작업 소개

57STUDIO는 ‘아시아의 사진’ 아카이빙 프로젝트의 일환으로, 한국 원로 사진가 정주하가 진행한 구술 인터뷰 자료를 기반으로 전시용 영상 콘텐츠를 기획 및 재편집하였습니다. 이 프로젝트는 한국 사진사의 서술에서 상대적으로 조명되지 않았던 지역 기반의 실용 사진가들을 중심으로, 구술과 기록을 통해 새로운 서사를 구축하고자 한 장기 프로젝트입니다.

기존 아카이브 영상과 음성 자료를 전시 맥락에 맞게 구성하는 과정에서, 서울 중심의 주류 사진계 바깥에 있었던 사진가들의 생애와 활동이 조명될 수 있도록 시각적 리듬과 정보 전달의 균형을 고려해 재구성하였습니다. 57STUDIO는 단순한 기록 이상의 전달력 있는 아카이브 영상을 통해, 사진사에 남겨지지 못한 이야기들이 전시 공간 안에서 유의미하게 작동할 수 있도록 하였습니다.

As part of the “Photography in Asia” archiving project, 57STUDIO planned and re-edited a video installation based on oral history interviews conducted by senior Korean photographer Jung Joo-ha. The project is a long-term initiative aimed at constructing alternative narratives of Korean photography by focusing on regionally based, utilitarian photographers who have been largely excluded from the dominant, Seoul-centric accounts of the field.

In adapting existing archival footage and audio materials for exhibition, 57STUDIO reorganized the content to suit curatorial context—balancing visual rhythm and informational clarity—so that the lives and practices of photographers working outside the mainstream could be foregrounded.

By transforming archival materials into a compelling video piece, 57STUDIO aimed to ensure that these overlooked voices would resonate meaningfully within the exhibition space, offering more than simple documentation and expanding the photographic canon.

* 이 영상은 57STUDIO 웹사이트 내에서만 재생 가능합니다.
* This video can only be played on the 57STUDIO website.

본 구술채록은 2014년 12월 7일부터 12월 20일까지 4회에 걸쳐 진행되었습니다.

This oral history interview was conducted over four sessions from December 7 to December 20, 2014.

The initial experience of photography

Kang Bong-gyu
It was in 1959.

Jung Juha
1959.

Kang Bong-gyu
It was 1959 when I first met Kyungmo Lee. I met him as I started working for the Honam Shinmun (newspaper). He covered the Yeosoon Rebellion, Jeju Uprising, and the Korean War. He made records of all the atrocities. Mr. Lee had a great talent in journalism photography. I had an interest in the camera while being taught by Mr. Lee.

Experience of two important historical events as a journalist at a newspaper

Kang Bong-gyu
The April 19 Revolution happened because of the election fraud on March 15. The president Syngman Rhee resigned after the revolution.. It was sparked after the news covered that Ju-yeol Kim was found dead. I was on the side of the students with a sense of righteousness. I was at the front of the demonstration because the police was so violent to the students.

Jung Juha
You did so as a journalist?

Kang Bong-gyu
Yes, as a journalist. I took photos with a wide angle lens and captured the faces of police troops. And there was the YMCA building in front of the newspaper’s headquarters. There was a small exhibition space in the building and I exhibited my photos there.

Jung Juha
Ah, what kind of photographs did you exhibit?

Kang Bong-gyu
The ones where they beat people with police batons.

Jung Juha
Ah, during the April 19 Revolution! Scenes of the police suppressing protesters,

Kang Bong-gyu
I photographed them all, one by one. A few of us went. All the police officers came out…

Jung Juha
So that was for your exhibition,

Kang Bong-gyu
Yes, for the exhibition.

Jung Juha
Then, in Gwangju, was the public perception of the authorities during the April 19 events not that negative?

