Echo Beach

Echo Beach is a fictional beach that resides along the western coast of the Korean peninsula. For those land-locked in cities and tied to the long hours of work and domestic duties, it is a place of fantasy. In reality, it may also be a beach they love and one that they may never get to visit, remaining far away in time. For some, it may be a shoreline that conjures up thoughts, desires, and expectations of a long-awaited summer vacation, the notion of fun with family, and a time to relax and enjoy life. For others, it may be a place where worries can be cast to the wind, pain can be swallowed into the depths of the sea, sorrows can sink into the sand, and they can stand in solitude. Aside from the fantasy and the imagery that Echo Beach brings to mind, and the desire and pull it has for city-dwellers, the images chosen for this collection are those that stand, perhaps, in stark contrast to the above. They do this by not only illustrating how the reality of this fantasy and desire may play out, but the reality of what it must play out alongside - the flotsam and jetsam of refuse. In this collection, David Kent captures a series of images that serve to represent a composite of South Korean beach culture at one specific point in time. The photographs do not depict any one beach in particular. All images were taken in the early morning, and in a number of locations along the western shores of South Korea.