Artist Oh In-hwan to Participate in 2026 Title Match with the Theme "We Are Not One"

The Seoul Museum of Art has released an interview video of artist Oh In-hwan as part of the 2026 Title Match: Oh In-hwan vs. Jang Seo-young: Human Error. This exhibition is themed "We Are Not One, I Am Not One" and will take place at the Buk-Seoul Museum of Art from August 13 to October 25, 2026.

"Blind spots also exist within me"... Participatory work and the concept of 'accomplices'

Through the interview, artist Oh In-hwan revealed that his work proceeds based on an interest in contemporary culture and human life. The artist defined the "blind spot" as a 'territory of the other' where non-universal things can be created and grow, noting that blind spots also exist within our inner selves. In particular, in the 'Blind Spot Drawing' work, he sought to visualize individual blind spots through a process where participants directly feel their own bodies to find places they cannot reach and mark them with a pen.

Regarding participatory work, the artist explained that it should not be a matter of the audience following the artist's instructions, but rather an open concept where the audience creatively interprets and realizes it at their own level. He referred to participants in the workshop not as mere spectators, but as 'accomplices,' expressing hope that a layer will be formed that acts as a channel of connection between the artist and the audience, allowing the three systems of artist, accomplice, and audience to operate organically.

Reinterpreting daily life in popular culture... Discovering strangeness through 'Aegyo' and 'Signboards'

The artist introduced works that reinterpret daily life embedded in popular culture. In the 'Like a Rainbow, We Are Beautiful Because We Are Not One' project, he stated that he discovered individual cases that the artist could not represent on their behalf through the process of queer individuals arranging their own belongings to create a rainbow flag. Additionally, through the 'Kal-gum and Aegyo Project,' he explained that he explored the strange and eerie points that arise when 'aegyo,' which is perceived as being fixed to a specific age or gender, is performed by other generations and genders.

Regarding the work utilizing 'signboards' as an everyday format, he stated it was a choice to provide a dimension for the audience to think, rather than making a direct declaration. The artist added that through the phrase 'It is not width and depth, but angle,' he intended to express the act of 'de-territorialization,' meaning a gaze that moves beyond a specific area rather than staying within it.

Writing names with ironing... Questioning the history and identity of Japanese women

Based on the history of multiple names held by Japanese women, the artist conducted work that poses the question that just as identity is not one, names also cannot be defined as one. In this work, the artist chose the 'ironing' method of writing names on cloth. This is to capture the performative characteristic where names are not fixed, yet can be easily erased, rewritten, or recovered.

Artist Oh In-hwan mentioned that while the process of writing names through ironing was difficult, it was persuasive in the sense that the artist experiences it directly with his body beyond mere form. Regarding this Title Match, the artist conveyed that it will be an opportunity for his partner, artist Jang Seo-young, and himself to have different colored sensibilities collide, revealing the characteristic of being 'separate yet together.'