Scaffold: Drawing Under Pressure

On October 16, SomoS Arts presents Scaffold, a performance by resident artist Junghwan Cho and composer Hameed Al Saeed. Cho will draw with charcoal on paper stretching across the gallery floor like a stream, while Al Saeed improvises electronic music. The performance considers the everyday pressures of urban life through construction, erosion, and fragmentation in drawing and sound. “For me, making art is a way of paying attention: to the city, to the body, and to the relationship between them,” Cho explains. His interest in urban space draws on his architectural training and his experience of Busan’s rapid redevelopment. High-rise housing and ongoing construction transformed familiar surroundings, prompting him to consider how these changes affect memory and behavior. He aims to make the physical and emotional effects of urban space more perceptible, encouraging viewers to notice their own responses to the places they inhabit. Cho and Al Saeed will respond to each other as they work. Their reactions will set the pace of the performance and build tension between the drawing and music. Junghwan Cho’s artist residency at SomoS is supported by the Busan Cultural Foundation.