[HanCinema's Digest] Photography and Art

President Moon Jae-in handed an iconic photo of Korea's student protest thirty years on, Ina Kang's "Utopia" exhibition was inspired by Asian soft porn, see how one artist handles the depressing news cycle, and a Korean makeup artist breakdown the 'Chok Choi' look.

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"UA Journalist Delivers Historic Photo to South Korean Leader"

A framed photo from 1987 of South Korea's student protests was recently handed to President Moon Jae-in by a former freelance journalist who took the photo 30 years ago. "For 30 years, I have followed South Korean politics and was always proud of the small role I played as an international photojournalist in the birth of this young democracy", said the photographer, Kim Newton, who is now working at the University of Arizona.

...READ ON UA NEWS

"Show: Ina Jang's Utopia"

Ina Jang's silhouetted female bodies ("that embody passive, girlish stereotypes") were inspired an unlikely source: Asian soft porn. "I remembered seeing gravure magazines...All the females in them are portrayed as passive and helpless, sometimes playful", said Jang, a South Korean artist based in New York. "I printed out some of the images, cut out the body figures and photographed them. From there, I kept making images with similar positions". Her exhibition "Utopia" recently went on show at the at the Swiss Musée des beaux-arts du Locle.

...READ ON THE BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHOTOGRAPHY

"A South Korean Artist Paints Positive Faces Over Depressing News"

Artist ShinYoung An found a creative (and beautiful) way to deal with the depressing news cycle. Shin collected headlines and photos from various newspapers past and present and then used that collage as the canvas for her own, more inspiring paintings. Commenting on her recent 'Winds of Hope' exhibition, Shin said she believed that "the more people are made aware of what is going on, the more likely they are to change the world for the better".

...READ ON CREATORS

"Korean Makeup Artist, Ko Won-hye Breaks Down The Chok Chok K-Beauty Look"

Looking to emulate the 'Choi Chok' K-beauty look ("...that dewy bouncy fresh-as-a-daisy skin glow")? Sable Young has you covered with this detailed guide.. "Koreans take their complexions to a degree of seriousness that warrants its own government branch I'm sure, but considering how nearly everyone follows suit, given the homogenous beauty conventions and standards, when it works it really works". In Korea, beauty is an art unto itself...

...READ ON ALLURE