Documentary Photographer Seoul Korea

ZUGZWANG | Traces Of The Expellees

THIS PRESENTED PERSONAL SERIES I TOOK AS A PHOTOGRAPHER IN THE PERIOD OF NOVEMBER 2008 TO MARCH 2009 AND EXHIBITED IN TOPOHAUS ART GALLERY SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, IN APRIL 2009.

HUKSEOKDONG, BANGBAEDONG AND SANGWANGSIMNIDONG: THREE CITY DISTRICTS WITHIN SEOUL. HAVING A POPULATION HISTORY OF LESS THAN 40 YEARS, IT IS NOW PACKED WITH BLOCKS OF FAMILY HOUSING AND THESE DISTRICTS ARE FACING A LARGE-SCALE APARTMENT CONSTRUCTION ENTERPRISE. THIS IS NOT AN ISOLATED CASE IN KOREA, A COUNTRY THAT REGARDS THE APARTMENT COMPLEX AS THE PREMIUM LIVING FORM. SINCE THE 70S, THE APARTMENT HAS AFFECTED THE KOREAN COMPREHENSION OF SPACE STRONGLY. DESPITE THE INHABITANTS’ EFFORTS TO FIGHT THEIR FORCED EXTRUSION THROUGH LEGAL MEANS, THEY ARE POWERLESS AGAINST THE BUILDING COMPANIES. EVEN THE MOST ADAMANT ONES WHO REMAIN UNTIL CONSTRUCTION STARTS EVENTUALLY SUCCUMB TO THE HIGHLY INFLUENTIAL COMPANIES; ALMOST THE ENTIRE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IN KOREA IS PART OF THE CHAEBOL STRONGHOLD.

THE PRESENTED WORK WITH THE GERMAN TITLE ZUGZWANG, MEANING TO BE FORCED TO MOVE, IS BASED ON A SPATIAL CONCEPT, WHICH INDIRECTLY PORTRAYS THE INHABITANTS OF SPACES, ONCE FREQUENTED, AND BY THE TIME OF THE PROJECT PARTLY DEMOLISHED.

PHOTOGRAPHER

NILS CLAUSS

CLIENT

PERSONAL

PHOTOS

In a Seoul apartment undergoing redevelopment, the abandoned living room speaks of neglect. Broken glass litters the floor, with an empty chair amidst. Sunlight filters through the wooden panels, offering warmth in contrast to the cold

Colorful traditional Korean Hanji paper adorns two sliding door frames in an abandoned home in Seoul, South Korea

A demolished mint-colored bathroom in an abandoned home in Seoul, South Korea, with the washing basin smashed and lying on the ground

A mint-colored kitchen in an urban redevelopment area in Seoul, South Korea. The partially demolished ceiling reveals dangling red pipes reaching towards the kitchen floor

An abandoned home in Seoul, South Korea, a mint-colored living room lies desolate. Broken glass litters the floor, removed sliding doors lean against the wall, and window glass is absent from the windows

An abandoned living room in an urban redevelopment district of Seoul, South Korea. Wooden panels adorn the walls and ceiling, their ornate patterns contrasting with the demolished concrete floor

A partially opened wooden door in an abandoned apartment in Seoul, South Korea. Beside the door, a broken intercom telephone hangs off the hook, dangling towards the floor

A white bathroom with partially demolished beige-yellowish facilities scattered on the floor. Sunlight streams through the window, casting a dotted pattern on the bathroom floor

Half-opened wooden framed glass sliding doors reveal a demolished kitchen in an abandoned home in Seoul, South Korea, part of an urban redevelopment project. Upside-down furniture, broken glass on the floor. Red-purple flowers on wallpaper contrast the cold environment

Beige flower-patterned wallpaper in an urban redevelopment area in Seoul, South Korea. A removed lamp sits on an elevated platform. The foreground: demolished concrete flooring

In the empty living room of an abandoned home in Seoul, South Korea, a broken plastic rocking horse sits alongside two removed window sliding doors leaned against a wall

A glimpse into an abandoned kitchen in Seoul, South Korea. Windows removed, the space is empty, with scattered ceiling panels on the floor

Madonna's 'Like a Virgin' album cover rests on the floor, leaned against the wall amidst a broken record player and two empty styrofoam bowls of Korean-Chinese noodles

A slat curtain with a forest landscape drawing blows in the wind. Beside the window, a wallpaper depicts daisies against a blue sky. Through the curtain, townhouse buildings in demolition are visible, while newly built apartments rise in Seoul, South Korea

The exterior facade of an abandoned four-story building in Seoul, South Korea, stands empty with all windows removed, awaiting demolition along with the entire neighborhood