Technology, creativity converge in digital art show

Just in time for peak summer heat, a new digital art installation at Lotte World in Songpa-gu, Seoul aims to provide visitors a cooling place of refuge.

Co-organized by teamLab and PCA Kids Korea, the exhibition titled “teamLab World: Dance! Art Museum, Learn & Play Future Park” offers interactive activities designed for people of all ages.

Set in a spacious 1,700-sqare-meter underground venue, the exhibition is the brainchild of teamLab, a five-year-old Japanese art collective run by graphic designers, engineers, architects, animators, and other artists from various genres, who refer to themselves as “ultra-technologists.”

“Although the word ‘digital’ now seems commonplace, there are still people who feel discomfort around the concept,” said Hahn Doo-won, CEO of PCA Kids Korea, at a press conference at Lotte World last Thursday. “This exhibition strives to create a sense of warmth and familiarity around all things digital.”

At the exhibition, visitors can enter “Crystal Universe” to walk through a hypnotizing path lit up from floor to ceiling only by hanging LED lights. Afterwards, an entrancing and true-to-life video production titled “100 Years Sea,” which has a running time of 100 years, awaits. Inspired by a 2009 study from the World Wide Fund for Nature, it shows the research-backed projection of rising sea levels.

At the interactive “Graffiti Nature” corner of the exhibition, guests can watch their drawings come to life on wall-sized screens, ultimately creating a digital ecosystem. One of teamLab’s latest works, it is anticipated to attract kids and adults alike.

“As technology advances, it is becoming more important to focus on pursuing what only humans are capable of, and that is creativity,” said teamLab CEO Toshiyuki Inoko, whose favorite works include “Graffiti Nature” and “Crystal Universe.”

“This installation embodies collaboration and creation to encourage co-creation among all visitors. Our ultimate hope for the exhibition is that it will impact human-to-human relationship for the better,” he added.

A permanent showcase, more works are in the pipeline for “teamLab World.”

“We are in talks with LG Electronics and LG Display to create a new entrance experience come September,” said Inoko. “Being a permanent exhibition means we are going to continue evolving and have many opportunities to communicate with our visitors.”

“TeamLab World: Dance! Art Museum, Learn & Play Future Park” opened its doors last Friday. Admission is 24,000 won for kids under 12, and 20,000 won for others. 

For more information, visit seoul.teamlabworld.com.

By Kim Yu-young (ivykim@heralcorp.com)