The Seoul Museum of Art(SeMA), in collaboration with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and Cheil Worldwide, is holding an exhibition titled Invisible People to increase people’s awareness of refugees in Korea and overseas. This exhibition started from a modest proposition: “Invisible unless we pay attention.” It deals with the real stories of 35 million refugees worldwide and 350 refugees in Korea and makes “invisible people” visible through on of the most advanced technology, the 3D miniature. Refugees who may be unfamiliar to most Koreans can be defined as “People who are outside their own country because they have suffered persecution or they fear of persecution on account of race, religion, political opinions, or ideas.” Just half a century ago, Korea also had many refugees from the Korean War. Statistics related to refugees are not well known, but the number of refugees coming to Korea is steadily increasing. Many refugees come to Korea with hope, referring to Korea as “the homeland of Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of UN,” or “a nation of human rights.” As of the end of November 2013, more than 6,400 people have made a refugee application to the Korean government; some 350 applicants recognized as refugees are living in Korea. In recent years, saeteomin people (North Korean defectors) are have become an issue in Korea. They have been living in Korea, but they are treated as invisible people.

For this exhibition, palm-sized 3D miniatures were produced based on videos of actual refugees such as the ones living in Korea and camps in Nigeria, Africa; stories about each refugee are presented at the museum of art via digital media. Dozens of 3D miniatures of refugees are installed in crevices in the museum, such as stairs, window sills, and shelves in restrooms; for each miniature has QR and NFC codes so that visitors can see videos of the stories of actual refugees associated with the figurines just by connecting with their cell phones. In addition, since the codes are connected to official SNS, visitors can personally send encouraging messages to refugees.

However, visitors may not be able to see the refugees clearly due to unpredictable circumstances or owing to the small size of videos. If more people have the chance to meet refugees, and become curious about their stories, the refugees themselves will no longer remain as invisible people, and they will get more attention from the world. Through technology that can warm up the world, if visitors attempt to communicate with refugees at the exhibition, refugees will reveal themselves. This exhibition will make us realize that we coexist with refugees.