Korea, specifically Seoul, moves. Constant motion fuels the progress that has propelled this tiny nation numbering in population less than sixty million into a world-wide economic powerhouse. That success may seem enviable but it definitely comes at a cost. Buildings rise and fall. The historic stone past giving way literally to futuristic towers of steel and glass. New stores pop up and disappear seemingly overnight. Businessmen and women toil long hours throughout the day followed by soju fueled nights with the big boss. Students attend classes, hunkered over laptops, glasses reflecting glossy screens before racing off to their Math, Science, or English academies. In South Korea, people move. Constantly. It’s no wonder then that the latest craze has proven to be a revelation in stillness.
Spacing out. We’ve all done it. Idly sitting in a chair, lost in thought, eyes glazed and shallow breaths signifying how zoned out we are while the world passes us by. That’s the ultimate state of being for the Space Out Competitions currently gripping South Korea (and now the world) for the past few years. The rules seem fairly straightforward: No using smart phones, No reading, No Laughing, No Sleeping. A team of regulators check heartbeats in intervals of 15 minutes to ensure everyone is following the rules. The person who has the most restful heart rate is declared the winner. Thousands of Entrants who apply have been whittled down to just a few dozen of competitors, by performance artist Woops Yang the who created the idea as a conceptual art project.
As an artist, I attempted to juxtapose two groups visually. One is to lead busy lives and the other is to do nothing in a busy city. – Woopsyang
Since 2014 Woopsyang has been holding her Space Out Competition within various cities throughout South Korea. Held during the last week of May it’s a time when people can come take a moment to just stop and vegetate into the blissful state of nothingness. Which for the busy people of Korea can be as transformative and radical as self-driving cars, robot waiters, or a four day work week! Some of the locations of the competition have been:
2014: Seoul
2015: Beijing
2016: Seoul
2017: Rotterdam
2018: Seoul Yeouido Han River Park
2019: Seoul & International
The latest Space Out Competitions took place in 2021 and 2022 in Seogwipo Forest of Healing in South Korea’s Jeju Island. Be sure to check them out next year or find the nearest International Space Out Competition near you! Show up, Zen out!
