Department Store Transformed into Gallery... Also Selling Artworks

Lotte Department Store Gangnam Branch Hosts 'Art Antidote' Exhibition
Hyundai Department Store Pangyo Branch Sells Kusama Yayoi's 'Pumpkin'
Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam Branch Combines Luxury Stores with Artworks

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] Department stores are transforming into galleries.

Lotte Department Store Gangnam Branch announced on the 9th that it will hold the 'Art Antidote' exhibition to alleviate 'Corona Blue' in collaboration with the Sindang Creative Arcade of the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, which supports emerging artists, until the 31st. As the time spent at home increases, sales of home appliances and furniture categories are showing strong performance. Moreover, more people are seeking artworks as interior elements. Accordingly, Lotte Department Store opened 'Print Bakery,' which sells and rents works by famous artists, at the AvenueL World Tower branch. It is continuously expanding its art sales brand by opening '363 Studio Galleria,' which showcases various works from photographs to illustrations and landscapes, at four stores including Nowon and Jungdong branches.

The reason department stores focus on artworks is to provide customers with differentiated spaces by offering new cultural and artistic experiences beyond simple shopping spaces. The 'Art Antidote' exhibition aims to relieve customers' negative emotions caused by COVID-19 through various artworks. This event was planned in collaboration with the Sindang Creative Arcade of the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture since May to create exhibition spaces for emerging Seoul artists and provide art sales channels, and a related business agreement was signed in August.

On the first floor of Lotte Department Store Gangnam Branch, a large-scale artwork 'KF-94 Factory' created by the team 'Kitsch Pop,' consisting of 'Dopamine Choi' and 'Jung Kyung-woo,' resident artists of Sindang Creative Arcade, is installed. Visitors can write their daily worries living in the COVID-19 era in a mailbox placed in the exhibition hall. The artwork 'KF-94 MACHINE,' composed of four machines?No. 1 extracts worries and fears, No. 2 crushes negative energy, No. 3 detoxifies and converts it into happiness energy, and No. 4 transmits detox drawings?decodes these messages and delivers comforting messages through the artists' drawings in a citizen participation exhibition.

Additionally, an event selling various products in four genres?furniture, accessories, tableware, and decorations?created by 18 artists affiliated with Sindang Creative Arcade is held simultaneously. Notably, jewelry by artist Baek Si-nae is sold in the 500,000 KRW range, and the 'Coral Leaf' table by artist Kim Gye-ri is sold for 700,000 KRW.

Hyundai Department Store will hold the 'Pangyo Art Museum,' decorating the entire department store with artworks for 17 days until the 25th. During the event, artworks will be exhibited and sold on each floor, including the first-floor Open Plaza and the 10th-floor Topaz Hall. Artworks worth a total of 20 billion KRW will be sold. The first-floor Open Plaza will showcase works by domestic and international artists such as David Hockney and Yoshimoto Nara, and various artworks including sculptures, bike drawings, and sculptures will be exhibited on each floor.

The special exhibition hall on the 10th-floor Topaz Hall will present about 85 works by domestic and international artists including Kim Whanki and Lee Ufan. Representative works include Yayoi Kusama's 'Pumpkin' and Lee Ufan's 'East Winds.' The company plans to strengthen quarantine measures by mandating temperature checks and electronic entry logs upon entering the 10th-floor Topaz Hall, and conducting ventilation and disinfection every hour to ensure safe exhibition viewing.

A 'Mobile Docent Service' will also be operated. This service will be available from the 13th on the Pangyo Art Museum's dedicated website and will provide explanations of artworks and 360-degree videos.

Hyundai Department Store will sell Yayoi Kusama's representative work 'Pumpkin.' While the distribution industry has sold Kusama Yayoi's print works before, this is the first time the original painting is being sold. A Hyundai Department Store official said, "The opportunity to own an original work by Kusama Yayoi, whose sales price reaches tens of billions of KRW, is rare," and added, "Detailed sales prices can be confirmed through experts stationed on-site."

Shinsegae Department Store also renovated its luxury store at Gangnam Branch into a gallery in August. About 120 artworks by famous domestic and international artists were exhibited in a 3,500㎡ store. Curators stay at the department store to explain products to consumers and handle sales.