"Passion of PyeongChang" by Kim Jong-wook "The Extreme Landscape" by Kim Ye-seul



By Kwon Mee-yoo

With fewer than 100 days before the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games in February, Korea is gearing up for the world's biggest winter sporting event. Olympic posters play an important role in promoting the world event.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) and the PyeongChang Organizing Committee for the 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Games (POCOG) held a competition this year to find the art poster that best presents the values of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games with people's hopes and expectations.

"These posters will take the mega sports event one step closer to cultural Olympics, reaching further to people's hearts," said National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art director Bartomeu Mari.

Book and typeface designer Chung Byung-kyu, the foreman of the jury, said the contest would take the Olympic posters to another level, stepping over the conventional images combining snow and game scenes.

"We tried to find posters that have overall artistic value and portray the winter of PyeongChang sublimated into symbolism," Chung said.





"Good Morning, Moon!" by Jeon Chang-hyun "Jogak Hangeul Eeumbo" by Park Sung-hee



More than 205 works were submitted and the eight winning posters are on view in Gallery 8 of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in downtown Seoul. The background of each artist varies from designer to ceramist and office workers.

Kim Jong-wook, a KBS graphic department head, designed "Passion of PyeongChang," using Korean traditional calligraphy techniques. He interpreted the spirit of Korea and passion for sports through powerful strokes and the light and shade of "meok" (Korean traditional ink stick).

Based on black and white, Kim encompassed the five colors of the Olympic rings to emphasize mutual understanding, cooperation and harmony. The rough stroke reminds viewers of a snow-covered mountain and the image relates to the passion and challenge of youngsters vying to compete at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.

"The Extreme Landscape" by Kim Ye-seul of Studio Myriad is a performance work, which makes an attempt to combine physical training with drawing. The artist jumps rope and her movement is traced through paint spatters on the canvas, resulting in a landscape.

The action painting poster captures the scenery of snow-covered mountains of Gangwon Province, where the 2018 Winter Games will be held, and conveys the main values of the event _ "New Horizons" and "Passion Connected."

Ceramist Jeon Chang-hyun's "Good Morning, Moon!" symbolizes the time differences across the globe, when it is morning in Seoul, it is night halfway around the world. Jeon created a moon jar (round-shaped traditional Korean white porcelain) and added figures riding bobsleigh on the curve.

Park Sung-hee interpreted Korean typography in "jogakbo" (Korean patchwork) style. "Jogak Hangeul Eeumbo" is based on a font that writes Korean consonants and vowels in quadrilateral shapes and colors.

The artist wrote sentences from the Olympic spirit in the jogakbo made from 336 pieces of fabrics of 46 colors, patterns and materials, with the characteristics of jogakbo connecting heterogeneous items.





"PyeongChang, Gangneung, Jeongseon and Winter" by Kim Joo-sung "Taebaek" by Kim Jae-young



"PyeongChang, Gangneung, Jeongseon and Winter" by Kim Joo-sung is also inspired by the Korean alphabet. He transformed the alphabet into geometrical figures and arranged the figures in the shape of winter scenery, representing the venue of the 2018 Winter Games.

"Taebaek" by Kim Jae-young portrays an overlapping image of the Taebaek Mountain range, the longest mountain range in Korea that stretches from the North to the South. The dynamic shape of the mountain is derived from a traditional Korean painting technique and the connected shapes of the mountains symbolize how the Olympics connect the world.

"Winter Stitch: Love & Wish" is by the student-professor team of Hong Hyun-jung and Hwang Su-hong. The poster took inspiration from "nubi" (quilting) from Gangwon Province and used the stitch lines to describe the wintry image of the province as well as the Winter Olympics, such as snowflakes and the Olympic emblem.

The design connects with Ki Eun and Ha Dong-soo's poster "Blooms in Snow Flower," which centers on a snowflake shape created with pictograms of major events such as speed skating, figure skating and ski jumping.





"Winter Stitch: Love & Wish" by Hong Hyun-jung and Hwang Su-hong "Blooms in Snow Flower" by Ki Eun and Ha Dong-soo



The exhibition also gives a glimpse of artists' endeavor behind the final product. Kim Ye-seul's gym shoes, jump ropes and paint spatters show how the artist turned kinetic energy into a powerful yet artistic pattern. The blue backdrop represents the snow fields of PyeongChang, which will soon welcome athletes from around the world.

Jeon, creator of "Good Morning, Moon!" displayed a variety of the moon jars in different sizes that were photographed for the poster. Visitors can also have a closer look at the actual patchwork of Park's "Jogak Hangeul Eeumbo."

The exhibit runs through Dec. 3. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.mmca.go.kr or call 02-3701-9500.