju (media) was awarded the grand prize, while Shin I-pi (media), Oh Jong (installation), and Jeon Hyun-sun (painting) were each awarded the excellence prize. The grand prize winner receives a prize of 20 million KRW and support for a solo exhibition from the Song Eun Cultural Foundation, while the three excellence prize winners each receive 10 million KRW.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.