What does Hong Jin-hwon’s work The Highest Form of the Image Is Armed Struggle examine?

The work examines the language of past revolutions alongside scenes of modern rallies. It also considers how arenas of resistance are transformed into images that can be anticipated and controlled.

What did Tate Modern’s Charmaine Toh say about Hong Jin-hwon’s art?

Toh, a member of the six-person jury, said Hong’s work exposes tension between social practice and the process of representing it as images. She said it questions the visual systems through which people see and understand reality.

How long is the Korean Artist Prize 2026 finalists’ exhibition running, and where can visitors see it?

The exhibition featuring works by Hong Jin-hwon, Lee Hai Min Sun, Lee Jung-woo and Jeon Hyun-sun runs through Dec. 6 at the MMCA’s Seoul branch.

Hong Jin-hwon awarded Korean Artist Prize 2026

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Summary

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) named former journalist Hong Jin-hwon the winner of the Korean Artist Prize 2026 on Thursday. Hong works across photography, video and web programming to examine social and political power relations embedded in images. His recent work explores how revolutionary language and scenes of modern rallies are transformed into images that can be anticipated and controlled. An exhibition featuring works by all four finalists runs through Dec. 6 at the MMCA’s Seoul branch.

Key Facts

The six-member jury included Charmaine Toh, acting head of curatorial at Tate Modern.
Toh said Hong’s work reveals tensions between social practice and its representation as images, and questions the visual systems through which people see and understand reality.
The other finalists were Lee Hai Min Sun, Lee Jung-woo and Jeon Hyun-sun.
The MMCA has co-sponsored the prize with the SBS Culture Foundation since 2012 to recognize artists with keen insight into society and art.

By Yonhap

Published Oct 29, 2026 10:21 am KST

Korean contemporary artist Hong Jin-hwon / Courtesy of National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) said Thursday it has selected Hong Jin-hwon as the winner of the Korean Artist Prize 2026.

A former journalist, Hong has used photography, video, web programming, as well as other forms of media, to probe the social and political power relations embedded within images, according to the MMCA.

Hong's recent work, "The Highest Form of the Image Is Armed Struggle," examines the language of past revolutions with scenes of modern rallies and the process through which arenas of resistance are transformed into images that can be anticipated and controlled.

Charmaine Toh, acting head of curatorial at Tate Modern, who was one of the six-member jury, said Hong's work "reveals the tension between social practice and the process through which it is represented as images and questions the visual systems through which we see and understand reality."

Since 2012, the national art museum has co-sponsored the Korean Artist Prize with the SBS Culture Foundation to recognize outstanding artists with keen insight into society and art.

An MMCA exhibition featuring works by all four finalists for the annual prize — Hong, Lee Hai Min Sun, Lee Jung-woo and Jeon Hyun-sun, runs through Dec. 6 at the museum's Seoul branch.

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