By Honorary Reporter Marianna Szucs from Hungary
Photos = Marianna Szucs

"Delight," an immersive art exhibition blending modern and traditional elements of Seoul, opened on Oct. 13, 2023, at Borough Yards in London. It will end on April 14.

Excited by the rave reviews and captivating social media content, my sister and I visited the exhibition on Jan. 4. Housed in a former warehouse near London Bridge Station, the venue added a unique atmosphere to our experience. 

The revitalized area is adjacent to the vibrant Borough Market, which offers plenty of food choices before or after the exhibition.

The exhibition's app guides visitors through all 25 multimedia installations of the exhibition's 12 zones through information and maps. A clever bonus was the treasure hunt game Korean Delight, which stimulates meticulous exploration of the venue.

Collecting the 15 delicacies in the app gets one a free item from the gift store at the end of a visit. Each zone has one or two hidden clues on the walls in the form of signs in Hangeul. 

The exhibition starts and finishes with minimalist black-and-white installations to soothe the senses after the immersive display of vibrant multimedia. The first zone Persona introduces everyday life in Seoul through personal stories of resident activities and experiences shown on interactive screens.

The final zone, "The Path of Humanity," displays a sampling of corridors of Korean palaces in vivid traditional colors.

Transitioning from the dark atmosphere of the previous hall, the exhibit "631" overwhelms with 631 lanterns illuminating a winding corridor from ceiling to floor, undoubtedly creating an awe-inspiring scene.

The lanterns symbolize 631 years of the capital's history from the Joseon Dynasty era to modern times. My sister and I lost count of the photos and videos we took in this zone due to its beauty.

Despite my familiarity with Korean creativity, I was awestruck by the exhibition's blend of modernity, heritage and tradition expressed through immersive media, something that stuck throughout my visit.

The 12 animals of the Asian zodiac were also featured. My sister and I discovered our own signs, compared their associated strengths and weaknesses, and were pleasantly surprised by the accuracy of the descriptions. I found out that my sign is the rabbit.

I found the sixth zone Collage: Gwanghwa my favorite of the exhibition. Because it embodied the essence of the event by showing things I remembered from past visits to Korea, I nicknamed it "Wall of Hallyu."  

The installation work "Neon Nostalgia" was full of traditional and today's digitized signs, which were great for cool photos, and the ceiling provided entertainment with its convex traffic mirrors spread all over.

No exhibition is complete without a gift store. After grabbing a complimentary postcard, I had to resist the urge to clear the store's shelves packed with things like pins, badges, stationery and bags plus notebooks, notepads and postcards based on the themes of the exhibition.

msjeon22@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.