It Begins with You and Me
Abstract
This thesis conceptualizes the conditions of the Korean division, including the realization of the political and cultural gap between the two Koreas, lack of education about the Korean division and the role of media. The Korean War, also known as a forgotten war, is erased in the consciousness of contemporary societies. This thesis describes history about how the artificial division created during the Korean War has continuously affected our modern and contemporary history. Since the end of the war, for more than a half-century, North and South Korea did not have any form of communication except through government negotiations and regulated media. As a result, the division of the two Koreas has caused a deep cultural and political gap. The media and public education today continue to construct and influence the public awareness of the Korean division. Artworks provide a perspective that provokes a moment that provokes you to revise your precedent understanding of an issue. Many times in political art, it leads to public participation, which is a critical stimulant for a change. Artworks created by collaboration with individual or communities stimulate our cognitive resonances drawing to parallels with our own lives and political actions.