"The Museum of the Future Will Evolve from Exhibition Space to a Place for Dialogue"

Interview with Im Geunhye, Director of Arko Art Museum on its 50th Anniversary
A Space Achieving Momentum in the Process, Not as a Finished Product
Focusing on Human Resources and Developing Networks

In the history of Korean art, the Arko Art Center has formed a unique landscape. Despite being a public exhibition space, it has shown a distinctive approach by focusing more on projects and exchanges with contemporary artists rather than research activities centered on collections, building a network as a meeting place where these artists grow. This year, marking the 50th anniversary of the Arko Art Center’s opening, Director Im Geun-hye explains that it will be a time to contemplate the museum’s new role beyond just the physical space. The following is a Q&A with Director Im.

Im Geun-hye, Director of Arko Art Center. [Photo by Arko Art Center]

- Despite being a public art museum, Arko Art Center’s exhibitions always give an impression of being different and futuristic.

▲ When we talk about future museums, the focus is often on technical or technological aspects. The emphasis is on the development of digital environments, mainly dealing with technology. However, in the case of Arko Art Center, there is much more interest in social innovation?how to connect social change through the museum and how to reflect that. We pay more attention to that side. Diversity, accessibility, and sustainability are actually the language of ESG, but regardless of ESG, since the early 2000s and especially after I joined, we have continuously discussed how to practice and express these concepts in the language of art. I believe the result of these discussions has been conveyed to the audience through our exhibitions.

Installation view of the 50th Anniversary Exhibition at Arko Art Center, "Where Do the Wrinkles Pass" by Seo Yongseon × Kim Minwoo × Yeo Songju. [Photo by Arko Art Center]

- The 50th anniversary exhibition "Where Do the Wrinkles Pass?" must have had a special meaning for both the museum and you as the director.

▲ The 50th anniversary was an opportunity to thoroughly examine the identity of the Arko Art Center and what kind of DNA we have within. The Arko Art Center opened in 1974 as the 'Art Hall' in Gwanhun-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, and moved to its current location in Dongsung-dong in 1979. In the early days, the space was mainly operated as a rental venue, sometimes hosting three exhibitions a week. At a time when exhibition spaces were scarce in Seoul and rental fees were low, the Art Hall held significant meaning for artists. After the 1990s, as more museums and galleries emerged, the rental system was reduced, and the space shifted to focus on curated exhibitions. In 2002, it was renamed 'Marronnier Art Museum' and grew into a public art museum leading the paradigm of contemporary art. Then, in 2005, when the Korea Culture and Arts Foundation transitioned to the Korea Arts Council, it was reborn as the current 'Arko Art Center.' Over its half-century history, the Arko Art Center has held more than 2,000 exhibitions. Among the current exhibition, an archive space reveals the museum’s history year by year through catalogs, publications, photos, videos, and various materials, providing a time to reflect on the museum’s function as a creative workshop.

1995 Korea Pavilion Opening Ceremony, Kwak Hoon Geobsori - What Marco Polo Could Not Bring Performance [Photo by Korea Arts & Culture Education Service]

- You are planning a special exhibition for the 30th anniversary of the Korean Pavilion at this year’s Venice Biennale.

▲ Although the 30th anniversary is next year, this year marks the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Italy, coinciding with the art exhibition. To celebrate both occasions, from mid-April to the end of September, a special exhibition is being prepared at the Venice Ordine di Malta, a former Knights of Malta monastery built in the 12th century. The program will feature a 'highlight exhibition' and an 'archive exhibition' showcasing about 100 works by 39 artists who have participated in the Korean Pavilion at the Venice Biennale over the years. This exhibition will expand Arko’s networking into a global network, and through this, our artists will be able to express their intentions on a broader stage. Creating a new platform on a different level is a future task given to us.

- As you mentioned earlier, the role of museums is changing recently. What preparations is Arko making?

▲ Traditional institutional museums have been spaces primarily for exhibitions focusing on important artists and works with art historical value, aimed at knowledge production and exchange. However, Arko Art Center carries the DNA of both an avant-garde space favored by young audiences and artists, like the Insa Art Space, and the characteristics of a traditional institutional museum. These two DNAs flow together. National and public museums tend to focus on artists who will be recorded in art history, sorting the wheat from the chaff, because their mission is strongly tied to art historical research. In contrast, Arko operates as part of a support project, providing a space where emerging artists make their debut and mid-career artists take another leap forward. So, many exhibitions highlight artists at a moment of momentum in their process rather than finished works. Arko has an annual budget for collections but is not an organization that establishes intensive strategies for long-term acquisitions. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage. The collections include many National Art Exhibition award-winning works and pieces donated depending on committee circumstances, so they are not necessarily art historically significant. However, without being bound by materiality, we have focused more on the network of artists and human assets rather than material assets, thinking about how to develop these. The 50th anniversary exhibition was the result of such reflections and well represented our strengths.

Exterior view of Arko Art Center.
[Photo by Korea Arts & Culture Education Service]

- How do you view the significance of Arko Art Center as a public art museum?

▲ Honestly, when I was appointed before the 50th anniversary, I thought a lot. The environment was very different from the Seoul Museum of Art or the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, so I prayed. I wondered what kind of identity Arko should establish. The starting point was to look at the past DNA I mentioned earlier and use that to set more future-oriented plans. Recently, there have been various discussions about the roles of museums and galleries worldwide. There is a global trend to move away from traditional and conservative meanings and define museums as places for dialogue and networking. Instead of research centered on collections, active discussions are taking place about defining museums as places where unfinished ideas, works, and projects are exchanged, temporary meetings occur, and participants share what they need to grow together. Arko Art Center has already been engaged in such activities. Compared to traditional museums, some may see it as lacking systematization, but from another perspective, I am proud that it has a much more flexible structure to move toward an alternative kind of museum.

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