Goseong Cultural Foundation Hosts "Departure" Record Exhibition for Full Restoration of Lives of Abducted Fishermen

Goseong Cultural Foundation Documents the Fishermen Abduction Incident
Through the Language of Art
From Exhibition to Public Discourse
Questions Tied to Calls for Special Legislation

The Goseong Cultural Foundation, under the jurisdiction of Goseong County, Gangwon Province, will hold an exhibition titled "Departure," which deals with the abduction of fishermen to the North, as part of the Our Neighborhood Past History series. The exhibition will take place from March 17th to April 28th at the Dalhol Culture Center Exhibition Maru. The purpose of this exhibition is to publicly present the abduction of fishermen—a historical incident that has not been sufficiently discussed in Goseong for a long time—through artistic records, encouraging the local community to remember and reflect together.

The Goseong Culture Foundation will hold the local history exhibition "Departure," which deals with the abduction of fishermen, from the 17th to April 28 at the Dalhol Culture Center Exhibition Maru. Provided by Goseong Culture Foundation

The Goseong Cultural Foundation has co-organized this exhibition with the local artist collective UMSO to coincide with the proposed enactment of a special law aimed at restoring the honor of repatriated fishermen abductees. UMSO, a duo consisting of Eom Kyunghwan, who is from Goseong and whose father was a fisherman, and his wife Kim Sojung, a graduate of Seoul National University's Department of Asian Studies, has been artistically reviving the traces and memories of the abduction incident, shedding light on the victims' unhealed wounds under the theme "Sea of Memory." In February this year, they were invited to the Taiwan International Contemporary Art Exchange Exhibition "You and I Are Connected by the Sea," where they presented works reflecting on the relationship between humans and the sea.

The exhibition title "Departure" carries the meaning: "Although those who were abducted and later returned have not been able to fully recover their lives, we will now embark on this journey across the sea on their behalf." The exhibition is structured to present both factual records and the structural background of the incident, juxtaposing them with artistic interpretations to help visitors recognize this past event as an ongoing issue in the present.

To this end, two audience participation programs will be offered. At the opening ceremony, officials from the May 18 Democratization Movement Memorial Foundation and other experts will be invited for an on-site roundtable conversation within the exhibition hall, exploring the local community's perspectives on the incident and victims and discussing future challenges. In addition, a policy-oriented survey will be conducted to gather local opinions on the need for increased social awareness and institutional improvements regarding the incident, with plans to share the findings with relevant organizations. The aim is to ensure that the exhibition serves not just as an occasion for viewing, but as a platform for social dialogue and institutional discussion.

The Goseong Cultural Foundation and exhibition organizers UMSO stated, "The core of this exhibition is to once again ask whether victims are receiving full compensation," adding, "We hope that 'Departure' will become a foundation for social dialogue that begins in the local community."

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