Museums

In keeping with the idea this was a cultural visit rather than a holiday, wet days offered an opportunity to go and see some museums whilst also exploring other neighbourhoods. This post briefly covers museums visited. I don't try and provided huge detail because that's all available on line for those interested. Rather I touch on some small or other notable points that caught my attention for whatever reason.

Palaces Museum

Having ventured out in spite of what turned out to be 3 days of pretty constant rain, The Palaces Museum, adjacent to Gyeongbokgung, was my first museum stop. 

Sadly an entire floor of permanent exhibits was closed. However, amongst other things, I came across an excellent digital immersive rendition of a very famous exploratory narrative from the 16th Century, captured in a folding screen landscape painting of the 19th Century. Follow the link to look at the picture more closely.

Of interest, although I may be making a connection that doesn't exist, in the arrivals hall of Incheon Airport I spotted an unusual piece of art that immediately reminded me of the painting or, more precisely, of the way the painting had been rendered in the immersive experience. I couldn't find an explanation of it but I can't help feeling that this was another example of pride in cultural heritage being shared in one particular way.

National Museum of Korea

This museum majors on the history of the Korean peninsular from pre-historic to present day, curated through a combination of time base and cultural legacy aspects, including quite a lot on Buddhism. Too much to take in in one go but a few things were of particular interest, particularly where I was cross referencing Historic dramas with actual things in the museum, as these montages show:

First, officials had badges which acted as identification and granted authority. A slightly frivolous but fun drama depicted a Secret Royal Inspector going about his business. Finding a descriptive plaque in the museum explaining this function exactly mirrored what I'd learned from the drama.

Another drama, Lovers of the Red Sky, focussed on the life of an aspiring artist who takes part a selection contest to become the Official Royal Portrait painter. Mixing mysticism, folklore and romance, it depicts many of the styles of famous Korean artists of the era and ultimately leads to the production of a royal portrait, of which the museum had several impressive examples.

Pottery and ceramics was another museum feature, with Korea having its own masters adding to the East Asian ceramic heritages of Japan and China. Stretching a bit a link to a drama, in the excellent depiction of Korea moving towards Japanese occupation in 1910, which lasted through to 1945 and brought to an end the Korean Empire period, Mr Sunshine features a master potter who happens to also be a key player in the resistance movement of the day.

Museum of Folk Art and Culture

This presented an easily digestible blend of yester-year everyday life of Koreans, rather than just of those occupants of palaces and officialdom. A wide range of exhibits and recreations, employing artifacts through to holographics, provided further insights and examples of Korean culture.

Seodaemun Prison History Museum

This is on the site of a prison built in the early 20th century, by the Japanese, to contain independence movement activists, and later it was retained after the second world war to hold pro-democracy advocates. With the ability to walk the prison grounds, remaining buildings hold a combination of memorial exhibits as well as depictions of prison administration, process, evolution and life and death, including interrogation and torture. Like all such commemorative 'preservations' it is easy to chose the side which gains one's empathy, even though the kinds of things commemorated continue the world over today, with the same sense of choosing a side and condoning or condemning methods. Perhaps the most important takeaway is the importance of not taking for granted things which you enjoy. These things have come at a cost.