Kang Bong-gyu
No, it was intense. When martial law was declared, I grabbed my camera and rushed out, and our boss grabbed my arm. When I was heading out with the camera, he stopped me. He said I’d get shot and killed. The provincial office building was right there. And across from it was the Gwangju Hotel—you know, the one that’s now the Tourist Hotel? Right across from the YMCA. That Gwangju Hotel was taller than the other buildings around. Students were collapsing, shot down. I didn’t want to get shot either—I was scared—so I ran up with my camera. That’s what happened.

Jung Juha
I see. Then did you exhibit those photos after the April 19 Revolution?

Kang Bong-gyu
No, during the April 19 demonstrations. In Gwangju, the schools that protested most intensely were the High School, Technical High School, and Commercial High School. When a protest was about to start, the students would always call the photo department chief at Jeonnam Ilbo.

Jung Juha
From which side?

Kang Bong-gyu
From the students’ side.

Jung Juha
From the students?

Kang Bong-gyu
Yes, to tell me to come out and take photos.

Jung Juha
They’d form a scrum…

Kang Bong-gyu
Yes, form a scrum and lift me up high so I could get the shot.

Jung Juha
They’d lift you?

Kang Bong-gyu
Yes, on their shoulders.

Jung Juha
So they hoisted you up to get a higher angle?

Kang Bong-gyu
Yes, they carried me like that.

Jung Juha
They were really supportive then, helped you. It seems you had a strong relationship with them…

Kang Bong-gyu
Yes, they liked me—I helped defend them. And when I showed up, the police couldn’t just beat them recklessly with batons, because I’d publish everything. That gave the students a sense of justice, even heroism.

Jung Juha
But how did your newspaper feel about you doing that?

Kang Bong-gyu
They loved it.

Jung Juha
Really?

Kang Bong-gyu
They absolutely loved it.

Jung Juha
The newspaper was very…

Kang Bong-gyu
The circulation went up. Jeonnam Maeil couldn’t keep up with Jeonnam Ilbo.

Kang Bong-gyu
The important function of journalism photography is its ability of recording. It is really important to have artistic value, too. Journalism photography is not just about showing cruel, disgusting, or violent things. Only the Korean newspapers focus on them. It’s a fault of the editorial desk.

For example, we haven’t seen any disgusting photo about the Japanese Tsunami, or the Sarin gas attack happened in Tokyo. The Japanese attitude is to take an image of a cat going across the crime scene after the deadly gas is gone. They do not agitate people even when someone is dying. They don’t publicize any image that raises a sense of disgust. I think that journalism photography is not about showing cruel images. I strongly think that a journalist is also an artist. One should consider the aesthetics.

It is not good to have too much distaste and cruelty. That was my philosophy. Then the photos were convincing. They were not about cruel subjects. Even when I took a landscape photo, it was important to analyze subjects and create new forms in a unique way. This is very important. That figurative quality can draw certain empathy from people. The same applies to journalism photography. For example, we had a train accident. People took a lot of photos about people suffering. None of the images were used in the end. Only the faces of the dead were publicized. We have to compete in the good things. There’s no need to produce useless things. It can be valuable as a record, but that would be too cruel for readers.

The Establishment of the Gwangiu Biennale

Kang Bong-gyu
The idea of creating an international biennale, the late Young-joong Kim initiated the idea that Seoul would host a biennale, managed by the art association in Seoul. It would focus on the art of Asia. He told me about this idea, and I suggested him that Gwangju would host the biennale. I didn’t know well about the biennale. Only that it would happen every two years. I went to meet the mayor of Gwangju and suggested him to host it. I told him to host a biennale of Asia. But he was ahead of me, suggesting to host a global biennale.

Jung juha
Who was the mayor then?

Kang Bong-gyu
It was Woon Tae Kang. He was full of passion. He established a plan just in six months, then started working with me. Then, some people suspected us that the biennale was to dilute the spirit of the May 18 Democratic Uprising. But I was the first one to say, “Let’s make the May 18 spirit go global.” “Biennale is a way to do it.” But some people just opposed my suggestion.

