Off the White: Mark and Record at Ilmin Museum of Art

Introducing the exhibition Off the White: Mark and Record. When stepping into an art gallery, visitors naturally gravitate toward artworks hung neatly against pristine white walls. Yet what about the physical structures that support those artworks—the walls and floors themselves, imprinted with the accumulated traces of countless past exhibitions?

This year, the Ilmin Museum of Art marks the 100th anniversary of its historic architecture. To commemorate this milestone, the museum is presenting a sequential relay of exhibitions that investigate the underlying elements activating the museum as a physical site: its walls, floors, illumination, institutional records, and visitors’ viewing habits. As the second installment in this series, Off the White: Mark and Record features artists Kwak Eve and Noh Songhee, who bring to light the subtle, overlooked data embedded within the museum space.

Off the White: Mark and Record Visitor Information

• Exhibition Title: Off the White: Mark and Record
• Participating Artists: Kwak Eve, Noh Songhee
• Exhibition Period: August 14, 2026 – October 18, 2026
• Venue: Ilmin Museum of Art, Exhibition Hall 1 (152 Sejong-daero, Jongno-gu, Seoul)

Artists Who Layer Traces and Assemble Records

Artist Kwak Eve focuses on the physical marks left on gallery walls from repeated cycles of artwork installation and de-installation. By superimposing architectural and urban forms observed outside the museum onto these interior abrasions, she redefines the seemingly vacant surface of the wall as an active site where fresh information is generated. Kwak has previously presented solo exhibitions such as Moving 24 (2024) and Face-to-Face Construction – Architectural Project: Role (2017), alongside group presentations across numerous art institutions, continually interrogating spatial and architectural boundaries.

Artist Noh Songhee links archival records held by the museum with units of measurement through modular aluminum puzzle structures. Her tactile installations illuminate the selective criteria through which institutional archives are curated, as well as the hidden human labor underpinning that documentation. Her sustained inquiry into archival materials—demonstrated in previous solo exhibitions like Archive Shape (2025) and group projects at the Seoul Museum of Art Archives—unfolds with renewed clarity in this new installation.

Three Approaches to Reading the Exhibition

Organized through a collaboration between the Ilmin Museum of Art Curatorial Department and guest curator Kwon Jeonghyun, this exhibition invites visitors to adopt a perspective distinct from standard encounters with conventional painting or sculpture.

• Look closely not just at individual artworks, but also at the surrounding walls and floors supporting them.
• Observe how physical marks accumulated over decades congeal into distinct visual patterns, and how those patterns yield readable historical information.
• Pay attention to how numerical metrics—such as specific dates, budgets, and physical dimensions—have been employed to manage, document, and regulate the museum’s institutional legacy.

Essential Details Before Planning Your Visit

• Opening Hours: Tuesday through Sunday, 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
• Closed: The museum is closed every Monday, as well as on Chuseok Day (September 25, 2026).
• Admission: Admission fees are not separately listed on the official exhibition page. Visitors are advised to contact the Ilmin Museum of Art directly prior to visiting.

For more exhibition coverage published on this site, explore our guides to Bonjour, Jean-Jacques Sempé: The World in Lines and Still, Now, and Always.

Sources and Reference Links

This overview has been compiled based on official announcements from the following source:

• Ilmin Museum of Art Official Website: 《Off the White: Mark and Record》 Exhibition Guide

Please reconfirm specific scheduling and reservation details on the official website before visiting Off the White: Mark and Record.