Are you guys ready for this? This is a historic moment we are about to witness. This will be my last post K-Pop Academy homework post. It actually makes me a little sad... =(
But I probably shouldn't get all sentimental till the end of this über long post.
So, let's see what we did this week! ^^
Week 11
This week the K-Pop Academy assembled at the British Museum in London for a guided tour in the section about Korea. All of us had to pay really close attention to what our guide was saying, because we were handed a really hard task this week.
You probably know by now that the K-Pop Academy students get a homework sheet every week, so that is nothing new. However, this week we had an extra mandatory task: identify some errors that may have been made in regards to the display and description. Also, suggest ways to improve the Korean room in order to better promote Korea's cultural heritage.
That's a pretty though assignment, right? Especially when your knowledge about the history of Korea and it's culture are not a 100 pro cent up to snuff...
I couldn't find any major mistakes in the Korean Culture exposition but there were some bits and pieces of information that could have been clearer had it been worded differently. So, here is what I made of it:
(I apologize in advange for the poor quality of the pictures. I forgot my super fancy, shiny samsung camera, so I had to make them with my blackberry instead...)
Mistakes
1. More questions than answers
On these pictures you see a 'wonsam' (wedding dress) and the sign that goes with it. The piece of clothing in it self is fine, but the information given on the sign on the other hand seems to contradict itself. It reads:
"This garment known in Korean as wonsam is a wedding dress of a type worn by commoners from the late 19th century on. In the Choson dynasty (1392-1910) the wonsam was a ceremonial robe worn only by queens, princesses and other high-ranking women at courts."
It's only a small piece of text, but I had to re-read it four times before I actually understood what it said. Not because the information was very hard to comprehend, but because of both sentences are basically saying the same thing and there is no further explanation.
Why was the wonsam first only worn by the queen, and what made this more than 500 years long lasting tradition change? What did commoners use to get married in before, and what does the queen get married in now? And there is much more to tell about this object. How is it made? Where does the original design come from?
It feels to me like the person making this sign was either in a hurry or lacking motivation.
I also believe it's better to start 'Choson Dynasty' with two capital letters. At least that is what they did on all the other signs, so it will look more consistent that way. I know it's a really small detail, but it still counts.
2. Where are the squirrels?
On these pictures you see a plate and the sign that goes with it. On the sign it tells you about how the figures on the plate have different meanings. The sign reads:
"Squirrels were a popular motif in Choson Dynasty paintings and ceramics."
The information in itself is not wrong, but there is just one problem... There are absolutely no squirrels in sight. There not on the plate, nor on any of the surrounding objects. I assume that the squirrels reference belongs to a object that was no longer displayed, which is understandable, as most museums like to change their collection every now and then to mix things up a bit. But the British Museum might want to clarify on the sign that the squirrels are not to be found on any of the displayed items. Even if it was only for people who loves squirrels, and end up searching for them for at least 3 minutes before realising that they're not there (like I did).
3. Sarangbang
The sign you see below goes with the room/building which all the lovely K-Pop Academy students are standing in front of in this group photo. Let's not get distracted by our charm though.
During the tour the guide specifically told us about the 'sarangbang'. We have already learned that 'sarang' means 'love', and 'bang' means 'room'. This room is a specifically-for-men-so-absolutely-no-women-allowed-room. The first question that came to my mind was "if it's only for men, why is it called 'sarang'?". Sadly that wasn't really able to get a clear answer about that.
Now, you can clearly see how the sign states: "One of the main rooms of the house, the sarangbang, was used by the gentlemen of the house as a study and for receiving visitors, while the women's room, the anbang, or inner room, was associated with domestic activities and sewing"
That is true in essence, but if I was a being a real nitpick (and I am), I would tell you that I would like to see that changed to 'male visitors'. Because as I understood it from what our guide told us, Korean women very rarely left their homes in those days. And even when they did they were only allowed to speak to certain people, so visiting other people at their house would have been out of the question for them.
