At 44 Comic Barcelona, illustrator Wooh Nayoung, one of the leading figures in contemporary digital art in Korea, invites us to rethink our perspective on iconic figures from the global comic book world. In her work, universally recognizable characters such as Spider-Man, Thor, and Silk appear in an unexpected context: Korean culture. 

This exhibition, organized in collaboration with the Korean Cultural Center in Spain, features pieces characterized by the tension between singularity and universality. Singularity emerges in the unprecedented reinterpretation of these characters dressed in hanbok, Korea’s traditional attire. They are displaced from their usual setting into new cultural contexts. Universality, in turn, lies in the instant recognition these figures generate on a global scale. This dialogue creates a borderless space where geographies are no longer static and identities connect. 

In this exhibition, Wooh Nayoung invites us to reflect on a question that is increasingly relevant in the present day: How can we preserve the uniqueness of each culture without isolating it? How can we transform it without diluting it? In an interconnected world, her work brings us closer to a possible answer. This exhibition is presented in parallel with “Stories Clad in Hanbok,” which will also be on view from May 14 to July 31 at the Korean Cultural Center in Spain.