‘The House of Sorrow’ by Jisun Kim
Can the virtual space become a space of freedom, through which to explore both another world and the self, while being confined in a room? The myth of “El Dorado” – according to which gold objects were immersed in a river in the course of a ritual – could also be read as the restoration of matter to its source. Extracted from nature, gold was melted to create sculptures before being returned to nature. However, if what is to be restored is a thought, then how can that thought be restored to its source?
During a trip to Colombia, artist Jisun Kim happened to meet a man named Min, who handed her a USB stick containing various games. The video games were developed by Min himself. Each of these games could be read like a book, in which one can get lost in Min’s thoughts and memories. But why did Min want to tell his stories in video games that can be experienced and reinterpreted over and over again? Jisun Kim invites a professional gamer to fully unravel, together with the artist, Min’s stories and thoughts. Together they inhabit the virtual sculpture The House of Sorrow and invite the audience to dive into Min’s world with them. Two spaces simultaneously host the performance of The House of Sorrow: the physical space of Les Halles de Schaerbeek, for those in Brussels, and a theatrical space built by the artist inside Minecraft, and accessible for free to all its users.
Performances on Minecraft
Online performances are free. Visitors wishing to see The House of Sorrow online must have an official version of Minecraft installed on their computer. An e-mail with all the practical informations to access the performance will be sent 48 hour before the beginning of the show to the visitors who have booked a ticket.
Minecraft map construction: GBF Studio (Minseok Kim, Yuhyeon Jang, Jeongmin Oh)
Minecraft system: GBF Studio (Jumyung Choi)
Coproduction: Kunstenfestivaldesarts
Supported by: Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Seoul Metropolitan Government; Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture
Performances in Brussels supported by: the Korean Cultural Center of Brussels
For more info see: https://www.kfda.be/en/program/the-house-of-sorrow-1