Week 4: Art and Technology, Old and New

 This week in Seoul, we got to visit multiple museums displaying the creativity throughout Korean history and also saw some modern showcases of Korean innovation. It was interesting to compare the different new technologies throughout the many years from the Silla dynasty to today. 

To see the artifacts of the many different dynasties that have existed in Korea, we went to the Korean National Museum in Seoul. There were so many amazing pieces of art here from 10-story pagodas to gold crowns. My favorite thing we saw was the statue of the pensive Buddha. Our tour guide compared the statue's smile to that of the Mona Lisa and we all spent lots of time just looking at the Buddha's face. This piece also dates back to the 7th century which was so cool to see something so ancient so well preserved. 

For modern art and technology, we got to explore the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP). We saw many different displays of modern art and even got to meet the artist of one of the exhibitions. He talked to us about his career in art and even gave all of us postcards of his artwork. 

The exterior of the DDP is just as impressive, if not more, than the art it holds within. It is an incredible piece of architecture that works nature into the design. I got to explore the DDP again at night and see its beauty in a new light (literally). 

Our last stop for the week was the Hyundai Motor Studio where we got to see how they make their cars and what new technology they are working on developing. I am not super into cars in general life but this was such a cool experience. They even incorporated some of their safety technology features into art displays which was such an interesting intersection of everything we had been seeing that week. We got to finish it off by seeing some of the race cars that Hyundai has put into actual races and see how they get damaged and repaired during these races. 

It is so bittersweet that our time in Seoul is almost coming to a close with just one week left. I have had such an amazing time exploring this city while learning about the religion and technologies here. On the other hand, I am also so excited to share everything I have learned about Korea with my friends back at UCSD (and find some good Korean food spots back in SD). 

Ellie Grossman