Soyon Jung
Die Herrschaft des Konkreten, 2023
Soyon Jung, Die Herrschaft des Konkreten (10 Euro), 2023, Courtesy the artist and Jahn und Jahn, München/Lissabon
Soyon Jung (*1982, Gwangju, KR) combines classic etchings with digital printing techniques, video and 3D photography in her works.
Soyon Jung – audio guide in plain language
The etchings in the series Die Herrschaft des Konkreten (Rulership of the Concrete) are based on the designs of euro bills. The euro constitutes the basis of the Monetary Union and is thus one of the pillars of the European idea as a cross-border community. Various bridges are depicted on the banknotes. These, however, are not existing edifices but abstractions; fantasy structures that are modelled on the styles of European architectural history. Jung presents this European symbol in her filigree black and white depictions as overgrown and collapsed ruins. In 2021, the European Central Bank announced a redesign of the euro banknotes. Jung speculates on the motives that led to this decision. It seems that it not only reflects a move away from the openness of abstraction, but also a loss of credibility of the modern promise of progress.