Joi Murugavell
Nana Banana

In her second solo exhibition in Korea, Joi Murugavell returns to memories of her grandmother with tenderness and humour.

“Lucky are those who have had the wisdom and love of a grandma. I knew such a lady bearing the title of nana. I called her nana banana and she called me her juicy orange. It is difficult, and perhaps even untrue, to try and summarise a set of memories into fixed words. One thing I do remember clearly is that she never made me feel the pressure to be juicy. The rest of my memories seem to shift and change depending on the day I’m having, so I’m afraid that is all I can say about this.” — Joi Murugavell

Nana Banana presented a selection of recent paintings alongside an interactive space where visitors were invited to leave handwritten notes and thoughts for their grandparents. Across the exhibition period, a DOSN programme ran over three days, including live Q&A sessions with the artist via Zoom from her studio in Strasbourg, France. These conversations unfolded openly, often moving between humour, reflection, tears, and laughter.

All messages left by visitors have since been collected and brought to Murugavell’s studio in France, where they will form the basis of a future installation.