Dawun Chung

Korea was profoundly destroyed during Japanese colonisation (1910-45) and the Korean War between North and South Korea (1950-53). After the war, the South Korean government (The Republic of Korea) implemented a modernisation project for national reconstruction.

The modernisation project entailed establishing a factory culture (‘fast-fast culture’) represented by productivity and the primacy of the economy. Its aims were to simplify aspects that make up society’s environment, such as materials and how they are perceived. Society became controlled through the standardisation of products and buildings with the use of materials that can be mass-produced.

As a result, people’s perceptions have been greatly affected. And while society continues to rapidly change, industrialization and modernisation are used as a tool for the South Korean government to exercise social control.

However
When the cold touches my lips, I feel at home.