Exploring the Unique Landscape of Seoul’s Apartment Buildings and Art Sculptures – A Colombian Novelist’s Perspective

2024-02-22 14:33:00

Illustration by reporter Park Cho-hee [email protected]

Every time I land at Incheon Airport, I look out the window at the towering buildings. It’s like a concrete forest created in the middle of the city. The buildings have similar appearances and do not differ in height or color. A friend who visited Korea also said it was like a beehive. Another friend said it looked like giant robot legs buried in the ground upside down. The thought of millions of people living there was both fascinating and terrifying.

There are apartments in Bogota, but it is difficult to find large apartments like in Korea. Usually apartments are named following trees, flowers, rivers, mountains, and even people. My grandmother lived in a building named ‘Cariari’. I later learned that ‘Cariari’ is the name of a river in Costa Rica.

Andres Solano Colombian novelist

I often find the names of apartments I come across in Seoul a bit strange. Those strange names are usually given to apartments where wealthy people live. The name of the apartment next to the dentist’s office I often go to is ‘Richencia’, an awkward combination of words, and every time I pass by, I wonder who would want to live in an apartment with that name. Was it necessary to use a compound word containing the word ‘rich’ instead of being satisfied with just making the interior of the house or building look luxurious? My wife’s parents lived in an apartment complex called ‘Lotte Castle’ for a while. The name of the company’s representative apartment, which is named following ‘Lotte’, the nickname of Charlotte, the heroine in Goethe’s novel ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther’, has a somewhat Korean feel. When I first came to Korea and briefly stayed at ‘Lotte Castle’ for the first few months, I had to give my home address to a foreign country due to work, and I remember feeling very embarrassed to write ‘Castle’ in the address. At the entrance to the apartment complex, there was an eagle sculpture reminiscent of the symbol of the German military during World War II, which sometimes made me feel uncomfortable. It’s not as big as the sculptures in front of large buildings you come across while walking around Seoul.

In Korea, there is a law that requires a large building to be decorated with a sculpture at the entrance. In principle, it’s a cool idea. A work of art in front of a dry robot leg. The problem seems to have arisen later when construction companies began commissioning work from anyone who called themselves an artist. One day, a friend of a builder complained that his child was not doing anything. Then the builder asks: “Oh, didn’t you say you majored in art? “I have the budget, so please make something at the entrance of the building I’m currently building.” It almost seems like a favor that the builder can cash in on later. If not for this scenario, it is difficult to explain why there are thorn-like sculptures placed in front of the building that, instead of providing aesthetic pleasure, ruin the day of those passing by.

Of course, one might say that this is a very subjective opinion and that a work of art that I think is terrible may seem sublime to someone else. I too think that is correct. Not long ago, while passing by a familiar building, I was very disappointed to discover that a sculpture for which I had developed affection had disappeared. However, the sculpture appeared a few meters in front, mistaking the location of the building. Some people may think this sculpture is a thorn in their eyes, but to me, I hope that this sculpture, which looks like two children stuck together, will not disappear. These are two pieces of golden ginseng root that are well over a person’s height.

I wonder sometimes. What happens to all these so-called works of art when a building is torn down and a new one is built? Wouldn’t it be better if we sent them all to Richencia instead of discarding them?

Andres Solano Colombian novelist

1708615815
#Apartments #strange #names안드레스 #솔라노 #한국 #블로그