Welcoming the winter season, Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA) will be celebrating one of film’s most esteemed directors with the Stanley Kubrick Exhibition. Embracing not only pure art, but also the related fields of architecture, film, design, etc., and espousing the value of multimedia, post-genreism, and convergence in contemporary art, following the Tim Burton Exhibition in 2012, SeMA has the opportunity to present the world of Stanley Kubrick's works to the Korean public.
Stanley Kubrick is one of the most influential directors in film history, famous for his innovative cinematography. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), now regarded as a benchmark for special effects, shows strikingly realistic visuals, so much so that it is hard to believe that the film was produced before the first moon landing. With ceaseless experimentation, challenges, and ground-breaking ideas, Kubrick produced films like A Clockwork Orange (1971), Barry Lyndon (1975), The Shining (1980), Full Metal Jacket (1987), and Eyes Wide Shut (1999) that remain as crucial films in cinema history.
To further immerse viewers in the world of Stanley Kubrick, this exhibition enriches the narratives on a spectacular scale, and with formative stagecraft, has blurred the lines between cinematic and visual art. As he considered music to be a significant cinematic device, soundtracks will be played in the exhibition halls to preserve Kubrick's intent and allow the audience to actually “feel” his masterpieces. In addtion, over a thousand items from the archives are on display, such as research materials, photographs, scripts, letters, film, props, costumes, cameras, and lenses left by the director during his lifetime of film production. Through the precious resources which display the perfectionist process of his production, one can see the profound world and diligence that Kubrick pursued as an artist, so massively influential in the field of visual art.
After its first opening in Frankfurt, Germany in 2004, the Stanley Kubrick Exhibition has been widely acclaimed during its tour in cities all over the world. As the first to host the exhibition in Asia, SeMA hopes to inspire creativity and a spirit of adventure, and to further provide a unique artistic experience into the world of Stanley Kubrick, not only to children and adolescents, but to general public and experts as well. We greatly appreciate the contributions of Deutsches Filmmuseum, Hyundai Card, and GNC Media for their cooperation in realizing the exhibition, and we thank you, the public, for your interest and support.
