A Photo series documented from August to December 2019 while travelling through South Korea or officially known as the Republic of Korea. ‘Why South Korea?’ Family, friends, and colleagues asked me, weeks before I was due to depart. I have always been drawn to Asia, as I grew up watching Anime and reading Manga and especially after spending a couple weeks in Japan a few years ago, South Korea was an easy choice.
It was only when I arrived, I realised that their were very few western tourists. The only reasons locals could assume I would be visiting, was to study, teach or be in the Army.
South Korea quickly became the perfect place in which to document my time here. But it also came with its challenges.
In truth I didn’t have a particular theme that I wanted to tackle before travelling to Korea. It was only taking my camera out with me, every day, that I started to absorb and capture the life around me, which drew me to question and delve deeper into what I was seeing. One of those things, was a clear sign of an ageing population and elderly poverty.
South Korea is a newly developed country in economic terms. Due to rapid industrialisation over the last three generations the country has evolved like few have. South Korea has the fourth largest economy in Asia after China, Japan and India. With a rapidly ageing population, low birth rates and young people who are increasingly shunning marriage, South Korea is in a population conundrum. This was very visible during my time in the Country.