Chickens have always been considered as food. Have we considered them as things other than food? Pets-sometimes. Anything else? Nope. Well, newly opened as of last December 19, Seoul Museum of Chicken Art presents a completely new view that chickens can be art. Retired emeritus professor of
Located in northern Seoul in Gahoe-dong, which is within a five minutes’ walk from Anguk station (Line 3), Seoul Museum of Chicken Art accommodates a unique collection of chicken art from Asian antiques to internationally collected contemporary sculptures and paintings most of which are personal collections of professor Kim. The collection of craftworks meets no boundary from a teacup engraved with a chicken pattern to an ancient hairpin used by courtesans, also illustrated with a chicken. People cachinnate in front of the international chicken collection because every little piece so well represents the very image of each nation and then gasp at the beautiful, detailed glassworks of various breeds of chicken.
“We thoughtlessly address cowards as chickens and snatch the barbequed chicken wings from lovers’ hands believing the false superstition in
Exploring through both Asian and Western chicken art’s history, people can examine the real meaning of this domestic foul to mankind. Chickens have acted as guides and lucky icons regarding their supernatural power as spiritual beings, but overly distorted are their images in contemporary society as detestable figures or relishes for beers. Each piece of art in the museum holds a special cultural meaning or tells an interesting fable, all of which visitors can hear from the director Kim Cho-kang. She also created a cozy café on the first floor of the museum for people to converse freely with each other or even with Kim herself, after viewing the exhibition.
The gallery changes its themes four times a year promising patrons something new to see upon their visits. Until the end of the March, the exhibition focuses on “Facial Expressions” of chickens, so it might be amusing to find various facial expressions of chickens which we have never noticed in our daily lives.
Aside from the