River and Its City

River and Its City
Printed with river water on Litmus paper
42 x 29.7cm, 2013
River and Its City
Printed with river water on Litmus paper
42 x 29.7cm, 2013
River and Its City
Printed with river water on Litmus paper
42 x 29.7cm, 2013
River and Its City
Printed with river water on Litmus paper
42 x 29.7cm, 2013
Installation view from River and Its City
National Museum of Contemporary Art Korea, 2013
Installation view from River and Its City
National Museum of Contemporary Art Korea, 2013
Installation view from River and Its City
National Museum of Contemporary Art Korea, 2013

Installation view from River and Its City
National Museum of Contemporary Art Korea, 2013
Installation view from River and Its City
National Museum of Contemporary Art Korea, 2013

Video documentation from River and Its City, 2013


River and Its City (2013)은 서울의 대표적인 이미지를 한강의 물을 잉크로 이용해서 프린트한 작품이다. 강물은 도시의 생태학적 성격을 그대로 반영한다. 실제로 생태학자들은 강의 산성도와 오염도를 조사함으로써 그 도시의 주요 산업과 환경 그리고 경제수준을 유추한다. 강물은 색을 가지지 않지만, 비가시적으로 도시의 상태를 표현한다. 도시의 오염도와 주변환경 그리고 기후 등등의 다양한 요인에 의해 강물은 산성도(PH)를 가지게 되는데, 작가는 도시의 사진이미지를 프린트하기 위한 용지를 일반 종이가 아니라 리트머스종이 (PH 테스트종이)를 이용함으로써 강물이 가진 산성도에 의해 리트머스 종이 위에 색을 드러나게 만들었다. (적양배추의 색소가 리트머스색소와 동일한 기능을 하기 때문에, 적양배추의 색소를 추출하여 리트머스종이를 만들었다.) Is of 프로젝트를 서울이 아닌 다른 도시에서 진행하게 된다면 그 곳의 강물에 의해 또 다른 도시의 이미지와 색이 표현될 것이다. 도시마다 각각 다른 산업, 생태 환경, 경제적 수준 (하수처리장에 대한 투자 정도)에 따라 강물의 산성도는 달라지기 때문이다. 강물을 잉크로 이용해서 도시의 이미지를 나타낸 Is of: Seoul 작품은 강과 도시의 생태적 관계, 그리고 대상과 그것의 이미지 사이의 유기적 관계를 가시화한 작품이다.

River and Its City (2013) is a work that uses water from the Han River to print images that are representative of Seoul. A river such as the Han is a reflection of its urban ecosystem. By analyzing the level of the acidity and contamination of the river, ecologists can actually tell a city’s major industries, its environmental condition, and the level of its economic development. In other words, a river may not have a color, but it does show, non-visually, the condition of the city it runs through. The pH scale of the river is determined by various factors including the pollution produced in the city, the surrounding environments, and the climate. In this work, I use litmus paper, which is used for determining the pH scale, and water from the Han River to print the photographs. The litmus paper for this project is made with pigments extracted from red cabbage, because the red cabbage pigment works exactly the same the litmus paper pigment does. If I were to carry out the Is of project in a different city, the color of that city’s image would be determined by water from the river of that city. Again, that is because the acidity of the river that runs through a city is determined by its industries, ecological environment, and the level of its economic development – for example, on questions such as, how much does the city invest in its sewage treatment system? Is of: Seoul is a work that visualizes the ecological link between a city and its river, and the organic relationship between an object and its image.