Exhibition "A Hundred Years and a Day" Opens to Mark 100th Anniversary of Seoul Station Completion

Until November 30 at Culture Station Seoul 284

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will host a special exhibition titled "A Hundred Years and a Day: From Memory to Imagination" from September 30 to November 30 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the completion of the Old Seoul Station. The exhibition will take place throughout the entire Culture Station Seoul 284 building and the outdoor space at Connect Place Seoul Station.

The Old Seoul Station is the oldest railway building in Korea, completed in 1925 as "Gyeongseong Station." It became "Seoul Station" in 1947 and served as a hub for transportation and logistics. After the opening of the Korea Train Express (KTX) in 2004, the railway functions were transferred to the new Seoul Station, and the original building was restored to its 1925 appearance. Today, it operates as a multi-purpose cultural space known as Culture Station Seoul 284.

This exhibition is organized around three themes: reflecting on the past 100 years of the Old Seoul Station, re-examining it from a contemporary perspective, and imagining the future of Seoul Station.

First, in the third-class waiting room, the exhibition will showcase key photographs highlighting the historical significance of the Old Seoul Station, alongside artworks by contemporary artists such as Kim Sooja, Shin Meekyung, and Lee Soogyeong. In the adjacent west corridor, historical records and videos chronicling the 100-year history of Seoul Station will be displayed in conjunction with related artifacts.

The second theme bridges past and present. In the first- and second-class waiting rooms, visitors can revisit the beer, coffee, and snacks once sold at the Old Seoul Station through tasting events and sales in collaboration with companies such as HiteJinro, Kooksoondang, Seoul Brewery, and Paldo Caramel. The VIP room and the VIP anteroom, which once featured luxurious interiors for distinguished guests, will be reinterpreted with modern furniture and fashion in collaboration with the furniture brand Eastern Edition and the design brand Our, shedding new light on the station's aesthetic spaces. In the women's waiting room, visitors can listen to music reimagined around the theme of Seoul Station, curated by Oasis Records and producer Park Minjun. In the stationmaster's office, interviews with Bae Jonggyu, the last stationmaster of the Old Seoul Station, as well as stories of historical figures who passed through Seoul Station, will be presented.

Finally, the grill and grill preparation room will be transformed into participatory spaces where visitors can imagine and write about the future of Seoul Station. The exhibition will feature the manuscript of the "Great Dictionary of Korean," discovered at Seoul Station, to highlight the value of the Korean language, and will introduce various literary works set against the backdrop of Seoul Station. Over 100 recommended books from Eulyoo Publishing, Bir Publishing, and independent bookstores will be available, along with author talks and related programs, allowing visitors to freely read, participate, and envision the future of Seoul Station.

At the Songshikdang, which visitors pass through upon exiting the exhibition, a vision of the future is presented by depicting the now-disconnected inter-Korean railway as being linked to the Eurasian transcontinental railway, illustrating Seoul Station's potential as an international railway hub connecting Asia and Europe after reunification.

Additionally, for the first time, the connecting passage between the Old Seoul Station and the KTX Seoul Station, which has not been open to the public, will be accessible. KTX passengers passing through Seoul Station can enter Culture Station Seoul 284 via the connecting passage and view the exhibition, while exhibition visitors can use the same passage to access Seoul Station and board trains. The Ministry plans to analyze usage patterns of the connecting passage during the exhibition period and, based on the results, pursue permanent opening of the passage between the old and new stations starting next year. In collaboration with Hanwha Connect, a variety of attractions such as media art exhibitions utilizing Seoul Station will be presented in the outdoor space at Connect Place Seoul Station.

Further details about the exhibition and related programs can be found on the Culture Station Seoul 284 website.

Kim Youngsoo, First Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, stated, "Through this exhibition, I hope visitors will rediscover the architectural and social value of the Old Seoul Station, a precious heritage that has been at the center of Korea's modern history and development in transportation and logistics, and recognize its potential as a cultural asset."

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