Installation view of 《NOWON》 ©ThisWeekendRoomThisWeekendRoom
presents a solo exhibition 《NOWON》 by artist Hansaem Kim, on view through September 6.
“NOWON,”
a title that carries a dual meaning—referring both to the real district of
Nowon in Seoul and the English phrase “No One Wins”—symbolically evokes the
artist’s childhood memories while also alluding to a state in which no one
emerges as a true “winner” in the endlessly repeating cycle of gameplay.
The
artist’s recent work continues as a unique formal experiment in establishing
game-based narratives within the realm of art, offering insight into a new kind
of materialist painting in the digital age. This exhibition presents “NOWON,” a
retro platformer game that shares its title with the show, along with a series
of sculptural objects derived from it.
Installation view of 《NOWON》 ©ThisWeekendRoomHansaem
Kim’s sculptural objects are digitally designed but then reshaped by hand,
undergoing a process of erosion and weathering that reveals traces of time the
artist seeks to record. These works function as both structural frames
reinforcing the fragile digital images he produces and as acts of remembering
time past—persuading and consoling himself through making.
Meanwhile,
the games and interactive video works featuring these characters invite viewers
not to remain passive observers but to actively engage with the narrative
through play. This approach serves as a media strategy that encourages sensory
experience and meaning-making through physical interaction, while also
reflecting the artist’s intent to archaeologically revisit the emotional
structure and cultural memory of the digital generation.
Installation view of 《NOWON》 ©ThisWeekendRoomThe exhibition foregrounds the artist’s practical attempts to
reconfigure the aesthetic and ontological resources embedded in subculture
within the context of contemporary art. Embracing both the commercial appeal
and emotional resonance of popular content, while simultaneously distilling it
into a visual language, the works aim to evoke futures of the past—those
unrealized yet still influential visions that continue to shape the present
despite never having fully come into being.
