TOKYO-2016 Editorial / sports

Wrestling In The Streets Of Seoul

  • Prize
    Silver in Events/Sport, Bronze in Editorial/sports
  • Photographer
    Argus Paul Estabrook

Pro Wrestling Fit is a South Korean wrestling group that fights anywhere, be it in a gym, club, or even a busy city street. One of South Korea’s only wrestling organizations, they hold monthly matches called Supernovas at their Dream Storage gym in Goyang, located just north of Seoul. To promote themselves, they fight at unconventional places in backyard wrestling style. This fight event took place during an underground rock show dubbed, “an unholy unity of music and wrestling” at Club Freebird in Hongdae (a district of Seoul known for their urban arts and indie music culture). Between the opening act and the headlining band, the PWF wrestlers were introduced and immediately started sparring. To the surprise of the audience, they quickly took their fight out of the club and into the city streets. Enticed by the offbeat, the audience couldn’t help but chase after and marvel at the ensuing gorilla performance.

I’m an emerging photographer currently based in Seoul, South Korea. As a Korean-American who grew up in a rural area of Virginia, I have a unique perspective of Korean identity and its relationship to both global and regional communities. I studied photography as an undergraduate but set it aside during my MFA program at James Madison University to concentrate on intermedia. After moving to South Korea I rediscovered photography, using it as a means to document and share my experiences.