Restructuring the independence of the young people: "autonomous" independence and its conditions

This event was a public program held in conjunction with the artwork Restructuring the independence of the young people: “autonomous” independence and its conditions by Welfare State Youth Network·Youthzone Yangcheon, participating artist group of the 10th Seoul Mediacity Biennale Eu Zên.

Welfare State Youth Network, an independent youth organization of and for the young people who are preparing for a better future, looks at social issues (e.g. education, employment, housing, health service, aging, and the social security net) from the young generation’s perspective and seeks specific solutions. As members of the future Korean society with a strong sense of responsibility, they continue to monitor the rapid changes in the politics, economy, and system of distribution of the near future, and aim to find social alternatives. Youthzone Yangcheon is a space for the youth provided by the City of Seoul. It is a shared space where the young can freely work without being pressured by the society’s norms. Youthzone Yangcheon strives to become a platform that supports youth to come together and collaborate, to create a community of their own to experience solving their personal problems as well as social problems.

In this project, the the Welfare State Youth Network·Youthzone Yangcheon discusses a good independent life that is not confined to the “norm” of a society, which requires an individual to conform to a single pattern for life—get a university degree, get a job, marry, and raise children; rather, their independent lives would follow patterns that individuals create for themselves. In addition, the network members investigate the material and temporal conditions that enable the ideal state of independence. They meet young people who pursue independence as an autonomous life or those who have achieved that form of independence in order to examine the conditions necessary for an independent life. Along with young people of diverse backgrounds, who feel tired of the existing notion of independence and conditions for such a life that have been imposed by the “norm” of this society, the members, then, inquire into the means that would guarantee an independent life as one with autonomy. They published a guidebook titled Doing Fine based on their pre-research, and hold five discussion sessions during the biennale.