I think the sign could have explained this a bit more.
How can the Korean section in the British museum be improved?
To be really honest there are only four points of improvement, and that's only after I really looked for something to complain about.
1. There was a lot of pottery on display, which is really nice if you are into that kind of thing. My mum would probably have loved it, because she really likes dishes, bowls, etc. I on the other hand am not a big fan pottery and I think Korea has a lot more to offer than just vases and bowls. I would have liked to see more of a variety in the artefacts, like the traditional clothing, instruments and the Hangul script. There was only a tiny section dedicated to Hangul (it wasn't even really about Hangul, it was bout the printing presses), while it's one of the most important Korean inventions. Personally I feel that the British Museum should give a bit more information about King Sejong, who has done so many good things for culture of Korea.
2. My second point is that the way the information is presented lacks a little bit of creativity (though I can't be too sure about this, as I didn't have the opportunity to listen to the audio through one of those headphones). Whenever I go to a museum, the things I usually end up remembering is the information I saw on videos, or in attractions/games. Maybe it's an idea to put something like that in the Korean section, so it's not just peeking through showcase and reading the signs.
However for something like a video you need quite a lot of space, because people probably prefer to sit down while they are watching it, which brings me to my next point.
3. The section of Korea was a lot smaller than I thought it would be. To make the exposition about Korean culture really good, I would advise the British Museum to make it bigger, in order to fit in more objects, which would allow them to dig a little bit deeper into the subject. But, of course I understand that this is quite difficult to arrange as there are many countries with fascinating artefacts that deserve a place in the British Museum.
4. This is my last point, and it may very well be me, but I had the feeling like there was a little bit of a flow issue in the exposition of Korean culture. What I mean is that I didn't really get a feel for what objects were in which showcase and why. Personally I would have probably put:
A) either all the object that were kind of similar together (vases with vases, coins with coins, weapons with weapons, clothes with clothes, instruments with instruments, etc). That way it's easier for guests to compare them without have to walk from one side of the room to the other.
Or...
B) I would have put every thing in chronological order and have used big(ger), flashy signs to make the order of all the dynasties clear, clarify the differences between them and explain which object belonged where and why.
Ok, so that is the mandatory task over and done with. I feel like a snob now... :S
So, it's time for some fun! ^^
Creative content time! Oh yeah!
Creative Content
Option C: The Korean television program 'Infinite Challenge' made a Bibimbap promotional video:
Make a promotional video about a Korean cultural heritage site or intangible heritage of humanity of your choice.
Now, you guys all know by now that when Alice, Amy and I get together for homework, the final result usually ends up being something light and whimsical. This week is no exception.
The subject of our promotional video is Jeju, because the three of us are dying to go there someday. It looks absolutely gorgeous!
However, our promotional video is not just a normal information clip. Oh no! Our video is inspired on the story of the Dutch Captain Hendrick Hamel (which you can find <here>, but be warned, it's the longest story known to mankind) It was actually Ambassador Choo who first told me about this story.
The story goes that Hamel was on a ship heading for Japan, but was shipwrecked on the way close to the coast of Jeju. The Hamel and 35 other crew members survived the crash, and were sent to Seoul. King Hyojon of Joseon were then forbidden to leave the country, and took them 13 years before they escaped to Japan. When Hamel returned to the Netherlands he wrote down his experiences in Korea and published it under the name 'Hamel's Journal and a Description of the Kingdom of Korea', making him the first Westerner to write and experience first-hand in the Joseon Dynasty era in Korea.
So, with that in mind, I hope you will enjoy our promotional video! ^^
And that's it! My last creative content for KA!
I hope you enjoyed the last 11 posts/weeks as much as I did. All my work represents a really special time for me during which I learned, experienced, and laughed a lot. I made new friends, shamelessly used some of my old friends to help me do homework, and found sort of a second home and family in KCC.
Thank you KCC for giving me this opportunity!
And thanks to all my friends for giving me support whenever I needed it!
사랑해요~ <3
