Julian Opie

July 2 – October 5, 2026

XR Lab, Museum Lawn, Media Screen

Julian Opie (British, b. 1958) is renowned for distilling figures and urban landscapes into simplified lines, colours, and forms, reinterpreting scenes from everyday life through his distinctive visual language. By stripping away facial details and complex backgrounds, he transforms his subjects into iconic, immediately legible images. Rather than emphasising the individuality of a specific subject, Opie’s visual language invites viewers to project their own experiences and identities onto the figures in his works. As a result, his figures move beyond individual portraiture, coming to embody both the anonymity of urban crowds and reflections of ourselves.

Installed in the outdoor space of Ulsan Art Museum, Other People and 100 People extend Opie’s artistic practice into the spatial realm. The vertical LED tower and the horizontally expanded media screen create a compelling contrast through their differing structures and modes of movement, while the recurring figures generate the rhythmic visual flow characteristic of Opie’s work.

The VR installation OP.VR / Venice @ Ulsan draws inspiration from the winding alleyways and canals of Venice, Italy. Upon wearing a VR headset, visitors enter a city reimagined through Opie’s visual language, moving through alleyways, bridges, and palaces as they physically navigate the work. Crossing the boundaries between reality and virtuality, image and space, the exhibition offers an immersive reflection on contemporary urban life and the ways we inhabit it.