Seoul Travel Journal: A Raw and Nostalgic Art Experience at the Arario Museum
Arario Museum in Space
Arario Museum is a contemporary art museum, dedicated to showcasing ARARIO Inc.’s founder Kim Chang-il’s art collection. Not to be confused with the Arario Gallery, the Arario Museum has 2 locations: Seoul and Jeju. I visited the museum’s Seoul location during the Frieze Art Fair, in Seoul in September 2024.
The gallery has free admission, while the museum is ticketed. This is due to the different purposes of the 2 spaces. However, visitors visiting the museum’s Seoul location can also experience the Arario Gallery on the same visit since they are both located in the same complex. While the museum is housed in an older, repurposed building, the gallery occupies a more typical modern, gallery-like building.
Unfortunately, I went to this museum as part of a tour and due to time constraints, I did not manage to get good photos of my favourite experiences of the museum.
From an office building to a contemporary, cultural space.
The Arario Museum building was previously the office of the architecture firm SPACE group, led by architect Kim Swoo Geun. The architect also used the space as his home. Japanese architect Jo Nagasaka later redesigned the building and interior for the museum’s purposes.
Read more about the museum’s architecture here.
At the museum’s courtyard is a traditional hanok building. Part fo the building is renovated into a cafe by Fritz Wonseo. The other side of the hanok housed a restaurant. The architecture of this modestly sized cafe is a very nice mix of old and new, traditional hanok roof accompanied by full-height windows overlooking both the main road and the small garden before the lobby.
An unconventional museum experience that is raw, mysterious, and full of nostalgia.
The lobby of the museum is right behind the cafe and is a stark contrast to the cafe experience. The small lobby is very dimly lit, complete with very dark walls and counters. This ambiance sets the mysterious mood for the rest of the museum experience.
The museum has preserved most of the interior architecture of the former office building. The walls are red bricks from the original building. The narrow corridors, old winding staircases, meeting rooms, and even toilets were also preserved and reused to exhibit the museum’s permanent collection. The uneven ceiling and floors of the old building were also preserved, creating unique exhibition spaces.
Each floor’s layout is different. The artwork displayed in each space is intentional. The synergy between the displayed artwork and the spatial characteristics helps enhance the experience of the artwork.
Read more about the museum’s permanent collection experience here.
Some personal highlights are artworks by Sophie Calle, Cindy Sherman, Nam June Paik, and a collection highlights exhibition: Eclipse, which includes a sculpture by Kiki Smith.
Personal wishlist: to revisit this museum alone without the time constraints, and to visit the museum in Jeju. Based on what I can gather on the website, the Jeju location is bigger, 3 locations in total, and has a different vibe in terms of the collection and the experiences.
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