The universities were the first ones to react. …and the Minjung Misul (people’s art) artists. They put up tens of thousands of funeral odes in the May 18 park as a protest. I pushed forward, despite the opposition. Then I invited an artist. It was Nam June Paik, for the first Gwangju Biennale. 1,860 thousand people visited the biennale, which was the biggest number ever in Gwangju. It was unprecedented. I asked a middle school student at the exit of the exhibition to check the reception of the visitors. The student said it was entertaining. Then I thought it was a success. That comment gave me a sense of conviction.

Kang Bong-gyu
I also organized the first Luminarie in Korea while serving the president of the Korean Peoples’ Artists Federation. I gathered the presidents of May 18 organizations, and there were 28 of them. Everyone agreed with my opinion about soothing the wound and making the streets in the city center as a more pleasant place. It was the first time to hold a street festival in the country. Even in Seoul, there was no festival that used the entire street. We invited 36 teams from all over the country. The number of performers was about 3,000. Since the May 18 street in the city center left wounds to the citizens, I wanted to transform it into a street a pleasant place.

Artistic practice and (The Home of Koreans)

Kang Bong-gyu
The organizing committee of the Seoul Olympics hasselected my work. The selection was done by Sejik Park, the chair of the committee. It was about the theme of Korean people’s hometown.

It was to be used as a PR image for the Olympics. However, my work was not selected at the end. We can talk about the problems of the culture here in this country. These are the photos about people’s hometown. The chair of the committee decided to buy my photography book about this theme. An emergency meeting took place with the Blue House, the military intelligence, and the public relations department. It was pointed out that there were ‘dark’images.

They concluded that those images would distort Korea’s image. And asked me to change seven photos in my book. I asked, “Why do you think these images are gloomy? “This is how people live their lives. To be poor is not a sin. So I declined the offer.

Kang Bong-gyu
Luckily enough, “The Home of Korean People” was listed as the recommended book by the cultural ministry. This photo thus reminds me of fresh memories. As you know, my work is mostly about people’s lives. Our ancestors’ modesty, diligence, curiosity, and earnestness are carried by all of us.

We are very emotional. We are artistic in doing events. I regard them as artistic. I don’t disregard them. Even a dog house is an installation art. The same applies to a henhouse. Even our mothers and the tools for making rice cakes, I see certain aesthetic beauty and mastery in there. I always try to observe the home of people. Photography is a discovery of subjects from observation. Photography is about constructing the new figure by reorganizing the subjects through one’s own mind.

I never took any photo without much consideration.I alway think beforehand.

The attitude of journalism

Kang Bong-gyu
The photo book was a failure. It ended in failure. Why? Because when it came to the skull types of Korean faces, I didn’t have enough knowledge. I should have conducted in-depth regional skull studies of Korean people, but instead, I just went around taking pictures of local elders based on intuition. That eventually hit a limit. I once spoke with a scholar named Jo Yong-seon, who researches Korean facial types, and he said my work came quite close in approach to studying Korean faces. I had relied on intuition—saying things like, “This is how people from Gangwon-do look, or from Jeolla-do, or Chungcheong-do.” When it came to Seoul, since it’s a diverse place, I focused more on descendants of the royal family than on local elders. So I continued like that, and although I got somewhat close, he said, “There are areas that fall short.” I agreed, “Yes, that’s true,” and I stopped the project when I hit that limit.

To do photography well, you need deep knowledge of the subject matter. Only then can it become a study through observation. In my first volume, that kind of approach shows through, but by the time I got to the second and third volumes, I realized I needed to divide things by section: folklore should go with folklore, seasonal customs with seasonal customs, environment with environment, housing with housing, portraits with portraits. I began to categorize things that way. For me, one of the most important functions of photography is documentation. I always prioritize its documentary nature. Then I integrate artistic value into that. That’s my photographic philosophy.

I’ve already shared most of my thoughts, so it feels redundant to sum them up again, but what I really want to say is this: photography should be alive. You shouldn’t take photos that look the same no matter who presses the shutter. Do photography that only you can do. That’s exactly what Henri Cartier-Bresson (1908–2004) said—create photographs with philosophy. That’s what I truly want to emphasize.