Books by Werner Aisslinger

The Museum of Art at Seoul National University (MOA) has had a shortage of visitors ever since its opening in 2006. Because it is located on the edge of SNU campus, the museum does not attract people other than SNU students, nearby residents, or avid art lovers. However, more visitors might be attracted to the museum due to a new exhibition. Through April 17, “New Olds: Design Between Tradition and Innovation” is on display, showing old items being reimagined in a modern context. Since May 2011, 52 teams from around that world have collaborated with The International Funkausstellung Berlin. The exhibition is comprised of 80 pieces including furniture, pottery, ceramics, and videos.

Playing With Tradition by Richard Hutten

The exhibition features many artists and their works to go along with the theme of making old into new. For example, Silvia Knüppel’s “Drückeberger & Pl(a)ywood” includes a piece that at first looks like nothing more than a standard wooden closet. However, upon closer observation, the viewer can see that there are sub-compartments in the closet not present in the traditional model. These compartments allow the user easier access to the contents. According to Knüppel, this new design will allow people to find items more conveniently.

Drueckeberger by Silvia Knueppelspan>

Another artist featured, SO Eun Myung also did a reinterpretation of the cabinet. At first glance, So’s “The Lines” seems to be a normal cabinet with colorless frames and an old-fashioned design. However, instead of the typical forward opening and closing doors, he has incorporated vertically secured doors with traditional Korean patterns on the surface and a modern closing mechanism. This piece shows the marriage of traditional design and contemporary function.

Pixelperser by Volker Albus

In addition to closets and cabinets, simpler pieces of furniture, such as dining tables, have also been included in this exhibition. Artist YANG Woong Gul uses materials such as leather, wood, and even pottery to create a modern interpretation of the traditional dining table. Without changing the function or the concept of the dining table, Yang incorporates new materials to recreate a piece of furniture with an antique and long history. These pieces are just some of the works that are included in “New Olds: Design Between Tradition and Innovation”. With a consistent theme of taking traditional and discarded items and transforming them into new and original pieces, the exhibition is one that might garner the attention of not only students and nearby residents, but also the general public. Aesthetics aside, the exhibition also conveys a message to the public that curator JOO Min Sun describes as follows: “Turning obsolete materials that were once new into something new again will help circulation in the today’s highly industrialized society.” Perhaps having this idea in mind, we can make a visit to the MOA before the exhibition closes on April 17.

“New Olds: Design Between Tradition and Innovation” runs through April 17 at the Museum of Art SNU, www.snumoa.org

Written by JIN Yu Young, SNU English Editor, coin1234@snu.ac.kr
Proofread by Professor Travis Smith, Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations, tlsmith@snu.ac.kr