The Vast Space of the Museum Filled with the Aura of Two People

VISITOR OF THE DAY

by THE EDITORIAL TEAM, with KIM KYOUNGCHUN and KIM HANBYUL

Aunt and niece looking at the large voluminous jar emerged as the production of buncheong ware

The Real Thing Better than Photos

Kim Hanbyul and Kim Kyoungchun, her second oldest aunt on her father’s side, recently spent a wonderful day at the museum. The niece lives in Seoul and the aunt in Gwangju. The two relatives living more than 300 kilometers apart and with completely different lifestyles decided to meet one Saturday in May. This was largely due to the influence of Instagram. The aunt and niece generally see each other a couple of times a year on family occasions. But when Kim Kyoungchun realized she had only seen her niece onInstagram over the past two or three years she suddenly missed the time she used to spend with her.

How the MZ Generation Makes Use of the Museum

Kim Hanbyul, typical of the so-called “MZ generation” (millennials and generationZ; those born between 1980 and 2010),has an adventurous spirit and enjoys being creative and watching the impact of influencers. Working as an interior designer for five years now, she plans and organizes spaces and in everyday life she continually seeks the momentum that will help her to grow and develop. Whenever she has the time she likes to go shopping to check out the next season’s items, altering and styling the clothes she buys to her own tastes. This is one of the things that make her happy.

From time to time she also visits the National Museum of Korea to see how the architecture, the interiors, and the materials harmonize. In her eyes, it seems the interior of the Permanent Exhibition Hall has been fitted out with yellowish travertine to harmonize with the subtle tones of the stone artifacts and the use of traditional color schemes. Guessing the intentions of the interior designer of a certain space and finding the answers for herself is her own special way of enjoying the museum. Not only is she impressed by the way the level of lighting has been lowered in the galleries and the dark walnut colored wood laid crisscross to enhance the ambience, she believes that the ideas used in the spatial design clearly highlight the varied aspects of the exhibits and makes us see them more clearly.

Kim Hanbyul particularly enjoys visiting the Sculpture and Crafts Gallery in the Permanent Exhibition Hall with the hope of imbuing some storytelling into the space. The exhibits in the display cases are very small compared to the architecture and interior design elements, but she finds inspiration in their intricacy and sophistication which is no less than that of architectural design. She expands her own design world by studying the way artists in the past broke stereotypes and reflected the times they were living in.

Auntie’s Bucket List

Not long ago, Kim Kyoungchun added another item to her bucket list when she was watching a clip showing foreigners visiting the National Museum of Korea on TV. In her schoolchild memories, the museum was a rather boring and stuffy place, but her curiosity was piqued when she saw it on television as a cultural complex.

Kim has worked and lived in Gwangju for the past 30 years, building herself a career in accounting and finance. Planning a visit to the National Museum of Korea in Seoul was not as simple as it might seem. Whenever she comes to Seoul she always runs out of time and has to push back some things on her bucket list until the next time. So she was pleased and filled with anticipation when she and her niece decided to meet at the NMK.

Finding Likenesses in the Galleries

Of their travels, though other memories may fade, both aunt and niece tend to remember most those times when they wandered leisurely through a famous museum or art gallery in a foreign city and relaxed over a cup of coffee in the café. Aware of this point in common, the niece suggested to her aunt that they first visit the Calligraphy and Painting Gallery on the second floor of the NMK. She felt that her aunt would be inspired and find a sense of healing by observing first-hand the key values of Korean paintings.

In the eyes of her fashion-loving niece, Kim Kyoungchun, dressed nicely in a tailored suit, seemed to be strolling happily around the exhibition room finding interest in every single piece, much as if she were traveling in a foreign land. At the time, two small exhibitions were being held in the gallery: “Most Loved Korean Animal Paintings” and “Appreciating Paintings and Calligraphy Joyfully,” including four portraits of the Joseon Dynasty. Delighted by this unexpected luck, Kim inspected the pictures one by one, falling in love with the innocent charms of the animals, the horses and cats painted on large canvases, the water buffalo carrying children on its back across the stream, and chicks feeding around the mother hen. When she and her niece realized that after seeing the special exhibition Icons and Identities from the National Portrait Gallery, London on the first floor they could look at portraits of the Joseon Dynasty on the second floor, they looked at each other in happy surprise.

A Day to be Kept in the Drawer of Memories

When aunt and niece looked around the Calligraphy and Painting Gallery they began to realize the great size of the museum. They decided to go up and focus on the third floor of the Permanent Exhibition Hall, where they repeated the pattern of examining the exhibits for half an hour then sitting down to rest then getting up again. As they looked around slowly, they discovered media art all over the place, as expected these days when video content is the trend. Though they enjoyed Place that anyone can enjoy even without any background knowledge The bamboo path from the entrance, the beauty of the ceramics, the calm and quiet aura I want to take a walk around the outdoor garden and Mirror Pond.

Kim Kyoungchun one-line comment three memorable points on the next visit

“I have always liked accessories, so I took a good look at the gold earrings and gold crown ornaments. Although it's been hundreds of years since they were made, some are stylish enough to wear even today. If replicas were sold at the museum shop, I would want to buy them, even if they were a little expensive.” the emotional impact of seeing the artifacts in real life, they also liked observing them more clearly and in detail through media art. In their view, it seems a step in the right direction for museums to use varied methods to give visitors easier access to objects in these times when images are more easily remembered than text and video is more convenient than paper.

Bracelet

Goryeo Dynasty / Gilt silver / D. 9.6 cm, T. 2.2 cm / On display in the Metal Craft Gallery

Kim Hanbyul one-line comment three memorable points on the next visit

Treasury of creative inspirationMy aunt who looked so good in her stylish suit, media arts, spatial design of the White Porcelain Gallery I want to look at the exhibitions in order from the prehistoric period to the modern period. “The case for eyeglasses is a very beautiful artifact with a combination of colors that is not gaudy. As I looked at the delicately embroidered patterns, I could guess how much hard effort went into making the case and for that reason it seems even more precious.”

Glasses Case Embroidered with the Longevity Symbols

Joseon Dynasty / L. 43.0 cm / On display in the Donated Works section

Seeing each other for the first time in a long time, aunt and niece quickly recovered the sense of family that had been cut off for a while as they talked about the artifacts together and discussed their hardships at work. In particular, the aunt, Kim Kyoungchun is happier with this museum excursion than anything else on her bucket list. No longer disappointed at having no shared memories with her grown-up niece, she smiled contentedly at the thought of the day’s outing and being able to talk to her at any time.

Aunt taking a closer look of the Bronze Miniature Pagoda

Niece filling up inspiration from the exhibits in the display cases