Joon Moon

Joon Moon is a South Korean media artist whose practice explores perception through computational art, augmented reality and interactive storytelling. Working across installation, custom software, projection and tangible interfaces, he develops original technologies that allow physical shadows to become living digital environments.

Trained in design and technology, Moon approaches software development and artistic practice as inseparable disciplines. Rather than adopting existing technologies, he creates many of the systems that underpin his work, developing bespoke tools that blur the boundaries between physical space, illusion and virtual experience. His long-running Augmented Shadow series has become the defining body of work within his practice, transforming ordinary shadows into interactive worlds inhabited by characters, landscapes and narratives that respond directly to audience participation.

His work has been presented internationally at MoMA, Ars Electronica, FILE Festival, Microwave International New Media Arts Festival, Scopitone and Cinekid, alongside museums throughout South Korea. Hello, Shadow! was nominated for the 2019 S+T+ARTS Prize, and Augmented Shadow: Inside received an Excellence Award in the Art Division of the 25th Japan Media Arts Festival. Augmented Shadow, first developed as his MFA thesis at Parsons School of Design in 2010, established Moon as one of the pioneers exploring storytelling through augmented reality and computational interaction.

Joon Moon creates spatial installations where shadows become interactive worlds. Combining projection, custom electronics, augmented reality and computational systems, he transforms ordinary physical phenomena into living environments that respond to audience movement and participation.

Technology is never presented as spectacle in itself. Instead, Moon develops original hardware and software that allow visitors to experience subtle transitions between two and three dimensions, reality and imagination, physical presence and virtual space. Across the Augmented Shadow series, storytelling unfolds through interaction, with light, shadow and movement becoming active participants in each narrative. His practice demonstrates how computational systems can create emotionally engaging experiences that remain playful, accessible and deeply human.