Campus or Gallery? ... Dongseo University 30th Anniversary Special Exhibition, Korea-Italy Professors Collaboration 'The Garden of Ideas' Exhibition

Dongseo University 30th Anniversary Special Exhibition IcoXAhn Art Project ‘The Garden of Ideas’.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Dongseo University (President Jang Je-guk), a university specializing in design, is holding a special exhibition to commemorate its 30th anniversary.

From the 1st to the 8th of this month, the newly opened ‘Media Art Gallery’ is welcoming visitors with its opening commemorative exhibition.

Among them, the 30th anniversary special exhibition ‘IcoXAhn Art Project: The Garden of Ideas’ is attracting attention as an international collaborative work between Italian environmental designer Professor Ico Migliore and Professor Ahn Byung-jin of Dongseo University’s College of Design.

Professor Ico Migliore is currently a professor in the Department of Design at the Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy. He is the founder of Migliore+Servetto Architects and a world-renowned spatial designer.

He serves as a distinguished professor at Dongseo University’s College of Design and annually offers intensive summer workshops for Dongseo students, as well as opportunities to visit his architectural studio in Milan during the winter.

He is actively engaged not only in global projects, installations, and exhibitions but also in writing and publishing.

Professor Ahn Byung-jin is the dean of Dongseo University’s College of Design, director of the Public Design and Lighting Research Institute, and a professor specializing in visual design.

Professor Ahn conducts various interdisciplinary and experimental research on sustainable design.

In particular, the DMZ Haemaru Village ‘Design and Art Village Creation’ project has been ongoing for over ten years, contributing to the revitalization of local culture. The urban brand ‘memewe Gangnam’ in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, is one of his representative works.

‘Soswaewon's Chaekgado Arrives at the Design Hall’, window installation, by Ahn Byungjin.

‘The Garden of Ideas’, window installation, by Iko Milliore.

These two artists held numerous online meetings to prepare the exhibition together. Immersed in their eternal theme of ‘creativity’ as artists, designers, and educators, they created an imaginative and metaphorical space called ‘The Garden of Ideas.’

Professor Migliore emphasized, “Creativity is not a gift given automatically; it must be cultivated with perseverance,” adding, “Creativity is an act of courage and struggle.”

Professor Ahn explains creativity by recalling King Jeongjo of the Joseon Dynasty, who encouraged new challenges through the theme of Chaekgado (painted folding screens depicting books). He defined creativity as “a journey toward all things new through the same perspective called design.”

With their respective concepts and definitions of creativity, Professor Migliore presented an arch-shaped environmental graphic featuring dramatic perspectives reminiscent of architects Bramante and Borromini.

The repeated lines creating an optical illusion and the iridescent reflective arch-shaped surfaces inside harmonize to produce a mysterious feeling of light and space that changes moment by moment, sufficiently drawing visitors into a new space.

Professor Ahn set the theme of this special exhibition as “Chaekgado of Soswaewon Arrives at the Design Hall.”

He composed a collage inspired by the moss, grass, plum blossoms, ducks, books, and stationery items of Soswaewon.

Professor Ahn said, “Through this narrative of metaphorical substitution across time and space, the university signals that it is a learning space while simultaneously presenting the theme of ‘uniqueness’ as a key to ‘creativity.’”

These fascinating works were installed on the front and rear facades of the first-floor lobby of the College of Design building.

The first special exhibition was unveiled at the opening ceremony of the newly established ‘Media Art Gallery’ on the first floor of the Design Hall at 2 p.m. on the 5th.

In the immersive media art gallery, the ‘30th Anniversary Media Art Show: A Small Story About Light’ by design students and the ‘IcoXAhn Art Project: The Garden of Ideas’ were transformed into media art, offering a new experience.

‘The Garden of Ideas’.

‘The Garden of Ideas’.

‘The Garden of Ideas’.

A Dongseo University official stated, “These works, which stimulate viewers’ emotions through spaces that change according to light and the time of day, will be permanently installed to provide a special art complex space where people can study and relax,” adding, “A new premium space in Busan that delights both sight and touch has been born.”

Additionally, the ‘DSU Art & Design Show,’ a Dongseo University design alumni exhibition, is being held on the third floor of the IC Building, and the ‘Professor Kim Jong-gi Media Art Invitational Exhibition: Thousand Character Classic’ is another highlight, currently screening on the Media Art Wall on the second floor of the New Millennium Building.

The ‘30th Anniversary Interactive Media Art Wall Show: Thanks to You + Impact DSU’ is also being screened.

The diverse exhibitions commemorating Dongseo University’s 30th anniversary will continue until the 8th, and the video works of ‘The Garden of Ideas’ installed in the Design Hall lobby and on the Media Art Wall on the second floor of the New Millennium Building will be on permanent display.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.