Seoul Art Space Geumcheon

On my first day I was picked up at my apartment by the tireless Jeong-yoon Choi, an art history student at the Women's University who was volunteering as a translator and chaperon with the reciprocating gallery here, Seoul Art Space Geumcheon. Together we rode the subway to the gallery to meet Na-young Yoon, who has sweetly organized my itinerary, and Hee-young Kim, the very commanding director of Seoul Art Space Geumcheon.

After going over my schedule we went to lunch, and over the course of the meal Na-young, who was at first only speaking through the interpreter began speaking to me in English. I was surprised when I first met her that she seemed to only speak Korean, because she had written me several very articulate emails in English. I think she was shy about her English--which I think may be pretty common--even though as it turns out she has spent a lot of time in the U.S.-- even getting her Master's degree there--and can speak very well and with a lot of warmth.



Geumcheon is pretty desolate compared with Myeong-dong. It seems to be in transition from an industrial area (mostly meat-packing) to more of an arts community, and I get the impression that Seoul Art Space Geumcheon is a key player in the changeover.









I came back the next day to go to a day-long symposium on "The Role of Art in the Public Domain" which was a little dry (even some of the presenters were rather charmingly dozing off onstage), but there were some highlights, such as Fram Kitagawa's presentation on the very magical Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial of which he is the director. http://www.echigo-tsumari.jp/english/about/



Afterward I was invited to the dinner for the presenters which was a fun flurry of simultaneous translating. Also really delicious.



Here is Jeong-yoon on the right with the woman who was doing the Japanese translating.



An adorable waitress got really excited when she saw me and made me pose for this photo, which I guess she thought I would be just as excited about (okay, maybe she was right). Instead of "Cheese!" she had me say "Kimchi!".