Room for design at Seoul Station

Lee So-hyun’s soju bottle chandelier. Provided by the organizer

Seoul’s historic train station is open for all to see at Korea Design Week this week, following a face lift that spruced up its insides and made something new of something old.

Graphic designs now hang where timetables once did, and art installations stand where passengers previously waited.

Once a meeting place for travelers, the station is now “at the crossroads of art, design, industry and the environment,” which is the theme of the show, says Professor Kim Dai-sung, chair of the event.

This concept is seen most clearly in the way recycled materials are incorporated in the station’s interior as functional objects.

In the station’s gallery, trash bins made from newspapers share space with decorative pizza boxes and old Styrofoam containers. The chandelier by Lee So-hyun is made of melted soju bottles.

Indeed, “remainder can be all,” says MOIM Design Project Group, one of the participating designers.

The spirit of goodness is carried out in the form of a charity drive. “Profits will be given to charity,” Kim said.

He was also pleased to show off the kids’ playground, where children can experience design through balloon art and make animals, use “jumping clay,” or build with colorful Lego blocks.

They can also try their hands (and feet) at a game of soccer played with balls made from cardboard boxes once used to send aid to developing countries.

Seoul Train Station was originally constructed in 1925 and closed in 2004 after a new railway terminal was built to make way for Korea’s new high-speed KTX.

The old Seoul Train Station, the red brick building at Seoul Station, lines No. 4 and 1, exit 2, is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The exhibition costs 7,000 won ($5.52) for adults and 5,000 won for students. For more information, visit www.koreadesignweek.com.

By Yang Seung-hee [estyle@joongang.co.kr]