At Belvedere 21, a free program brings together seven South Korean films on the body and power relations

A free screening, but not without a ticket

Belvedere 21 is programming a screening titled “What Bodies Keep – bewegte Bilder aus Südkorea” at the Blickle Kino in Vienna. The event is announced as a screening for adults, linked to cinema, and will take place on Tuesday, September 29, from 6 pm to 7:30 pm. The most important practical detail lies in an unusual combination for the public: participation is free, but access to the auditorium still requires a free event ticket.

The ticketing displayed for the screening shows a price of 0 euros, whether for the regular public, holders of the Belvedere Gold Pass, or Friends of the Belvedere. The page also specifies the exact venue: Belvedere 21, Arsenalstraße 1, 1030 Vienna, Blickle Kino. For visitors used to associating Belvedere Palace with historical collections, this event points to the institution’s other side, that of the contemporary program and moving images.

Seven films from the South Korean scene

The program brings together seven short films made by women South Korean artists and produced over the past ten years, even though one of the listed works dates back to 2014. The page presents the selection as one in which the body, identity, and structures of social power form the common thread. The films are therefore not brought together only by their geographical origin: they form a journey around what bodies carry, endure, keep, and transform.

The program opens with Sungsil Ryu and “BJ Cherry Jang 2018.4,” made in 2018, in color and with sound, with a duration of 6 min 10. It continues with Yo-E Ryou and “Auspicious practice,” a 2020 work in black and white with sound, lasting 11 min 20. Bomroya is also presented with “Resilient Feet,” dated 2023, in black and white and color, with sound, for 10 minutes.

The rest of the program brings together Aram Lee with “X-hale,” a 2023 film in black and white with sound, lasting 2 min 23, Bona Park with “Whistlers,” also from 2023, in color and with sound, for 5 min 03, then Seung Ae Lee with “Botanic Drum,” a 2024 work in black and white with sound, lasting 6 min 19. The journey finally includes Youngjoo Cho with “Flower Patterned Romance,” made in 2014, in color and with sound, for 6 min 51.

The body as a political site

The presentation text emphasizes the way political, economic, and social realities are inscribed in bodies. According to the page, the films address the intersections between body, identity, and social power. This wording gives the program a precise scope: it is not only about showing recent works, but about observing how they make visible living conditions, constraints, and forms of experience that pass through the body.

The presentation also connects these bodily inscriptions to potential forms of resistance, solidarity, memory, and care. The choice of works is therefore described as an exploration of concrete tensions: the body can be marked by power relations, but it can also become a place of response. This dimension gives meaning to the title “What Bodies Keep,” which suggests what bodies preserve and what they can bring to light.

A collaboration with SONGEUN

The screening is presented in collaboration with SONGEUN, a nonprofit contemporary art institution located in Seoul. The Belvedere page specifies that SONGEUN is dedicated to supporting emerging and mid-career Korean artists. This collaboration sheds light on the choice of a program centered on women South Korean artists, while linking the screening to Seoul’s contemporary network.

The program is curated by Stefanie Reisinger and Anna Ewa Dyrko. Project coordination is handled by Anna Ewa Dyrko and HongEun Kwon. The event will take place in English, a practical point clearly indicated by the official page and important for audiences who want to follow the presentation in good conditions.

An event within the contemporary setting of Belvedere 21

The Belvedere presents its activities across three sites: the Upper Belvedere, the Lower Belvedere, and Belvedere 21. Its general page recalls that the institution covers 800 years of art history, with a permanent collection at the Upper Belvedere, temporary exhibitions at the Lower Belvedere, and contemporary art at Belvedere 21. The “What Bodies Keep” screening therefore belongs to the site explicitly devoted to contemporary creation.

The Belvedere homepage also mentions Belvedere 21’s public program under the title “Joint Ventures.” It describes it as a set of performances, readings, concerts, film screenings, and discussions, with free participation. The screening of South Korean short films follows precisely this logic: a public, free format, located in a cinema space, but subject to the reservation of an event ticket.

A broader museum context in Vienna

Belvedere 21 is not isolated within the institution’s current offering. The general page lists, notably at Belvedere 21, the exhibition “Stellprobe,” devoted to acquisitions for the collection from the past decade in a presentation by Heimo Zobernig, from July 10 to October 4, 2026. It also mentions “Miao Ying. Come, Sit, Stay,” presented from July 10 to October 4, 2026. This information places the screening within a season already marked by contemporary proposals.

At the Upper Belvedere, the institution highlights another facet, with the Baroque palace and 800 years of art history, including works by Klimt, Schiele, Funke, Messerschmidt, and van Gogh. The Upper Belvedere visit page also indicates museum hours from 9 am to 7 pm, as well as extended hours from July 15 to August 31, 2026. These details do not directly concern the Blickle Kino screening, but they show the gap between the historical spaces and Belvedere 21’s contemporary program.

What the public should remember

For this screening, the useful information is concise: it takes place at the Blickle Kino at Belvedere 21, on Tuesday, September 29, from 6 pm to 7:30 pm. It is free, but a free event ticket is required to participate. The program runs around a selection of seven short films, with works dated from 2014 to 2024, in color, in black and white, or in both formats depending on the title.

The editorial heart of the event lies in its angle: women South Korean artists look at the body as a space traversed by identity, memory, social power, but also resistance, solidarity, and care. Within Belvedere 21’s programming, this screening places moving images at the center of a direct question: what bodies keep, and what they reveal when they become material for cinema.