North Korean Defector Ahn Chung Guk’s Art Exhibition: “Form from the Other Side (저 너머의 형태)”

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[Leaders Times] From March 5 to June 28, 2024, artist Ahn Chung Guk’s special abstract art exhibition will take place at the Unification Ministry’s Uni-Korean Cultural Center in Magok-dong Gangseo-gu, Seoul. Anyone can enjoy his work from every day except Sunday and Monday 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. This exhibition, ‘Form from the Other Side,’ comprises 30 works in three series: Circle, Light, and Wall.

Ahn Chung Guk, a North Korean defector, escaped from North Korea when he was fifteen in 2009, and he enrolled and graduated from Hongik University majoring in painting. Currently, he is working as a freelance artist. To him, the subject of ‘North Korean defection’ is a significant idea to represent his experiences and heartwarming memories. Still, he expressed there is a need for more study about North Korea because words like ‘North Korean government’ or ‘North Korean human rights’ are heavily complicated. Ahn said he wants to have the opportunity to talk about North Korea with one of the projects.

In one of three series, the Circle series, the moon and circular lights, which helped An Chung Guk find his way in the dark when he was living in Onsong, North Hamgyong, are painted. Moonlight was a compass of life that constantly guided his sight, and his experiences and memories under the moonlight became one of the compositions that formed his identity and settled down his distinct features in his artwork.

Also, in the Light series, various neon colors are used. Ahn Chung Guk was shocked by their bright and colorful appearances when he first arrived in China. His astonishing conversion to his big decision that he would take the Light series forever.

In Ahn Chung Guk’s Wall series, his works incorporate cement, copper, and acrylic. He usually uses cement. His experience working under his father, a carpenter, helped him use this material to create art. He uses his unique mesh fixing method. Firstly, he pours cement on the canvas and sharpens it with sandpaper. After repeating these processes, he secures the mesh on the cement and approaches his distinctive artwork by spreading out copper and scribbling.

Ahn Chung Guk believes the beauty of aesthetics is ‘whatever looks like himself,’ so he exhibits the works that show himself. Most of his works represent “identity.” Particularly, his signature, which appears harmoniously as a painting on the canvas, is more highly located on the canvas than that of other general artists. This intention indicates an incomplete condition in that he is still looking for his identity, unlike other people living stable lives in society.

Likewise, his own thoughts on the beauty of art also show up in the materials used in his works. The features of cement and copper, such as roughness, rustiness, and flow, represent his life, which has undergone rough experiences as a North Korean defector. Their changing color and shape over time symbolize Ahn Chung Guk’s sense of identity, which is continuously evolving.

It is also important to keep in mind that Ahn focuses on the values of visitors’ perspectives rather than solely the author’s intention in the arts. Therefore, he recommends that visitors appreciate the artwork before checking the titles. He hopes all the authors, visitors, and artworks harmonize during his art exhibition, ‘Form from the Other Side.’ This hope appears in his artworks. Ahn Chung Guk's paintings evoke sympathy in anyone.