AliceOnPaper_Vol5

2009 NOVEMBER / VOL.5

INTERVIEWAh-Ram Kwon

NEW MEDIA ART ONBUILDINGEXTERI-ORS

COVERSTORY tag.4

NEW MEDIA ART ONBUILDINGEXTERI-ORS

3AliceOnPaper VOL.3Media Art Database & Online Archive AliceOn

What is the current look of our city today?

Through the rapid economic and techni-

cal development, the major cities in the

world has graduated from its one dimen-

sional design and has entered a third, or

even further dimensional space—and we

are witnessing such change with all five

senses. Just with our eyes we can tell in

the darkness of the night what a glow

some of these distinct buildings in the city

can produce. So how are these build-

ing façades changing in relations to New

Media Art?

Before the modern age, building exteriors

were used and identified only as a sup-

porting structure of the body. Thus it was

not independent from its entire composi-

tion and its materials’ usage. Perhaps

that is why the architects of those times

concentrated more on its interiors, which

allowed them to express and experiment

freely, contrary to the outer part of the

piece. But now through the development

of technology and cultural and societal

value’s recognition, architects started

seeing new possibilities in visual and

BIX, Austria, 2003

AliceOn Coverstory TAG.4

been dealing buildings as its canvas. This

states that artistic progress is influencing

the transformation of the architectural or-

der and that New Media Art, which stands

in the center of 21st century’s art world, is

making an important contribution.

In the early stage of building exteriors, it

was simply used for informative purposes

by offering important daily news or weath-

er reports to the public. But architectural

New Media Artists have used LED signs

to invent a new type of signs that opened

them to an infinite options in expression

Ars Electronica, Austria, 2008sensual appeals of building facades. So

as the representation of building facades

itself went beyond modern architecture,

it became a object of design and expres-

sion, transforming into a work of Digital

Media with the support of IT technology’s

development. Such kind of phenomenon

cannot be only be observed in architec-

tural point of view. Artists who refused to

limit their imagination on two-dimensional

canvas have turned their eyes to the cit-

ies—where we live our lives. For example,

New Media Art, which uses the diverse

materials developed by technology, has


[TOUCH] Dexia Tower, Belgium

SPOTS, Germany, 2005

[Twists and Turns]

Uniqa Tower, Austria, 2006

Galleria, South Korea, 2004

and imagination; some examples of those

newly invented LED signs are able to react

to the weather in most sensitive level such

as the wind strength or the brightness of

the day. Such inventions are called Media

Facades and Media Skin, and year after

year these art works are gaining interna-

tional popularity that through events such

as Media Façade Festivals. Media Facades

have allowed building exterior expres-

sions to become not only very dynamic

but also a key factor in the identity of

building itself.

Media Facades, which are still in its experi-

mental stage, could possibly be a key fac-

tor for the future design for architectural

design. Yet majority of the Media Façades

that are building in progress seem only to

be a part of a temporary trend. Plus the

fact that it is used more for a commercial

purpose instead of a cultural or artistic

way is a bit unsatisfying. In South Korea

Apgujungdong’s Galleria department store

and last year’s Gum-Ho Asia’s building

set up their own New Media Art facades,

attracting the public’s attention but end-

ing up being used simply for commercial

AliceOn Coverstory TAG.4

purposes. But a lot of the companies are attempting

to gather artists and architects from diverse fields to

experiment with Media Facades. Their projects will

be able to familiarize the public with communication

through building facades and also add new life to

our cities.

Allianz Arena, Germany, 2005


Aspire Tower, Qatar, 2006

KOREAN ARTIST INTERVIEW

AH-RAM KWON


Wonderingabout endlessly for Her Very Own Quest

<-

Self-portrait 10, 2006, scan image

Ah-Ram:

Hello, this is Kwon Ah- Ram. Cur-

rently I am working on painting,

performance, visual media and

other independent works to create

my own outlook on the world.

AliceOn:

In expressing your ideas and

through practice, what message

are you trying to deliver and what

are you interested in?

Ah- Ram:

My works are mainly inspired by

my own inner vibration instead of

outside influences or story-telling.

The world we exist can all be

explained as a type of vibration in

today. I put my focus on the funda-

mentals of an organism and I try to

capture the vibration that comes

within its core instead of forcing

a voice on the subject — its own

music. I also interpret the visual

form of an object as a type of vibra-

tion sent through light. My current

mission is to search what type of a

vibration I am, and how it responds

to other vibrations and how the

relationship forms.

AliceOn:

Since you are known as a New

Media artist and are working in

Korean Artist Interview

that field of art, how do you think

of New Media Art or Media?

Ah-Ram:

New Media Art can accurately

interpret the distinct characteristic

of this era. Also it’s an ideological

space beyond our daily reality. It’s

exact definition cannot be seen

visually, yet it has given us art-

ists new ideas and possibilities.

Through New Media Art we are

able to redefine ‘relationship’, and

have learned how to control time

and space freely.

AliceOn:

Through what experience did you

end up choosing media and photos

as your medium?

Ah-Ram:

Images are able to tell more sto-

ries than my self, who exists in this

world, can. ‘I’ that exists in the

material world float on through

vibration and disappear eventually,

whereas the ‘I’ that exists in the

image expresses the past record

of self that I no longer have along

with that momentary emotion that

I can endlessly explore. I work with

those images and study about

those images and through working


<-


with a scanner I am pushing that

process. The ‘I’ that is produced

digitally is like the self within the

real self that I pulled out. I some-

times look like I am acting as I

tell a different story in every other

photo. If a mirror reflects the outer

form of self, my scanner tells the

inner reflection. Media is another

way to express myself and it is hard

to expect further. Works such as

<In The Mirror> or <Coevolu-

tion> is a transformed image that

scanned the moment of an action,

exploring the new possibilities of a

vibrating image.

AliceOn:

I didn’t realize that the two were

not digital video image but a work

produced from scanning. The dif-

ferent between a photo and a scan-

ner is that a scanner allows you to

intercept while it is producing an

image while the other produces an

image that is completely separate

from your influence.

Ah-Ram:

Yes, <In The Mirror> or <Co-

evolution> are both moving

images made from scanning(by a

scanner). When a photo records

an image of a moment, a scanner

lets you deform the body structure

through use of time and move-

ment. My works are still like my

self-portrait series which explored

my inner self. The world of ‘I’ that I

don’t fully understand yet has been

the foundation of my work.

AliceOn:

What is your plan for the future?

Ah-Ram:

<Coevolution> was invited to

the FRESH (video art and other

short independent film festival) in

Bangkok. Also I am planning on a

private exhibition.


<-

Cop

yright ©

2004-2009. aliceon A

ll rights reservd

.

{Aliceon Paper}

edited by aliceondesigned by aliceon

{AliceOn}

Media Art Database & Online ArchiveOn+Off Webzine & TV

aliceon.netaliceon.tvpaper.aliceon.net

Documents

AliceOnPaper_Vol5