and thats exactly what crossed my mind when i saw once again the majesty of the main stadium in the premises of the Jamsil Sports Complex. the moment i laid my eyes on this bare concrete textured colossal oval vase, i immediately felt a smile emerging on my face.
oh yea, man. it was good to be back.
after spending saturday night in the company of some lovely people, today i spend the day in solitude. and the cold, drizzly weather outside was perfect. the serene and cold, windy ambiance embraced me as i left the guesthouse and there was only one thing on my mind.
one place i wanted to go. one fair i wanted to visit.
the exact same fair that was held last year when i first came this beautiful city.
last year it was called the Seoul Design Olympiad, 2009.
this year it was called the Seoul Design Fair, 2010.
same difference, as far as i'm concerned.
after all, a rose by any other name, would still smell just as sweet. thank you, Shakespeare.
when i hustled and bustled last year, i had always regretted not having the opportunity to slow down and really savour everything around me. i perceived numerous exciting pieces of design from every industry out there at the stadium last year, but caught only fleeting glimpses and flashing glances, never fully appreciating their significance. and that was one of the reasons i wanted to come back.
this time, i was going to move at a snail's pace. i was going to observe every piece of work, detect every little detail, read every prominent word and fully appreciate all the talents that have brought these amazing treasures of design to life. and i had the whole day to do it.
no impatient voices, no strict agendas, no unreasonable schedules.
the day was all mine. mine.
so as soon as i entered the complex i walk straight to the primary space. a huge field surrounded by terraced seating. and despite the cold weather, my heart was warmed. nostalgia immediaely embraces me as i remembered being here a year ago. and by looks of things, more was on display now, that when i was last here. deep down i felt that this moment truly was the beginning of an enriching day.
lets roll.
all along the terraces. pieces of art, some perky, some quirky, some bizarre and some spooky, instantly attacks your visual senses. like the clay sculptures of pheasant women in the pictures below. they seem eerily frozen to me, with expressions that harbour fright and intrigue, but create enough curiosity in me to keep on staring at them.
they really do seem "alive" somehow, yet completely frozen and "dead" .. i dont know. what a strange feeling to have, not being able to find the right words and describe something so conspicuous, right in front of me.
anyway, i kept on walking outside for a while, looking at more exhibits of this nature. eventually i looked around and entered the stadium's interior premises and attempted to navigate myself as best as i could in this labyrinth of pathways and corridors. the stadium had been retrofitted to house the exhibitions at different levels for different industries.
fair enough.
the concept seemed simple and reasonable even, but confusion soon sets in cause you're not to sure where to go. and sometimes, in this circular layout, things start looking the same and if you think you know where you wanna go, you end up somewhere else, and you dont where yous started from, or how to get back from where you started out.
it aint easy, that's for sure.
but eventually you get the hang of it, and walking around without a care in the world is all you start doing, regardless of the consequence of having a sense of aimlessness.
lets forget protocol. lets appreciate spontaneity.
this philosophy has served me well.
and so i wandered around, and these are the spaces i saw.
spaces like these.
ok, so you have typically designed exhibition spaces located all over. generally coloured walls of information, all with fabulous iconography, typefaces and graphics ready to disseminate information freely to the designer's eye, under selective nuances of focused points of light.
the configuration of walking spaces follows the curvilinear axis of the stadiums's interior spaces, so you do literally walk in circles as you go from one space to another. and when you've toured everywhere, its coming to where you start. this is the architectural representation of the phrase, coming into full circle and here, you literally do.
and what a treasure trove of design this circle contained.
i strolled from one booth to another, admiring one kind of work on display to another, and there are some places i tended to linger, and some places i move on after a glimpse. well, somethings catch my eye more aggressively than others, but undoubtedly, there were all testaments to vibrant creative energies driving both the international and local talents in the country.
vibrant creative energies that manifest themselves physically, that range from the brilliant eye - catching colours of sharp graphics shown in presentations utilized in multimedia applications, displayed on artworks and advertising campaigns, wildly striking products and other pieces of clever industrial paraphernalia, and not to mention of course, sophisticated architectural, interior and transportation virtual models, all showcasing the latest in thought in urban and infrastructure design.
i was in heaven, and yes, i left my mark in this paradise too.
so i keep on drifting, from one place to another, one area to another and eventually from one level to another. from the ground floor, to the subsequent floors above me, i was enjoying every moment i was there. this truly was a design exhibition of international standards, showcasing everything of exemplary pieces of work from architecture to graphics, from multimedia to interiors, from fashion to furniture and even cuisine, and from the exciting present to a promising future.
like i mentioned, even cuisine in all its myriad forms is celebrated as a branch of the design industry. tasty, delicious, scrumptious. and pretty good to look at too.
and i kept thinking to myself, why couldn't we hold something similar to this back home? how exciting it would be to visit and saunter in places like these, where we could appreciate and invest in design as furiously as some people do internationally?
i suppose a host of issues is to be blamed, such as lack of manpower, not reaching critical mass, not enough talent or even plain careless apathy, but the fact remains that these places are crowd pullers, and they do ignite passion for the arts and help to fuel innovation
and after looking at all this, i just hope we get there sooner rather than later.
i mean, just look at how unmistakably evident korea's relentless pursuit to achieve success has brought it to where it stands in the world's eye. isn't it at least plausible to believe that the push to come up with innovative and creative design is partly responsible for this enviable position?
i certainly think so, and i doubt i'm the only one.
i digress though, and i rush back to regale stories of pleasurable, design-centric excursions.
as i continued walking the one thing that really catches my attention were works provided by students from various institutions of design, provided by local colleges and universities, as these six pictures bordering this paragraph, both up and down, highlight. the three above of course are architectural examples, showcasing possible residential models of the future, and the ones below are of course models showcasing vehicular, robotic and lighting projects. its such an explosion of inventiveness, i find it hard to contain my excitement, but of course i was in full control of my faculties. and i continued.
entire sections of the complex were dedicated only to works provided by students, as seen in the pictures below. all showcasing design at its most creative, at its most promising.
i eventually make my way to the outside of the stadium as i head into the adjacent field just outside one of the exits of the stadium. even in the cold weather, there was clear indication that the outside was a hub of activities in the open, where you can visit booths protected by white canopies hosting more events and games and selling all sorts of things, from souvenirs to trinkets, from snacks to drinks. i guess it was an attempt to create a festival like atmosphere on the grounds of the stadium, and i don't think people were disappointed. the day was a bit quieter than i expected, but i guess the rain had something to do with that.
well, there's always tomorrow.
as can as be seen, this was actually taken around teatime, but seemed closer in appearance to sunset, and that just shows how serenely overcast the skies were that evening.
and i was loving it.
the last shots i took for the day were the ones seen above. the rain may have dampened the spirits of some, but definitely not all, especially yours truly. the last things i saw for the day were happy people at play with their children in a whimsical playground, amidst a light drizzle, strolling on wet grass and beneath dark, ominous skies.
they were undisturbed. laughter was in the air.
i was thinking of staying longer to partake in the festivities, and cause i wanted to take another walk along the corridors that had housed all those fabulous works of practical and functional art, but i found out that the stadium closes about 6pm and it was close to 5.30 at the time. so i decided of course to come back some other time in the span of this week and spend even more time. so i headed back home on the subway to the guesthouse and rested for a while.
i left with a smile on my face knowing all for sure that this was going to be a good day.
i just knew it, and i was right.
now ladies and gentleman, on to the night.
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