TRADITIONAL KOREAN MASKS IN THE MODERN MEDIA SPACE

Abstract

The growing popularity of masks in the media space indicates the evolution of their traditional meanings and also the actualisation of their aesthetic potential from the positions close to modern viewer’s perception. As this research shows, the aesthetic function of masks dominates in those forms of media content that are most closely related to the forms of theatrical action. In more distant forms, such as the Netfl ix platform TV-series (“Money Heist”, “Squid Game”), masks are closely intertwined with dramatic and plotforming functions. The aesthetic potential of a mask in modern media culture is based on the power of visual impact, complemented by the power of emotional impact, based on the contrast of the comic and tragic, funny and terrible, on the opposition of the immobility of the mask to the dynamics of acting and the dynamics of the plot.