SPACE December 2024 (No. 685)
Installation view of JUST AS IT IS ©Kim Bokyoung
The Arumjigi Foundation, which is dedicated to preserving Korea’s traditional culture, has hosted exhibitions focused on different aspect of Korean lifestyle – clothing, food, and housing – on a rotational basis each year. ‘Room, As It Is’ is the fourth exhibition, which this time is on the theme of housing. While the previous three exhibitions of housing explored architectural elements such as walls, roofs, and floors, this exhibition shifts its focus to interior spaces. How can we incorporate elements of Korean traditional housing when thinking about modern interiors? Upon entering the foundation’s headquarters, Choi Yoonsung (principal, mass and matters)’s art work, JUST AS IT IS (2024), captures the imagination of the visitor. This space reimagines the ‘alpha room’, made through combining leftover areas, in modern design as a contemporary reinterpretation of the traditional hanok’s sarangbang (study or guest room). A day bed inspired by boryo, traditional Korean floor cushions and a requirement for the traditional posture of sitting on floors, is placed in the right of the room. Similar to the way the daecheong and maru are placed in contrast, two different finishing materials are used to differentiate between the spaces. Ascending to the upper level of the exhibition, visitors encounter the rough side of traditional Korean wooden core walls, Sensing Instrument (2024) made by Park Heechan (principal, Studio Heech) with clay, bamboo, and reeds. The walls on the other side are finished with raw hemp, with sinks and foldable benches installed to demonstrate the adaptability and practical use of earthen walls in contemporary interior spaces.
