Jun Ahn facts for kids

Jun Ahn (pronounced Ahn Joon) is a talented photographer from South Korea. She is famous for her amazing photo series called Self-Portrait. In these photos, she takes pictures of herself from very high places, often on top of tall buildings! She has worked in both the United States, especially in New York, and in her home country, South Korea.

She has also created books like Self-Portrait (2018) and One Life (2018).

Jun Ahn's Journey as a Photographer

Jun Ahn studied art history at the University of Southern California. After that, she spent two years studying photography at the Pratt Institute. It was during her time at Pratt that she started working on her famous Self-Portrait project.

Later, she received scholarships from Parsons The New School for Design in 2009, 2010, and 2011. During these years, her photos were shown in big art exhibitions for the first time. One of these was a show with Kazue Taguchi at PS 122 in New York. Jun Ahn earned a special degree called a Master of Fine Arts from Parsons in 2012. After that, she continued her studies, getting a PhD in photography from Hongik University in Seoul. Her PhD research looked at how high-speed photography works and how it relates to her own art.

The Self-Portrait Project

Jun Ahn's photography includes three main projects: Invisible Seascape, Float, and Self-Portrait. The Self-Portrait series is very unique. It shows Jun Ahn herself on or near the very top of skyscrapers. Sometimes she is leaning out of a window or sitting on a narrow ledge. Some photos are taken from her own view, showing her legs hanging over the edge as she looks down.

This project began when she took a picture of her feet while sitting on the edge of an apartment building when she was a student. She has continued this project ever since. Most of these amazing photos are from New York and Seoul, with a few from Hong Kong.

To take these pictures, Jun Ahn always gets official permission to enter the buildings. It can sometimes take many months for building owners to agree to her project. Once she has permission, she sets up a digital camera to take many high-speed photos while she poses. She then carefully looks through all the pictures to find one where she looks calm or even a little bit distracted. She says she tries to capture "a certain moment of time that did exist, but which we couldn't perceive with the naked eye because it happened too fast."

The Guardian newspaper reported that for the most daring shots, like when she leans far over the edge, she sometimes uses a safety harness. She explained, "Of course it is not a safe situation. But I always try to be careful." This shows she takes safety seriously even when creating her art.

Art Exhibitions

Jun Ahn's work has been shown in many art galleries around the world.

Solo Exhibitions

• 2012: Self-Portrait, Anna Nova Gallery, St. Petersburg, Russia
• 2013: Ahn Jun Solo Exhibition, Kips Gallery, New York
• 2014: Self-Portrait, Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich, Switzerland
• 2015: On the Edge of Time, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Hong Kong
• 2016: The Present, 63 Art Museum, Seoul, Korea
• 2017: InvisibleScapes, Xijiantang Art Museum, Jindezhen, China
• 2018: On The Verge, Photographic Center Northwest, Seattle, WA, USA

Group Exhibitions

• 2011: Parsons Festival, New York, United States
• 2013: The Youth Code, Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich, Switzerland
• 2014: Double Mirror: Korean-American Artists, American University Museum, Washington, United States
• 2015: As Far as the Mind Can See, exd'15, Porto, Portugal
• 2016: Ich, Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt, Germany
• 2018: Space; Crashes in Street Life, Triennial of Photography Hamburg

Awards and Recognition

Jun Ahn has received several awards for her photography:

• 2013: "Ones To Watch," British Journal of Photography, London
• 2013: "Asian Artist to Watch in 2013," South China Morning Post, Hong Kong
• 2021: "2021 Parcours Femme, Elle x Paris Photo, Paris