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Le Meridien Seoul offers visitors an artistic experience

Published: 06 Sep. 2017, 20:13

Le Meridien Seoul, a new hotel opened in southern Seoul, focuses on having many works of art around the hotel. Visitors will be welcomed with the tunnel-like installation that they can walk through, left. The piece is titled “Gather+Build” and was made by artist Yang Minha. The hotel also has an art center called M Contemporary featuring a special exhibition put together by local artist Anna Han, middle, and Kim Byoung-ho, right. [MOON SO-YOUNG, LEE SUN-MIN]

At the opening of Le Meridien Seoul last week, the new hotel’s art took center stage. The hotel, in the renovated building in southern Seoul which used to house the Ritz-Carlton Seoul, not only features artwork in the lobby, the hotel’s restaurants and in the rooms, but also houses an art gallery called M Contemporary, with pieces from both international and local artists.

The Le Meridien Seoul hotel has many artworks in its lobby including “Bloom” by Kim Hee-kyung. [LE MERIDIEN SEOUL]

“Le Meridien Seoul is going beyond what a hotel is and has been newly born as an artistic place,” said Jeon Yong-shin, CEO of the hotel, steps away from the hustle and bustle of the Gangnam area.

The opening exhibition at M Contemporary, “The New Vision: from Bauhaus to A.I.,” features reproduced images and videos by Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, a Hungarian multi-media artist, near the entrance. The exhibit also includes works by five local artists including Jeon Joonho, Kim Byoungho, Yang Minha, Anna Han and Kim Su. Each artist’s works are displayed in different rooms or hallways, so art lovers can take a look at the differences in style. Kim Byoungho commonly uses bold colors and geometric characters, while Jeon Joonho shows interest in recycling waste from areas being redeveloped and putting them together to make kinetic art. For overnight guests, admission to the gallery is free.

Even without any prior knowledge of the artwork on display in this exhibition, visitors can enjoy the aesthetics of the works curated for this exhibition. Especially the pink room by Anna Han in which canvases with sentences like “Kiss me” or “Hug me” are hung, many artworks make for photos to post to social media.

Hungarian artist Laszlo Moholy-Nagy’s creation is part of the opening exhibition “The New Vision: from Bauhaus to A.I.” at M Contemporary, an art gallery inside the hotel. [LEE SUN-MIN]

This appealing and creative approach is part of the hotel’s efforts to draw the younger crowds that gather in the area around Gangnam station to check out what it has to offer. The hotel offers special 33 percent discounts on tickets to the art center for those who eat at its restaurants. There is also a discount for those who visit the gallery first. Celebrity chef Edward Kwon, who moved his Seoul restaurants Lab XXIV and Elements in-house, also consults on three other restaurants the hotel has as well.

Visitors are greeted with impressive artworks throughout the hotel facility, including the lobby and the courtyard by the main entrance. The main entrance has a large installation shaped like a tunnel that visitors can walk through. The installation is called “Bloom” and was created by artist Kim Hee-kyung. The eye-catching blue piece in the lobby is “Triple Garden” by Kim Byoungho.

To continue holding the interest of both art aficionados and young art lovers, the hotel plans to be the leading force which introduces new ideas and trends in art. Accordingly, it is in the process of working with other galleries and museums nearby to create tour programs for guests.

BY LEE SUN-MIN [[email protected]]

The exhibition “The New Vision: from Bauhaus to A.I.” at M Contemporary runs until Nov. 19. The art center is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day and provides a guided program with further explanations of the exhibition three times a day at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. from Mondays to Fridays and at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The guided service is available in English as well if requested in advance. Admission is 12,000 won ($10.57) for adults, 8,000 won for those between 13 and 18 years old, and 5,000 won for anyone between 3 and 12. For more information about the art center, go to www.m-contemporary.com or call (02) 3451-8199. For more information about the hotel, go to www.lemeridienseoul.com or call (02) 3451-8000.