Written by Joon Moon

President Moon’s Son, Joon Yong Moon, Comes to Gwangju as a Media Artist / by Jeonnam Ilbo

Attends the opening of the ‘2018 Gwangju Media Art Festival’ on the 28th .

Showcases new interactive art piece ‘Augmented Shadow #2’ .

“I want to exhibit again at the National Asian Culture Center” .

On the 28th, the 2018 Gwangju Media Art Festival opened, with artist Joon Yong Moon showcasing his new work ‘Augmented Shadow’ at the festival.

“(President’s son) label? It’s inevitable. I just have to keep showing my work frequently. If you are curious about the artist Joon Yong Moon, please come to see my exhibitions often.”

Joon Yong Moon (36), son of President Moon Jae-in, attended the opening of the 7th 2018 Gwangju Media Art Festival at the National Asia Culture Center (ACC) Culture Creation Hall Complex 2 and had an interview with our newspaper.

Moon presented his new interactive art piece, ‘Augmented Shadow #2’, which utilizes augmented reality (AR) technology and object shadows at the festival.

While Moon has previously showcased various works combining shadows and AR, the piece displayed at this festival is distinct in that it draws the audience into the space of the artwork.

In the exhibition space, the audience becomes ‘explorers’ who observe the work. They navigate a 25 square meter area with a flashlight equipped with sensors, exploring the ‘shadow world’ between four pillars.

However, the shadow world does not easily reveal itself to the audience. While the video projections display buildings inhabited by aliens, these images disappear when illuminated by the flashlight. Occasionally, aliens turn to face the audience at certain points.

To discover these moments, the audience explores the space, with no ‘user manual’ provided for the wandering explorers.

Joon Yong Moon’s ‘Augmented Shadow #2’

Moon stated, “A manual is not a good approach. I want the audience to encounter the shadows related to the artwork while wandering between the pillars. This way, they can experience greater enjoyment,” explaining how he wants people to experience his work.

He continued, “At first, the audience sees the artwork and thinks, ‘This is interesting,’ or ‘How do I use the flashlight?’ They go through a learning process and eventually start playing with the flashlight, naturally experiencing the process of wandering within the artwork. I consider these processes of enjoying the artwork very important.”

In Moon’s work, the audience doesn’t just stop at viewing but engages and interacts with the artwork. This is the essence and charm of the ‘interactive media art’ he pursues.

Moon emphasized, “What I consider most important is originality. Specifically, my goal is to create interactive art using advanced technology that the audience has never seen before. I want to continually offer new fun and beauty to the audience.”

Moon frequently monitors his work to ensure there are no issues in the interaction between the artwork and the audience. He stated, “I regularly check whether the audience is using it as I intended. I make adjustments and improvements to the work based on these observations.”

Moon continues to study to create unique works. He shared, “I currently do my own programming and engineering. The virtual reality sensors used in this piece are also the latest technology. Technology is always advancing and improving. When new technologies emerge, I seek them out, explore, and learn about them.”

This is Moon’s second visit to Gwangju. He previously garnered attention at the 2011 Gwangju Design Biennale with his piece ‘Makuro Kurosuke Table’, which depicted the relationship between the female protagonist and the dust creature ‘Makuro Kurosuke’ from the Japanese animation ‘My Neighbor Totoro’.

Returning to Gwangju after seven years, Moon remarked, “It’s my first time exhibiting at the ACC, and it’s truly an amazing space. It seems to be my first exhibition in such a large-scale venue. I would love to exhibit here again.”

Going forward, Moon’s works are likely to be seen more in group exhibitions rather than solo exhibitions due to the characteristics of the ‘media art’ genre.

Moon explained, “I haven’t held a solo exhibition since around 2012. Due to the high cost and technology involved, I plan to focus on group exhibitions for my future works.” The festival, hosted by the city of Gwangju and the Gwangju Cultural Foundation, runs from today until December 7th under the theme ‘Algorithm Society: The Birth of the Machine-God’.