Special Photo Exhibition Traces the History of Psychiatry in Korea

- Commemorating the 64th anniversary of the National Center for Mental Health -

- Archival scenes from clinical practice during the Seoul National Hospital era unveiled -

The National Center for Mental Health under the Ministry of Health and Welfare (NCMH, Acting President Nam Yoon Young) announced that, to mark the 64th anniversary of its  establishment,* it will hold a special photo exhibition titled “Restoration_on the Stratum of Memory” from Monday, February 9, to Tuesday, March 31, at Gallery M (B1) of the National Center for Mental Health in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul.

   * The NCMH was originally established as the Seoul National Hospital on February 1, 1962, and was renamed the National Center for Mental Health on March 1, 2016.

The exhibition was organized to revisit the historical trajectory of psychiatry in Korea through archival records from the NCMH’s predecessor, the Seoul National Hospital.

It features 15 black-and-white photographs taken by photographer Lee Hyun-kwon during his residency at the Seoul National Hospital. The works vividly capture scenes from clinical settings of the time―including aging corridors, old wards, and patients’ daily lives. Lee Hyun-kwon is a board-certified psychiatrist and active photographer whose exhibitions include Walking Along the Han River (2010–2020) at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts Museum and A Half at Gallery Insa Art.

Lee said that although moments from the past have disappeared, they continue to live on in memory, describing the experience of revisiting long-buried film and photographs as “a moment when erased memories seep back in and are restored.”

NCMH Acting President Nam Yoon Young stated, “This exhibition is a meaningful effort to artistically restore the spatial and emotional traces of psychiatry in Korea on the occasion of the NCMH’s 64th anniversary. I hope it will provide a new platform to share the value of mental health with the public.”

The exhibition is open to the public free of charge. Visiting hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, and the gallery is closed on weekends and public holidays. Further details are available on the NCMH website at www.ncmh.go.kr.

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