“Where Do We” captures the spirit of South Korea’s anti-Yoon Suk Yeol protests, documenting a nation at a political crossroads.
These demonstrations were sparked by President Yoon’s surprise declaration of martial law on December 3, 2024, in which he accused the Democratic Party (DPK) of subversive activities and of conspiring with North Korean communists.
The chaos that followed lasted six hours, as shocked lawmakers from both parties rushed to repeal the decree. Although legislators successfully lifted martial law, public anger and frustration remained. Citizens from all walks of life gathered in Seoul to demand his resignation. On December 14, 2024, he was officially impeached. Protests continued every Saturday for approximately four months, ending on April 4, 2025, when the Constitutional Court upheld President Yoon’s impeachment and formally removed him from office.
The demonstrations revealed a mixture of raw emotion and surreal calm, with moments when time seemed to speed up and slow down simultaneously in the streets. The photographer witnessed a nation striving for change, where anger transformed into resilience, and resilience led to jubilant celebration. As a Korean American, he often felt disoriented by the pace of breaking news and the constant tension in the air. He used his camera to process the emotional atmosphere he encountered and to follow the shifting expressions of a society confronting itself. These images are more than records of protest. They reflect a deeper, unresolved question: where do we go from here?
About Argus Paul
Argus Paul is a Korean American photographer living in the greater Seoul metropolitan area. His work combines a documentary approach with a fine art sensibility, often drawing on street photography to explore personal and cultural narratives rooted in Korean life. He holds an MFA in Studio Arts and is an alumnus of the Eddie Adams Workshop.
His work has been recognized by the Magnum Photography Awards, Sony World Photography Awards, LensCulture, and the British Journal of Photography, and has been exhibited in the Aperture Summer Open: On Freedom. He has been selected four times as a Critical Mass Top 50 photographer by Photolucida.
In 2021, he received first place in Life Framer’s Street Life Award, judged by Bruce Gilden. In 2022, he was awarded first place in the Miami Street Photography Festival’s International Series category and was named Street Photographer of the Year by the Paris International Street Photography Awards. [Official Website]
