Dreams of Myeongdong

“Myeongdong Narratives,” the latest exhibition at the Seoul Museum of History, explores Myeongdong’s past as the arts and culture hub of Seoul in the decades following the Korean War.

The displays are framed by images and mementos of the late journalist and novelist Lee Bong-gu, who was a regular fixture at the local dabang (coffeehouses) and tea rooms that set up shop amid the wreckage of war-torn Seoul in the early 1950s. Visitors get a glimpse into the scenes and memories that filled Lee’s novels, of struggling musicians, poets, painters, and actors gathering in the dabang to craft their art and dream of a better future.

“Though I forget her name now, her eyes and lips remain in my heart,” is the plaintive strain that drifts out of the overhead speakers at the entrance to the exhibition. A sign identifies the tune, familiar to many older Koreans, as “When Time Has Passed,” the popular song penned by poet Pak In-hwan and composer Lee Jin-seop at a Myeongdong bar in the ‘50s.


Just a few steps away, a detailed map shows where colonial-era buildings, landmark music halls, and the former National Theater once stood, before urban development in the ‘70s removed the teahouses and transformed the neighborhood into a bustling fashion district.

In the next sections of the exhibition, dioramas of the famous Mona Lisa and Dolce dabang -- as well as Poem, a bar often frequented by Lee and his artist friends -- stand behind glass partitions. Vintage opera records, a leather-encased refrigerator, and a menu pricing a cup of ginseng tea at 200 won speak of a bygone era.

In the interviews projected on a blank stretch of wall, several white-haired artists who once called Myeongdong home recall times spent chatting over makgeolli and freshly fried vegetable jeon, sitting under the makeshift tarp roof of a building still awaiting reconstruction, and listening to an opera singer nearby rehearse his aria under the night sky.


The photographs that line the exhibition trace the evolution of Myeongdong up to the present, from the all-female acting troupe that attracted a dedicated following of female fans in the ‘50s, to the well- dressed mothers walking down Myeongdong’s central street outfitted in the latest Western-inspired designs.

Displays showcase memorabilia from the ‘70s-era live music cafés C’est Si Bon and OB Cabin, favorite haunts for young people wanting a taste of beer and folk guitar. Pamphlets and news clippings from the ‘80s document the political rallies that were staged in front of Myeongdong Cathedral during the era.



“Myeongdong Stories” will run until March 31. More information on the exhibition and on Seoul Museum of History can be found at: Seoul Museum of History website (Korean, English, Chinese, Japanese).

By Kwon Jungyun
Korea.net Staffwriter